Thinking about food … shopping for food … preparing food … cleaning up after eating food … these basic daily tasks take up far more time and cause much more stress than does the actual eating of food. For myself, I often get tired of the whole food cycle. I stress too much about what I want to eat, should eat, or what I should not have eaten. We are indeed a food obsessed culture. We need to have our hunger satiated.
Our obsession with being satisfied goes well beyond food. Instant communications and the need to be emotionally gratified by a text message or a “like” on Facebook; the dulling of our pain, whether physical or emotional with alcohol and pharmaceuticals; immediate gratification of sexual desires, and the ability to run away into the world of virtual reality, make the quest for quenching our hungers more of an obsession or addiction, than it is the natural response for nourishment, healing and community.
The deepest desire of our lives, minds and hearts cannot ever be satisfied with food, alcohol, drugs, sex, or thousands of internet friends. St. Augustine recognized this in the fourth century when he prayed “our hearts are restless, until they can find rest in you.” His lifestyle before he was drawn to faith is one that would find a home in our present society. He was constantly searching as he moved from one religious and philosophical fad to another, from one relationship to another, and from one place to another.
It is that restlessness that is the underlying theme of the quest for satisfaction and instant gratification.
What are you hungry for? Jesus asks the crowd that question in this Sunday’s Gospel, but he asks it on a deeper level than the people realize. Just the day before Jesus multiplied the loaves and fish to feed them and the next morning they are again looking for him. Jesus knows that they seek him because they are hungry – not for spiritual food – but for their breakfast.
Jesus knew of the real hunger of the people who followed him. He knew that they were longing for the food of eternal life, of sharing more fully in the presence of God.
This Sunday, the observance of the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, offers us the opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the Eucharist in our life journey. Jesus himself to us in the Eucharist as an everlasting memorial that offers us the fullness of the satisfaction we so desperately seek.
In this dialogue with the crowds Jesus speaks boldly on the meaning of the Eucharist. While the synoptic Gospels present the multiplication of the loaves and fish in Eucharistic terms, only John includes this clear teaching of Jesus on the meaning of what he has just done for them. The food he gave them the day before did not satisfy, they are hungry again. The manna in the desert did not satisfy the Israelites. The only food that satisfies is that which comes directly from God – the Word – that brings us life.
Jesus is that Word. Here in John 6 the Word Himself becomes the food which leads to eternal life.
While we are searching for ordinary food, and we seeks to satisfy all of our physical and emotional needs we discover ultimately that none of this satisfies, we are left empty and longing. It is only in God and specifically in the Eucharist that we can find true healing, true satisfaction, the completion of all for which we long. As our lives become more Eucharistic, the presence of God which we seek can be more completely experienced and seen in our daily lives.
June 25 – Boldly proclaim the Gospel from the rooftops
We are in the midst of the Fortnight for Freedom leading up to the celebration of Independence Day. At its core this now annual observance sponsored by the United States Catholic Conference is to focus on a historical and balanced understanding of religious freedom in an increasingly pluralistic society.
The gut reaction of society is to ignore religious pluralism and the historical role of Christianity in the foundation of our nation as the means of not having to address or clarify the issues at hand. Certainly this is a very difficult and challenging issue in our society. We see struggles not only on the national level but also within cities and towns in our own Diocese.
One way that this struggle manifests itself is grounded in the underpinnings of anti-Catholicism which still run deep in our country.
It is only within the past 60 years that Catholics became fully integrated into American society. While most of us do not personally experience religious intolerance, examples of this attitude surface now and again.
This week’s Readings focus on the reality of persecution. Jeremiah suffered countless indignities due to his commitment to the Word of God and the demands of justice that the Word put on him. Jeremiah knows that his own people have turned on him and that to continue to preach the Word would bring him more suffering and probably death. Yet, he cannot tell the people what they want to hear. To do other than to preach what he knows to be the truth would be deceptive and inauthentic.
Jesus’ instruction to the newly chosen 12, carries through his theme of conflict both within and from outside of the Christian community. Being a disciple of Jesus was not going to be easy. There are real demands, real sacrifices and real sufferings associated with the path of discipleship.
We can often feel very uncomfortable when we are confronted on our faith. It is easy to be viewed as a hypocrite by misguided friends, neighbors and family members. When our understanding of mercy and the world’s understanding of mercy conflict, we naturally want mercy without repentance; we know that repentance is at the core of mercy.
It is easy for others to mock us, making it more and more challenging to defend our faith. The possibility of dialogue is lost when we are using the same words but with different meanings, when we are sharing ideas but with different philosophical categories.
Jesus tells us to be bold and confident – shout the truth from the rooftops, do not hide it. The testimony to the truth will itself be our vanguard.
There has been tremendous witness to this very truth as accounts of Christian martyrdom in the Middle East and East Africa begin to emerge. Christians standing in the face of certain death, choose death over this life knowing that they need not fear.
Jesus promises that he watches over us with the tender care of a parent. Suffering and persecution may come, only to serve the purpose of strengthening us in faith. Our call is to accept the challenge and to stand on the rooftops to proclaim the faith which leads to salvation.
This is precisely the time when the message of Christ needs to be brought to the world. We cannot allow the present to be a time when we cease to stand up for the poor, disenfranchised or outcast in the world. We need to continue to do the work of Christ even when the world is scoffing at us attempting to make us irrelevant.
Father Garry Koch is pastor of St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel.