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Lately Jude had spent more and more time with his head resting back against the wall, eyes closed, reliving the Galilee years. He had been counted in that select band of followers who moved with Jesus through the quiet country of the Galilee, and then moved with him into the turbulence of Jerusalem. Jude had always been a friendly type, and his friendship within the disciple band was wide and warm. Indeed, one of the nicknames he held was "the hearty one." He had traveled with Simon on some of his journeys, until Simon was himself crucified. Now in his sixth decade of life, and more easily tired, his time was given to the remembering.This warm summer day he thought of the last times they had all been together. It was in Jerusalem and in the home of - what was his name? - ah, yes, John Mark's home. It was the meal and the Lord had ended that fellowship time with words that then sounded strange: "Do this in remembrance of me!" Jude could see the room now: the candlelamps that cast moving shadows upon everything, the heat of the evening hour and of the bodies that were lounged around the tiny table in the room's center, the good food, the good company and Jesus' words. As he let his mind search back those 30 years he remembered it as their most special time. And, it had ended so quickly, so brutally. But Jesus had understood what was happening. That is why he said the words, and why the remembering was so important.Jude, "the hearty one," smiled in the remembering and lifted his arm as if to take the cup from Jesus' outstretched hand. As he did so the iron chains rattled and scraped across the floor. Jude remembered his Lord, and that supper with all those good friends. Because of them chains now held him within a prison cell. But that was all right - really - for Jude had been faithful in that remembering through all the years. And, he knew that he and his Lord were still together, still one body as they had been in the Galilee so long ago. It was all right.Have you visited Disney World? Our family has, and has taken that scenic ride through the "It's a Small World" exhibit. As the little boat floated along, animated cartoon children from all over the world sang the song and danced in native costumes. At the end of the ride we stepped out of the boat with broad smiles upon our face! It is a delightfully entertaining trip. But the melody, the song "It's a Small, Small World," had been tattooed to the mind - never to be forgotten! For days and weeks afterward I sang to myself,It's a small world after all.It's a small world after all.It's a small world after all.It's a small, small world!There! Now you are tattooed!We do live in that sort of world: a small, small world. That is not a new idea for any of us. And we really do not need Disney's catchy song to remind us of the fact. Yet, in this small, small world we often do not know much about those who live across town, or outside our block, or beyond our floor in the apartment building. We know where Paris is, but we do not know who a Parisian is. We know the location of China, but we do not know a Chinaman. We know the outline of Russia these days, but we really do not know the spirit of the Russians. We have learned the approximate location of the former Yugoslavia, but do we know what the Serbs are like or the Croats? It is a small world, and getting smaller, but that does not automatically mandate keener knowledge of other people, nor build a deeper interest in other nations, nor sensitize a concern for much beyond our own family and tribe.Yet there is in the faith surrounding Jesus Christ a universal-mindedness. It does not come naturally, for we frighten too easily. But Jesus Christ calls us to be a single body of humanity created in the spiritual image of God. The Episcopalian chaplain at the University of Chicago (Dr. Sam A. Portaro, Jr.), spoke to a gathering in Cleveland. He said that Jesus' own ministry was judged by his universal-mindedness. "It was the scandal of Jesus' inclusiveness ... that led to his arrest and execution. Jesus would not take sides but struggled always to affirm the wholeness of God's people."It is that wholeness that can bring us to this moment of the Lord's supper. Today's communion table opened on the otherside of the international dateline, on the Tongo Islands, the Figi Islands, New Zealand and Australia. Christians in those distant places took into their hands the elements of bread and wine, and shared with us the remembrance of our Lord. We are brothers and sisters.And this communion table will not be closed until that dateline is found once again in the Pacific. One 24-hour revolution will see those sharing in our common humanity moving through this common Christian sacrament of remembrance and renewal. All of us all around the world will remember a dark-skinned easterner who took bread and wine, lifted them to symbolize his willing sacrifice, and then commanded that wherever this act would be done that it would be done sharing his spirit-presence. There is nothing like it anywhere - nothing that has such personal unity expressed.I ask you to hold in your mind and heart this hour that great company of humanity. You and I are but one small part. Yet the Lord Jesus calls us to see that small part as an essential link in the world-wide fellowship of those created in the spirit-image of God.Think tenderly of those who welcome new life. A baby is a precious thing of immense potential, the focus of love and caring. That wanted child of tender thought may be white or yellow or black or brown or red. Such joy is not measured in color.Remember during this communion hour people in prison. For some it is a prison of iron bars and electric alarms. Some folks in this congregation work with them in Christ's name. But for many, many others the prison is poverty - which can be just as binding - or a prison of ignorance, or a prison of fear. Hold in your thought and prayer those who fear to leave their homes at night, or who view any person different from themselves as someone of suspicion. Such fears are prison bars.In this spiritual moment let us remember persons of other religious faiths. So much of the killing these days seems to be in the name of one religion against another. Christ would weep for such angry division in the human family, even as he wept over a city divided and quarrelsome. If only more of the Protestants and Roman Catholics in Ireland could sup together in Jesus' sacrament. If only more Christians and Jews could share a common cup. If only more Moslems and Jews could break bread together.In these moments, let us remember children and youth. We have provided them with so much in this nation, lavished out of overflowing abundance. Yet many of them do not think they will have a chance at the good life because of the changes and debts that are now life's story. They have been given so much but, perhaps, robbed of hope. Can we be in handclasp with children and youth in these moments of sacred communion? And they with us?Let us remember, too, the aged. For some in the fellowship of this communion table life on earth is almost completed. As we drink of the cup and eat of the bread let us remember with love those who have given of themselves, and have now been passed by as the world rushes on. Let not our steps move on without them. They are part of the oneness of this sacrament.Let us think in this communion time of those persons of earth who may die today because they have no food. We raise money for the hungry but for some it will be too late. A man from the subcontinent of India, on visiting this country for the first time, was asked what surprised him the most about the United States. He said, "The size of your garbage cans."Think and pray compassionately for the leaders of this world. Whether President or Premier or Secretary General they know burdens beyond our comprehension. In this common moment we would pray God's guidance upon them all - every one.And let us think of the peoples of the nations, those citizens who support their country because it is their home, their homeland. To speak of home is to speak a universal world. Boundaries are so artificial, mere ink dots upon some paper map. But homeland, that has the pulse of life. Of course, we love our native land. But others do their own, and with the passion we know.This day the world is at the communion table. Some ignore it, or revile it. But it is a sign of God's love for his world. We are part of it, but only part. We are not in a corner all by ourselves. We are in the middle of life, our life. It is a life shared with more than four billion other persons! It is a small, small world. We must understand that we are not "it," nor are we always right about everything. But here we are, so fortunate, and stewards of the life that God has given us.We receive the communion with thanksgiving for Jesus Christ our Lord - for his open arms - but we do not receive it alone!