Keeping Our Covenants

Here we are at the Feast of Corpus Christi. What is this feast really about? When I reflect on the readings for this Sunday together, what I notice is that there’s a little bit about sacrifice and a lot about covenant. What does that mean for us? Let’s look a little closer.

In the First Reading, Moses is presiding over a covenant between God and the people. Why does this sound familiar? Because Abraham did the same thing. More than once. Before him, Noah also had a covenant with God, a promise from God never to destroy the Earth again. God consistently kept God’s promises, but the people did not do so well at keeping theirs. In this First Reading, people say “with one voice, ‘we will do everything that the Lord has told us.’” That’s true. For a minute. For a minute people do everything God tells them, they follow all the commandments, they hold up their end of the covenant. But eventually they break it. Over and over again, they break it. Could the people ever have kept the covenant? I’m not sure.

And then in the Gospel we have Jesus at the Last Supper, offering bread and wine and telling his disciples that the bread and wine are his own body and blood, “which will be shed for many.” So, Jesus sees himself as the sacrifice. The Second Reading calls him the “mediator of a new covenant.”

Are we any better at keeping this covenant than all who came before us? I’m not sure. Especially in this day and age, it seems that people aren’t doing a great job of keeping our commitments with God or with each other. There are lots of people saying one thing and doing another. On the other hand, maybe it’s that those who fail our trust over and over are the ones we hear about most of the time. Maybe there are still plenty of good and faithful people in this world, people doing the best they can to keep their commitments. Keeping promises might be too boring for clickbait or gossip. It’s not glamorous to be trustworthy and reliable. And yet, as unglamorous as it might be, keeping our commitments in small ways means everything in the grand scheme of things, doesn’t it?

When I made vows in religious life, I remember a sister telling me that it’s not just about the big yes of my profession, but commitment really means saying yes again every day. I don’t wake up every morning and say, “Yes, God, yeeessss! Let’s do this again today!” Although, maybe I should. Really, I express my yes in the little choices I make throughout the day. When I keep trying to strengthen relationships in community and live simply and do small things to serve people, I’m saying yes. When I’m tired or community dynamics are challenging or I feel like doing a little retail therapy, that yes is harder to say, but maybe it’s those times when it means the most. I don’t say yes perfectly, and none of these yesses are grand gestures; they’re small actions that demonstrate my continued yes to the commitment I made a long time ago.

I’ve never been married, but I imagine that it’s the same dynamic — all the small things that strengthen a relationship also fortify a covenant. Especially when it’s hard. For some reason, people are really good at annoying each other. I don’t know why, but a huge part in any relationship, especially a marriage, is sticking with it even during the annoying or difficult times. And couples say yes to each other again every time they resolve a conflict, work out the management of the house, parent in alignment with each other, and do small things that express love and care. The covenant deepens. There are plenty of songs about heartbreak, betrayal, lust, and limerence, but probably none about a content couple doing the dishes together. Even so, don’t those small gestures mean everything? Each time they say yes in those small ways, they say yes to each other in their larger commitment as well.

What does this mean in our relationship with God? I think we know by now from Scripture and from life that God is not the one who violates a covenant. There may be plenty of times when it feels like God’s not there, but I do believe that, even when it feels that way, God never gives up on any of us or deserts us. We have some work to do, though, and it’s the same as with any relationship. It’s all the little ways that we show up and say yes. We come to prayer regularly, and when we fail to show up one day, we don’t stop trying — we come back to it, and we keep coming back to it even when it doesn’t feel like anything is happening. And then sometimes we feel the Spirit move in little, subtle ways. Also, we keep showing up for other people. We keep advocating for justice and peace in our world, because God calls us to build this kingdom which God has shown us. It may seem like nothing is happening, but little by little, bit by bit, things change. And our hearts change to become more and more like this God whom we love.

Maybe the invitation on this Feast of Corpus Christi is to not think so much about the failure of humans in our covenant with God, and our covenants with each other, but rather to consider all the ways that God has restored covenants with us. Maybe that’s the pattern that we focus on — the many times God has started over and offered us God’s love and commitment again, and all the times that we’ve said yes to that invitation, maybe not in grand gestures but in small ways. And even when we break our commitments, God is there. Even when we fail miserably to keep any or all of our promises, and we may even hurt the ones we love through our failure, God is there. Because of God’s fidelity, we are able to be faithful too. And in our trying, in all of our little yesses, we grow and get better at saying yes. It’s not because of us but because God is transforming us every day. Thanks be to God. 

For Reflection:

• When you reflect on your life and the commitments you’ve made, what are the little yesses, the small ways, that you’ve kept your commitment?

• What does other people’s fidelity to you look like? What does it feel like?

• How do you show your faithfulness to God? How does God show faithfulness to you? Maybe you could take a little time and reflect over all of this with God.  

By Sister Leslie Keener, CDP

Sister Leslie Keener, CDP is the director of God Space, a community-building spirituality ministry in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. She’s a Sister of Divine Providence with a Masters in Ministry and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Retreats from Creighton University. She directs retreats, meets with people for spiritual direction, and serves as the vocation director for her community. She enjoys music, meaningful conversations, and dancing.