One of the articles I mentioned yesterday mentioned the phrase ‘dark tourism‘. I had not previously encountered the concept and then the tragic news of the plane accident near Kokoda became public.
Questions come to mind about the draw of places like Kokoda and Gallipoli to increasing numbers of Australians year by year.
The actual experiences of those who visit are far removed from those in whose footsteps they follow. Yet being present and walking the Trail or watching the sun rise at Gallipoli gives some sort of tangible emotional and spiritual link with the past. This experience seems all the more desirable since the original combatants are now passing away. In their absence the physical terrain upon which their legends were created will have to suffice. The experience seems to provide a connection with something larger than the individual.
Around the world many sites draw peoples of all nations to learn, experience, reflect and connect with the past. Some do so in a tacky sensationalistic way seeking to entertain and titillate. Others do so because they seek to help those in the present learn so that the mistakes of the past will not be repeated.
Each year many Christians observe Easter, many more observe the Supper eating bread and wine after Christ’s example. Many Christians believe this act is not a simple repitition, an act of emulation and identification. Rather they believe that there is spiritual potency in this act of obedience and it is one of the means by which God spiritually nourishes his people.
While the observation of Easter has no real biblical warrant and some observations of it may border on ‘dark tourism’, the supper is not visiting the past. Rather it is the benefit of Christ’s work continuing to be visited to us now and for the future.
mgpcpastor's blog 