1st Reading: Proverbs 9:1-6
Psalm: Psalm 34:2-7
2nd Reading: Ephesians 5:15-20
Gospel: John 6:51-58
Don’t you think we just about have an obsession with food in
this country? For one thing, we are really concerned about what goes into our
food, including additives, and dyes and preservatives. Plus we have at least two
cable TV channels devoted to food and cooking. Not to mention the commercials for all kinds of food and restaurants. And people are always posting on
Facebook where they are eating and what they are having.
Over the last four weeks we have been listening to the sixth
chapter of the Gospel of John – and each week we have heard another aspect of
Jesus as the Bread of Life, beginning with him feeding the five thousand plus, and
continuing to today when he says that we must eat his body and drink his blood
in order to have life.
This feeding and eating theme obviously has overtones about
the Eucharist and Mass– and I wonder what effect our cultural images of eating
have on our approach to the Eucharist. What is it that you expect to find when
you come to this table?
Maybe some of us come to the Eucharist only wanting a snack –
you know, you don’t want to fill up too much so you can save room for other
important things. You don’t really want to
think too heavily about anything – it will just be too much to digest.
Maybe some come to Mass like it’s a fast-food restaurant. We
come in as late as we can, we leave as soon as we can, and we don’t see any
real substance or enjoyment of the food while we’re here – we just want to kind
of “get it over with”. Oh, and if they could find a way to have a drive-through
feature, that would be GREAT!
Or maybe some look at Sunday Mass like it’s a Chinese
buffet. We really appreciate all the interesting things in front of us, but we
really don’t like all of them. We like to have a lot choice, but we really want
to pick and choose what we eat. We might like a lot of spiritual stories, but
if someone starts talking about abortion, we’d rather just leave that off of
our plate. Or we might really like the prayers and the songs, but if we are
called to feed the poor, it’s really kind of distasteful.
It might be that some people think of the Mass like they are
having a private, intimate dinner with their friend, Jesus. No one else really
counts as long as they have their time with him and can have a nice one-on-one
visit with him.
Perhaps some see the Eucharist like a family meal where we’re
all gathered around the table sharing our common experiences, our hopes and our
fears, our challenges and our aspirations. And each of us has brought something to
share and pass around, and as we are together we strengthen the bonds of the
family and our own understanding of who we are and why we are here.
Some might see the Eucharist like a banquet – the kind that
Woman Wisdom is throwing in the first reading. It is a grand event where all
are invited and we are sure to have rich foods and fine wine, and we are not
expected to bring anything other than ourselves. It is a feast that becomes a
significant event in our relationship with God and with one another. We come as
guests but we leave as friends – with Jesus as a part of us and we as a part of
him.
So which is it for you? Like Woman Wisdom, Jesus invites us
to his feast, to this table, to share in his wisdom and his very life – so that
he can remain in us and we can remain in him. And by being a part of him we
become him for others – ready to serve, to give of ourselves to our brothers
and sisters for the life of the world.
