In the 19th century wild west, a bullet for a six-gun cost 12 cents. So did a glass of whiskey. A cowhand low on cash would often give the bartender a bullet in exchange for a drink. This became known as a “shot” of whiskey.
Here’s another: in the days before CPR, a drowning person often would be put face down over a barrel and the barrel would be rolled back and forth to empty the lungs of water. It was rarely effective. So, if you are over a barrel, you are in deep trouble. I learned something new!
How often have we heard the question, what are we doing for dinner? Grilling, or pizza or takeout? Then the follow-up question: will we sit as a family, or eat and run?
In the Gospel, the miracle of the loaves and fish prefigures the Eucharist, a sacrificial meal of thanksgiving for the gift of God’s eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus. The Eucharist nourishes the life of God in us. Jesus Christ, gloriously alive, is truly present in the bread and wine.
The word of God first takes us back to the sixth century Israel; the exiled Jews are returning to their devastated Jerusalem. “Come to me,” God pleads. I will give you the basic needs of life. I will renew my covenant with you. And you will have life. Yes, God is always faithful despite our unfaithfulness.
Paul, in his letter to the Christian community at Rome poses the question, “What will separate us from the love of Christ?” Nothing! No danger, nothing known or unknown, can ever separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ. God so loved us that he gave his only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes might have eternal life. God loves us unconditionally.
In the Gospel, Jesus hears about the tragic death of John the Baptist: beheaded in a dungeon. Jesus seeks a place where he might be by himself. But the crowds follow him. He cures the sick and satisfies the hungry crowd. People have so many hungers. Some hunger for bread; others for justice and freedom; and still others for peace. Jesus here satisfies physical hunger, but this prefigures the liturgy of the Eucharist where the bread and wine become the body and blood of the risen Christ, satisfying our spiritual hunger.
To understand today’s liturgy of the Eucharist, we have to go back to Jesus’s Last Supper in Jerusalem. When Jesus sat down to his Last Supper, he faced three challenges.
First, Jesus had to leave us, and yet he wanted to stay with us. How did Jesus solve this? Listen to his words: “This is my body; this is my blood.” The bread and wine look and feel and taste like bread and wine, but they are not. The bread and wine become the real presence of the risen Christ.
The second challenge Jesus faced was he wanted to die for each one of us, and yet he could die only once as a human being. How did Jesus solve this? Listen to his words: “Do this in memory of me.” The same victim who was crucified once outside Jerusalem centuries ago returns
whenever we celebrate the liturgy of the Eucharist.
The third challenge was that Jesus wanted to be one with us, and yet this was impossible this side of heaven. How did Jesus solve this challenge? Listen to his words: “Take and eat; take and drink.” Jesus invites us to become one with him in Communion.
These were the three ways in which Jesus solved challenges: He left us and stays as the bread and wine become the real presence of the risen Christ. The Victim (the lamb, the sacrifice) returns to us today and every day in the liturgy of the Eucharist. He wanted to be one with us and yet couldn’t this side of heaven, so he gave us the next best thing: Communion.
What is the purpose of the bread we eat? The blood we drink? To form us into a faith community. Paul wrote, “Because the bread is one, we, though many, are one body.” This bread we eat and this blood we drink should not only form us into a more loving faith community but
also should empower us to reach out compassionately (with our time and talent especially) to the people around us in our community.
The Liturgy of the Word/Eucharist is indeed a family meal; the triune God and we participate in a sacrificial meal. Perhaps this should be our prayer:
Bless this faith family of yours, O God, as we journey
toward our eternal dwelling place.
May you always remind us of the strength we have when
we stand together,
united in faith, hope, and love with you, O God.
Help us, O God, to open our hearts to one another,
to listen when one of us is crying out,
to extend a helping hand when one of us is hurting,
to rejoice when one of us has cause for celebration.
O God, we are united forever with you by our heavenly
family ties.
We pray that we will never take that for granted
and that we always will live in your presence, Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit.
Amen.
