Reconcilation and Accompaniment
We, and our acquaintances on the road, are all part of the body of Christ.
I generally try to stay in Lent while in Lent, but for this post, we’re going to zoom ahead a bit into the season of Easter. The story of Jesus meeting two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus is a foundational text for the theology of accompaniment, and the theology of accompaniment shapes who we are as a church and how we interact with our neighbors–next door and around the world.
One of my most-downloaded resources from elca.org is the 2014 Glocal Mission Gathering guide to Accompaniment. It begins by inviting us into the Emmaus story:
“Imagine that you have parked your car, and are walking down the sidewalk toward a dinner with some people you don’t know very well. One of your dinner companions parks nearby, and since you had to park quite far away from the restaurant, you walk together, awkwardly getting to know one another, sharing your sadness—awful things have been happening, and all your hopes for the future seem to have been overthrown. Your new acquaintance shares her own pains and griefs, and you discover that you have much in common, but somehow you only seem to become sadder as you walk down the street together.
And then someone else joins you—someone you have not met before—and then he begins to speak to both of you about your pain, your loss, your fears and about how God had been present in all of this. You are shocked—you and your new friend look at one another, wondering how this person can speak so without even knowing you, yet feeling your hearts lift together at the good news. You invite him to join you for dinner, and together you eat and share and begin to feel hope once again. And then, suddenly you recognize him—and he tells you to share with others all the good news that has come from the encounter.
We imagine that this cannot happen in real life. It is a Bible story, something that happened two thousand years ago, when the disciples on the road met the resurrected Jesus on the way to Emmaus. Yet it does and can happen today, every day, when we remember that the good news comes from Christ, who joins us whenever two, or three are gathered in his name. We, and our acquaintances on the road, are all part of the body of Christ. We walk the Emmaus road every day and the people with whom we share the journey accompany us and we accompany them.”
I first learned about accompaniment from the Center for Global Education out of Augsburg University–an interreligious youth delegation to El Salvador I got to be part of in high school was built on an accompaniment model. Later, training in accompaniment was part of preparation for short term ELCA missionary service in China and Slovakia.
As a synod, accompaniment is integral to how we approach our companion relationship with the Western Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa, and our relationship with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. Many of us who are steeped in this theology and approach learned it from ELCA Global Mission (now Service and Justice), in global contexts and from global companions.
At the same time: a lived theology based on building relationships of mutuality with the people we meet on the road–the people who we share this life’s journey with in different contexts and ways–is applicable in any place, with any people. At our office at Luther College, my pastor colleague and I posted the five values of accompaniment, as a reminder to ourselves to live out these core values in our ministry: mutuality, inclusivity, vulnerability, empowerment, sustainability.
“Walking together” is an image used often in the church, especially at the synod level, because that’s what the word synod means. The role of the bishop and synod staff is accompaniment–walking with congregations, leaders and other ministries and ministers, particularly through times of transition. We also facilitate synod-level accompaniment beyond what just one bishop and a few staff members can do–connecting people and congregations to share the journey.
When I was a missionary in Slovakia, it struck me that the image of “walking together” seems really sunny and happy–the first image that always popped into my head was of people enjoying a stroll on a lovely day, holding hands. There are enjoyable patches on this journey we’re sharing, for sure. But often, accompaniment doesn’t look like cheerful, sunny-day walking together. In my experience, accompaniment is mostly slogging along on that road through stormy times and delicate or difficult situations: building up enough trust to be able to challenge each other, when needed. It’s not easy. But we trust that, whether we recognize him right away or not, Jesus is on the road with us.
Another section of the 2014 ELCA resource on accompaniment reads:
“From the gospel and the stories of our faith, we understand that God’s mission is reconciliation. We, and all people, are broken before God. We are turned in on ourselves, away from God and others. We sew discord and dissension. We hurt one another and abuse the earth we have been given to care for. We are alienated, far from God and from one another.
Jesus came to reconcile us with God. God meets us in our brokenness, and restores our relationship with God and with one another. God desires our reconciliation with one another, so that we no longer exploit or hurt; and our reconciliation with the earth, so that we no longer abuse or waste. We continue to be imperfect, but we are constantly called back to God’s mission of reconciliation.”
Read: Luke 24:13-35
Sing: Will You Let Me Be Your Servant? (ELW 659)
Reflect:
If you were walking down the road talking to someone about something important going on that impacts your life and ministry, what would it be? If a third person stopped you to ask what you were talking about, how would you describe it to them? What hopes have been disappointed, what are you mourning, and what feels like good news?
Download the Glocal Guide to Accompaniment and find the five accompaniment values listed and explained on pages 6-8. How are these values applicable in your ministry context?
Pray:
Gracious God, because of our companions on this road, we get to know you better, and our image of the Body of Christ is bigger and more beautiful than it could be if it were limited to just the people we already know. Thank you for sending neighbors to share this journey, from near and far. Meet us on the roads we’re on right now; listen to our fears and frustrated hopes, and show us Jesus. We pray in Jesus’ name: Amen.
A picture of a diner.
