Being remembered

Alzheimer’s may help us become more aware that faithfulness in exile – in a place of homelessness, strangeness, speechlessness – is possible. It may help us see that our salvation lies not in our control over life but in our life in Christ – in the drama of God’s grace and mercy into which we are invited . . .

In biblical terms we all – the living, the dying, the dead – are best remembered as God remembers us. For to die in Christ is to die being remembered by God. The thief on the cross knew this when he cried, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42).

It is not important to die remembering. But to die being remembered by others makes dying bearable, and to die being remembered by God is what saves us from the sting of death. To be remembered by God is to have one’s deepest fears allayed.

God’s remembering is not principally mental recall. When God remembers, God acts in character: God redeems, creates, forgives, judges. And when God sets people free, as in the case of the exodus, God expects people to respond with similar redemptive activity – remembering the poor, the widows, the strangers . . .

When we remember as God remembers, we become the kind of people who are empowered to help others die in Christ, placing them in God’s memory where death loses its power.

Excerpts from “Being stuck with our parents” by Harry Huebner in Canadian Mennonite, May 31, 2004. Used by permission.