The themes were "Choosing a Christian or non-Christian Partner," "How to Preserve Your Body Before and During Your Engagement," and "The Difference Between Infatuation and Love." Having an opportunity to reflect on these important but not often discussed topics was an invaluable experience for these young people. Suffice it to say I learned more about the Italian Christian mentality in these three days than I had in any comparable amount of time, as I listened to the at-times contentious debates (particularly about the first topic). It was a good practicum in loving people, most of with whom I have theological (not to mention cultural) differences.
Between the keynote speakers and discussions, we had joyous times of fellowship. Those of us coming from out of town were hospitably welcomed into the homes of church members. I stayed in Chinatown with a family who has two daughters, one a month older than me and one a few years younger. Sunday afternoon we walked around the center of Bologna, and I very narrowly escaped having my Easter Sunday lunch at McDonald's, the restaurant of choice of the group. I and a half dozen other rebels went across the street for some delightful calzones :)
the sisters in my host family!
Despite having spent several months in Italy during the last three years, this year I have felt more than ever the philosophical divides between Italy and America. In these two wonderful countries I feel that I have two homes, which also means that sometimes I cannot be completely at home in either. I have come to better understand the truth of Norwegian novelist Johan Bojer in "The Emigrants":
"If you came back, you wanted to leave again.
If you went away, you longed to come back.
Wherever you were, you could hear the call of the homeland,
like the note of a herdsman's horn far away in the hills.
You had one home out there and one over here,
and yet you were an alien in both places.
Your true abiding place was the vision of something very far off,
and your soul like the waves, always restless and forever in motion."
Last Tuesday the women's Bible study on the army base had a special program day: a traditional Passover Seder meal! A Messianic Jewish chaplain lead us through the Hebrew songs and accompanying Scripture readings, and we partook of unleavenened bread, very bitter herbs, kharoset (an apple/walnut/honey/cinnamon mixture), etc.
I love how the Italian word for Easter, Pasqua, also is the word for Passover. Though we remember Jesus' sacrifice for our salvation throughout the year, this Easter/Passover linguistic confluence is an extra reminder at this time of year how "Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed" (I Corinthians 5:7). Jesus' resurrection has so many implications, and the empty tomb is the starting point of Christianity. In his discussion of the resurrection in I Corinthians 15, Paul outlines a chain reaction of ramifications: "For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead" (verses 16-20a)!
This hope of resurrection and eternity reminds us of our true citizenship. Amidst the hall of fame of faith in Hebrews 11 are these beautiful words (verses 13-16a):
"All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead they were longing for a better country--a heavenly one."
Sounds like a very interesting weekend! I have an inkling what you are feeling when you said you felt like you had two homes but not at home in either one. My first teaching job I was at two schools and traveled from school A to school B on my lunch hour. I never really felt like a part of either one. I took the first full time at one school job that came open the next year!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting update. I'm sure the passover meal was interesting and the Bajer quote was a good one to reflect upon. Thanks for sharing.
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