Gospel text for Sunday 12 August 2018

John 6:51-58        Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

Reflection            On Sunday morning we gather not only for our personal sustenance and transformation but also for the sake of the world. Each Sunday morning we participate in the liturgy, leitourgia, the Greek word that actually means “work of the people.” It is our work to come together to manifest the presence of the One God much as single grains of wheat are gathered to manifest one loaf of bread. We are the body of Christ that is revealed in the world as the Church. We are sacraments pointing beyond our small selves to something more.

Preaching to the early fifth century Church in North Africa, St. Augustine of Hippo directs our attention to the bread and wine of Holy Eucharist and says, “Be what you see, receive what you are,” (Sermon 272)  Or in other words, “Behold what you are, become what you eat.”  I believe Augustine was trying to articulate the potent reality of  sacraments.  We live in a sacramental world wherein objects can embody meaning that words are insufficient to convey. For example, think about being in love. The way we embody love is by giving gifts, writing poetry, singing love songs, making love. How often do we say to our lover, “Let’s sit down and have a discourse on the meaning of love and how it is embodied?” Neither can we grasp with our mind the meaning of ingesting the sacramental bread and wine.

I hear the echoes of my seminary advisor, the Rev. Dr. Louis Weil, one of the few outstanding liturgists living today. I can see Louis standing at the chapel altar and hear him proclaiming, “Bread and wine are not just symbols we use to remember the historical facts of Jesus’ death (unlike the Protestant reformers). Bread and wine are means by which we participate here and now. Bread and wine are signs that embody a reality. Holy Eucharist is a meal without which we cannot live.” Pausing for emphasis  Louis continues, “People, where else in this world does everyone receive the same gift?”

I believe the reality embodied in our Eucharistic bread and wine is the reality of our oneness with God and our desire to create the social conditions wherein all people are welcome, respected and have access to the resources necessary to reach their fulfillment. When Jesus says, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven… Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them,” he is inviting us to claim our full inheritance individually and collectively, as sacramental beings imbued with more meaning and value than reason can convey. 

We are bread. We are blessed. We are broken. We are given for the good of all people. See what you are. Become what you eat.

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Gospel text for Sunday 15 January 2017

John 1:29-42        John saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed). He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

Reflection        Some of the most heartbreaking moments for me as a priest are when people come to me, head down and eyes diverted explaining, “I was raised Roman Catholic (or Protestant or _______) and no matter what I tell myself I cannot get past the feeling that I am a sinner. Fundamentally something feels wrong with me. I hear you speak of Original Blessing and that each one of us is a unique revelation of Divine presence and want to believe it but I cannot get past the feeling of my unworthiness.”

The delectable film “Chocolat” portrays this dilemma beautifully. The church folks in a rural French town are steeped in moral judgments and repressed desires whereas Vianne, a new woman in town who opens her  Chocolateria at the same time the season of Lent is beginning and invites people to enjoy the sights and smells and tastes of creation is deemed a vulgar sinner to be shunned. It is no wonder so many people leave the institutional church. Who wants to give up chocolate! Who wants to be a sinner!

Historically, well intentioned theologians were faced with trying to explain why Jesus, the Son of God, exemplar of faith and revelation of Divine Presence on earth had to die, particularly, why this utterly innocent man had to suffer and die such a horrific death. Some explanations include; Jesus was the ransom paired to free humanity or satisfy humanity’s debt to God, to Jesus was the perfect substitutionary sacrifice to God for all of humanity’s sins, to Jesus was a scapegoat onto which the sins of humanity was piled and then he alone needed to be sacrificed.

But I say, Jesus is neither a scapegoat nor was he born so that he could die as payment for the sin of humanity. Jesus is the lamb of God come to reveal that God is always with us, even when we turn away or imagine we are separated. To the question, “Should not someone as pure and innocent as Jesus be exempt from the human conditions of suffering and death?” the answer is a resounding, “No.” 

The wise men from the East knew it when they recognized the infant Jesus as human, divine and utterly fragile destined to die and thus offered their revelatory gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. If we adopt the spiritual vision of the wise we too will see that every infant, every person is human, divine and utterly fragile destined to die. Divinity is not separate from humanity. Divinity does not portend absence of suffering and death. Jesus is the lamb of God revealing God is with us regardless of our circumstance. Neither bloody sacrifice nor rigid abstinence from the delights of life is required to be in right relationship with God. In fact, Jesus shows us the way of enjoying good wine with friends and breaking bread with strangers. This is right relationship. 

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Gospel text for Sunday 20 January 2013

John 2:1-11          On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come." His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward." So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now." Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Reflection       There were between 120 and 180 gallons of fine wine, which translates into somewhere between 1,920 and 2,880 eight ounce glasses of wine. That’s how much wine replaced the emptiness at the wedding in Cana.  Why in the world did Jesus offer such an incredibly extravagant response to the need for more wine at the wedding? Why didn’t he offer just enough to satisfy the guests? And why did he provide better wine than that to which the wedding guests were accustomed? 

I beleive the insufficiency of wine at the wedding feast makes a fundamental statement about our human condition. We are lacking. We are lacking in communion with the Divine. We are lacking in the joy symbolized by a wedding feast. Jesus’ mother recognizes this lack and prevails upon the divine nature of her son to respond to human need. Jesus, being Jesus, responds according to his own will. That’s the reason for his rather rude reply to his mother, “Woman what concern is that to you and me?” But when the deep human compassion of Mary is joined (in communion) with the divine creating power and presence of Jesus the abundance of wine, joy and blessing is beyond imagining, hence 2,000 plus glasses of fine wine!

This is the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, the beginning of the revelation of the Logos, the Word God, replacing human lack with divine abundance. Throughout John’s gospel Jesus provides “signs” that reveal ‘his glory.” Jesus’ glory is the revelation of divinity abundantly present on earth. The wedding feast, the joining of the human and the Divine, is right here, right now. The communion of humanity and Divinity is not deferred to a later date or some distant heavenly abode. In sign after sign in John’s gospel Jesus overwhelmingly responds to human need or lack; healing the sick, the blind, the lame, feeding the hungry masses. Abundance is the fruit of relationship between humanity and divinity.

The wedding in Cana represents the marriage of humanity and divinity and the abundance of communion (wine or joy) born of that union. In this sacred union human need or emptiness is abundantly satisfied. And more than that, the extravagant fruit of this communion is better than us humans could ever expect. It is much better wine than we are accustomed to sipping.