April 10, 2014 By Cher Cunningham

Draw us in the Spirit’s tether; for when humbly, in thy name,

Two or three are met together, Thou art in the midst of them: 

Alleluia! Alleluia! Touch we now thy garment’s hem.  

Something is too familiar, too intimate, about touching the hem of anyone else’s garment, and the composer of the familiar and beautiful hymn above knew that well. I remember standing on a chair in our kitchen as a young child, wearing a new dress that my mom had just finished making me. She would be sitting on the floor, pins between her teeth and ruler in her hand, carefully pinning my hem at just the right place below my knee. She would ask me to turn, always with the rejoinder, “Stand up straight, Cheryl!”, and I would quietly turn. We didn’t say anything else. I knew that she made the dress with great love, and she knew that I was grateful for it. No words could take the place of that simple, very intimate encounter; it shaped my relationship with my mother.

Jesus, too, understood this kind of simple intimacy and how it draws us into relationships that are mystical, lasting, and life-changing - the so-called “tether of the Spirit,” in the words of our hymn writer. Jesus’ ministry was one of intimate encounters - healing a blind man or a sick child, attending a wedding, having his feet washed with the tears of a prostitute. So it is no surprise that a simple meal of broken bread and poured wine shared among friends in an upper room has become the symbol by which we know Jesus and experience God in our midst. Jesus demonstrated God’s love in simple acts of kindness and generosity - and He tells us to do the same. Whether we are feeding the hungry, finding shelter for the homeless, bringing furniture to a new immigrant’s first apartment, or hemming a youngster’s dress, we are serving and loving and touching God’s garment hem. Alleluia! Alleluia!