Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 'A'

Sunday August 3, 2008

We Are All Connected

Technically, the homily is not just an opportunity for the homilist to preach or teach and though it may include both with a bit of probing and coaxing here and there, it should never be the occasion to harass, cajole or moralize. The homily should engage the congregation in a reflection on God’s word and it should enable listeners to make connections between the inspired texts and practical life experiences—personal, social and spiritual. It may even have political overtones but should never politicize.

The homily should be thought provoking and insightful to the extent that the whole worship experience becomes a ‘we’ rather than a ‘you and me’ experience. Finally, it should be our proximate preparation for the Eucharistic banquet that will be celebrated momentarily at this table.

I think I may have set my self up for failure with that brief ‘confession’. It’s a tall order for which I will be the first to confess I have failed as often as I have succeeded.

Though you may not be aware of it, there is a subtle but silent dialogue unfolding as the homilist unpacks his or her wares. It works best when the congregation is prepared for worship by having become familiar with the Scriptures assigned for the Mass. The gathering hymn, the call to worship, the penitential rite and the brief introduction to the readings are not sufficient to dispose worshippers to ponder the Word. It’s so much better if the texts are read prior to worship.

It takes a minimum of three hours for the preacher to prepare a seven to ten minute homily. (Some of my Protestant bother and sister preachers tell me not three but three times three hours!)

As you listened to the readings just moments ago, what struck you most? If you were you as ready to speak up and speak out as our evangelical sisters and brothers, you might say that you were struck by the connection between Isaiah’s invitation to the Lord’s metaphorical feast and Matthew’s allegorical description of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, and you would be on target!

Did any of the words or phrases in Matthew’s text ring a bell? “He raised his eyes to heaven, blessed and broke them [the loaves] and gave them to the disciples.” Where else have you heard these words? Indeed, in the Eucharistic narrative just before the words of consecration at Mass.

So already, we have made two important connections. Good for you!

Scripture scholars tell us that Matthew used these precise words when he recorded this story to make it clear that the Eucharistic bread used in the gathering of believers is connected to the allegorical multiplication of the loaves and fishes during that ‘picnic’ on the shore. In fact, there is a metaphysical connection between the loaves and fish at that picnic and the sacred bread and wine used at this table this morning in which we are all connected.

The story of the loaves and fishes mirrors the action of Jesus not only in the Eucharist but also in the proclamation of the Word of God at the ‘table’ of God’s word. “Not on bread alone do we live but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” [Matt 4:5]

Our God is interactive and incarnational. To be precise, we believe in a God whose face is visible in creation, whose breath is in the air and whose life is experienced in the human personality of Jesus who became the living word and the bread of life for our salvation and for the salvation of all humanity.

The sacraments are human rituals that dramatize God’s interventions in the past so that we may be transformed by their saving effects in the present and become what we celebrate in the future – people of the Word, bread blessed and broken for humanity. In other words, we become the very substance of God’s presence as individuals and as a community of faith. This is why we are called ‘the Body of Christ’ blessed and broken for humanity. Through this ritual, we are absorbed into God’s life by the Holy Spirit so that we may live in grace and enable others to breathe in God’s spirit.

At this point you might be asking: “This is all well and good as a theological treatise but how does it connect with our every day experiences?”

I remember with great fondness our long family Sunday breakfasts. It was at those meals that we talked about the homily, family, the neighborhood, work, school, world events and a host of related topics. Sunday breakfast lasted at least an hour or more.

That’s how we maintained a connection with the church table and with the table of humanity. That’s where it all came together. That’s where we got in touch with our family history – imperfect as it was and is – and that’s where we kids learned about the lessons of integrity and the importance of contributing to the well-being of society not the least of which is feeding the poor. It is also where we learned to forgive and overlook one another’s faults.

And that brings us to the final connection—to world hunger.

The Church connects the words of Isaiah with the story of the loaves and fishes for a reason.

Written by the author for the people in exile whose sustenance was meager, the author extends God’s invitation to “all who thirst” i.e., all will be welcomed to the table to be fed and filled by God.

There are numerous organizations that provide both food and financial aid to starving people throughout the world such as Bread for the World, a faith-based initiative that lobbies congress for on behalf of the poor and hungry, pressing for long term to hunger and poverty [50 F Street NW, Suite 500, Washington DC 2001, Bread for the World

There are other organizations such as Catholic Relief Services that provide direct aid to the hungry. And there are local agencies such as Operation Chill Out and food depots to which we are invited to contribute on a regular basis.

The late Henri Nouen among so many other spiritual writers, contemporary and ancient, make the point that the Eucharist is meaningless without the all important connection to everything that gives and nurtures life and with all who hunger for fullness of life, physical and spiritual.

So come and eat without cost. Be strengthened and refreshed but remember that the Eucharist is not just for our own personal nourishment, but given for all for the wellbeing and salvation of the world.

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