All week long the kudos and compliments have been coming.
With the passing last Sunday of Bob Hope, the man they are
calling the Entertainer of the Century, we are diminished. As
Woody Allen noted, "It's hard for me to imagine a world without
Bob Hope in it." I suspect there are millions of others who
would echo that, especially those who, as young men and women in
uniform around the world at some distant Christmas, were able to
enjoy his traveling shows to bases in the far corners of the
globe. We agree with President Bush that "America [has] lost a
great citizen. We mourn the passing of Bob Hope. Bob Hope made
us laugh." Indeed. Thanks for the memory, Bob.
Did you see Andy Rooney's column in the paper yesterday? He
wrote,
Enthusiasm isn't listed as a virtue in the Bible but
it's one of the most attractive attributes a person can
have. An entertainer who loves to entertain has a big
head start appealing to an audience, and no one ever
loved being on stage more than Bob Hope. Every time he
got up in front of a crowd, he had a good time and it
was catching; his audience had a good time too.(1)
I was interested to see that the New York Times informed its
readers of Bob's death by running an obituary written by Vincent
Canby, the veteran Times entertainment critic who himself died
three years ago. The peculiar incident of one dead man writing
about another was cause for some enjoyment in New York's
tabloids. The New York Post wrote, "If there are any mistakes,
obviously don't call the writer." Uh huh. I guess if you are
going to have fun with an obituary, it is fitting that it be for
Bob Hope. It is all part of what we remember him for.
Over and over this week we have heard "Thanks for the
memory" repeated. That was not only Bob's theme song, it IS the
way the nation feels. And I began to think, what will be said
about me when my time comes? Will there be any memories to say
Thanks for? How about you? The answer is pretty much in our
hands, isn't it?
You are familiar with the name Alfred Nobel, after whom the
Nobel Prizes are named. Nobel made his fortune as the result of
an invention of his - dynamite. One morning he awoke to read his
own obituary in the paper. You see, his brother had died, but a
careless reporter had published the obituary of the wrong Nobel.
It described him as "the dynamite king, the industrialist who
became rich from explosives." It made Alfred Nobel sound like
nothing more than a merchant of death. Needless to say, Nobel
was more than a little upset by what he saw...not simply that the
wrong person was being remembered, but the horrible portrait it
painted. Alfred Nobel resolved that day to change the course of
his life and do something positive for society. He left his
entire fortune to be awarded to individuals who have done the
most to benefit humanity, and the result was those five Nobel
Prizes that are awarded with such fanfare each year...and it all
started because of an obituary that made clear what any "Thanks
for the memory, Alfred" would sound like.
Somewhere I recall reading of a newspaperman whose job it
was to edit the obituary page. One day, things were right slow
on the job - nobody died - so he searched around for something to
do. As he sat staring at the keys on his typewriter, he began to
think about what his OWN obituary might look like if suddenly it
became necessary to publish one. As he thought about it, he
realized that there would not be very much to say beyond place of
birth, job, family, and so on. So he began to compose the kind
of obituary for himself that he would LIKE to have written. In
it he included all sorts of church activities and community
service, involvement with young people, his community, support
for the various educational institutions, help with the United
Way - one worthwhile activity after another. When the obituary
was finished, he was most impressed, but at the same time, most
discouraged. Because he realized that what he had written was a
big lie. It became a challenge to him, and for the rest of his
life, that man made the effort to live up to that glowing
obituary he had written. It worked. He DID become involved in
his church and community more than ever before, and the result
finally was that the fanciful obituary he had written on one slow
day proved to become a roadmap for his life. What kind of
obituary would you like to have written about you? Thanks for
the memory, David...or Bill or Bob or Jean or Jane.
Now, here we are at this table. In a moment we will hear
again those words heard so often that we perhaps do not listen to
them carefully anymore: "Take, eat...do this in remembrance of
me...This cup is the new covenant sealed in my blood...Whenever
you drink it, do this in remembrance of me." What is it that the
Lord wants us to remember? Perhaps the answer is in our lesson.
The crowd has seen Jesus do remarkable things - the lame walk,
the blind see, the hungry are fed (just now 5,000-plus with only
five barley loaves and two small fish). Now they want even more:
"What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and
believe you? What will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in
the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to
eat.'"
Jesus responds, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who
has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who
gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he
who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."
"Please, Jesus, give US this bread."
He answers, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me
will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be
thirsty."
Jesus says remember me when you eat and drink. Why
especially then? Because we need the reminder of the true source
of all we need:
- When our starving spirit needs nourishment, we have it in
Jesus;
- When our hungry heart needs sustenance, we have it in Jesus;
- When our tortured mind needs mending, we have it in Jesus;
- When our suffering soul needs solace, we have it in Jesus.
As we come to the table, dare we say, "Thanks for memory,
Lord?" Why not? The remembering does us good. And we hear the
words again, "I am the bread of life. Those who come to me will
never go hungry, and those who believe in me will never be
thirsty." Come to me, he says, I am here to provide what you
need. And that is good news indeed.
Amen.
1. Andy Rooney, "Remembering Bob Hope," Tribune Media Services, Warren Times-Observer, 8/2/03, A-4
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