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From the Pulpit:
Hunger North American contemporary culture is obsessed with food. How many grocery store fliers do you receive a day? Julia Child used to be the only chef on TV – now there is a new one every time you turn around – and we even endure contests among them like ‘Iron Chef’. Magazines at the checkout counter of the grocery stores are full of pictures of delectable dishes to tempt the shopper. The internet bulges with instructions about how to prepare new cuisine for friends and family and boasts complete menus for every occasion. Many people eat out at least once a day. Food is no longer a basic essential for human survival, but often the focus of our time, money and effort. It has become an obsession. I have to admit, with considerable guilt, that my obsession with food, of necessity, revolves around not eating too much of it. Having inherited genes from my European ancestors that would allow me to be one of those who survived, if we were all confined to a concentration camp, I focus on what to eat in order not to gain weight. Even during periods of contemplative prayer, I find my mind wandering to the grocery list or what to prepare for dinner. And yet, not only are there hungry people in other parts of the world, North American society has not won the battle over hunger either. Research shows that nearly 90% of our population is “food secure” (that means having enough food to support good health and vitality). That leaves 1 in 10 in need of sufficient food to meet their basic needs. In a society of abundance, over 4.5 million people in the U.S. rely daily on food supplies provided by food banks and other social services.[1] The head of the Austin Area Food Bank reported last week that in June their distribution needs had increased by 58%. When our daughters were small it was a pretty big deal to go out to eat because it didn’t happen very often. We would get dressed and be excited and then experience some of the biggest disagreements our family ever knew about where to go. Everyone had a different opinion about what they wanted to eat. There were times I thought to myself it would be easier to stay home and have peanut butter and jelly – except that is what they probably had for lunch. All of us have taken part in such conversations, perhaps after church or on Friday nights, or before the dinner hour. It sometimes happens late in the evening when you are watching TV – writing bills or reading and suddenly get hit with the dreaded late-night munchies. Conversation might be something profound like this:
“So, what are you hungry for?” At first you think you’re hungry for something salty. So you walk to the kitchen, eat some Cheetos, and get that orange stuff all over your fingers. You’d think that would satisfy hunger, but no! As soon as you pop the last Cheeto into your mouth, another part of your brain says, “What was I thinking? I’m not hungry for something salty…I’m hungry for something sweet!” So you unwrap a Hershey’s kiss, eat that, and immediately find yourself hankering for some good salty crunch potato chips, and then that is followed by a hunger for some M & M’s. And so it continues – sweet, salty, sweet, salty – back and forth until eventually you either get bored or fall asleep in a pile of cheese dust and chocolate wrappers. It is interesting, isn’t it, how sometimes we think we are hungry, but have no idea exactly what it is that we really want or need? Sometimes what we call hunger may be just a craving, or the need to drink a big glass of water. Knowing what we are hungry for isn’t always easy to figure out. The crowds that found Jesus in today’s Gospel reading felt pretty sure they knew exactly what they were hungry for: they wanted another free meal! They wanted more of that amazing bread that he had produced the day before at the holy picnic. They followed Jesus around the Sea of Galilee, not because they were anxious to hear what he had to say. They wanted to see something even more spectacular than what had happened the day before – the feeding of more than 5,000 with just a few loaves and the fish that a little boy had brought along. I wonder if we had been there if we might not have said “Do what you did before. This time could you grill the fish in a lemon sauce? And sourdough bread would be nice.” “Hey Jesus,” the crowds said to him, “Moses made manna appear out of nowhere in the desert when our ancestors were wandering through the wilderness. Now don’t get us wrong Jesus…yesterday you made the loaves and fish multiply, and that was amazing and all. But, do you suppose you could whip us up some of that magical manna bread too. You know…just to prove you are really who you say you are.” And Jesus replied, “You don’t understand. It wasn’t Moses who made the manna magically appear in the desert; it was God. God did it. God provided! And God is already providing you with bread from heaven today, if you will only receive it.” The crowds looked around and didn’t see a crumb of food anywhere, so they ask: “What you talking about, Jesus? There’s no sign of bread around here.” And then finally Jesus got really direct with them: “Listen, I am the bread of life. It’s me. I am the bread that God is giving you. I know you came wanting to see another miracle show, but you’re not going to get it. The only bread I have for you – the only bread you need – is me.” It’s almost like Jesus is asking them, “What is it that you are really hungry for after all? Could it be that what your soul is really hungry for, deep down inside, is actually very different from a craving, a desire to taste and see something spectacular again?” What are we hungry for this morning? What does our soul long for? When all else is stripped away, what is it that we long for most in the depth of our hearts? What is life really all about? What do we hope for? Do we even know, or are we simply hungry to find out? A British broadcaster posed such questions to Daniel Tammet in a radio interview some years ago. You may have heart of Daniel Tammet. He is a young British man who has Savant syndrome, and has the amazing ability to learn a foreign language in a matter of days. The amazing thing about the interview, was not the talk about the syndrome, but the talk about his hopes and dreams for the future. The interviewer had just finished talking with Daniel about a book he has written about his life, and then he posed one final question: “So, Daniel, what does the future hold for you? As you look ahead, what is it that you hope for?” Daniel gave this inspiring answer: “Well, I don’t exactly know what the future holds for me. But whatever it is, I want to spend the future doing something for the benefit of other people. You see, I have recently become a Christian. As a result of that I have come to believe that every gift we have – whether it’s the ability to learn a foreign language in a matter of days or anything else – every gift we have has been give to us by God in order to share them for the sake of others. That is what becoming a Christian has done for me. It has helped me to get beyond myself for the love of God and the love of others. Becoming a Christian has helped me to get beyond just me.”[2] I don’t know what hunger God may or may not have put deep within your heart. But I think chances are good, that somewhere inside each of us there is a little of that same vague inkling, a haunting feeling, a gnawing and persistent urging that lets us know we have not been put on this earth simply for ourselves. It keeps us restless until we can find the God whose desire it is to move us beyond ourselves for love’s work in the world. We each hunger to know ourselves loved, accepted, embraced by God, and then to offer that same love and acceptance to a world full of people whose hunger is the same as ours. Could it be that what we hunger for most is to be so filled with the love of God that we can joyfully and eagerly give ourselves away? Could it be that we are each hungry to be able to say, like Daniel, “God has helped me get beyond just me”? Could it be that gift comes by first receiving the gift of a Savior who passionately gave himself away for us? The good news is that whatever hungers for love, forgiveness or meaning we have brought with us today, we have come to the right table. We will gather to eat bread in abundance around this table, but it is no ordinary bread. It is the bread of God. It is the manna from heaven. It is the taste of a new start. Jesus says, “I am the bread of life, and I give myself to you.” Whatever our hearts are hungry for, Jesus says, “Come and eat, and you will find your heart satisfied.” Whether we even know what we are hungry for or not, Jesus says, “Come and eat, and I will satisfy your soul. Come and eat, and sooner or later you will find what it is that your soul hungers for the most.” Amen
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Ann Brotherton,
Assistant Rector