Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time 'B'

Sunday August 20, 2006

Food for the ‘Ribs’ of the Soul

I think I can state with some confidence that I have always been health conscious especially when it comes to diet. This is not to suggest in any way that I have always applied the values and principles of a healthy diet to good eating. Comfort foods are often more attractive than a balance of veggies, meats, fish and fresh fruit but the exceptions notwithstanding, I do attempt to aim for balance without becoming scrupulous on birthdays, anniversaries or other special occasions.

I also think I inherit my concern for healthy eating from my parents. We weren’t a wealthy but we enjoyed the basics of a roof over our head and a colorful variety at our dinner table. Very little if any junk food was tolerated in between meals though I do remember having a mayonnaise sandwich on occasion or a piece of buttered bread coated with sugar on occasion, to “tide me over” thanks to grandma. My mom would say, “Now be careful—don’t let that spoil your supper!”

My dad was adamant about not skipping meals. No matter what the crisis on a weekend or day off, he would say, “Did you eat your lunch? You need to have something in your stomach that will stick to your ribs!” A good diet will take you across deep rivers and over high mountains and will keep you warm in a snowstorm.

The readings today are about nourishment in the form of wisdom and in the form of bread and wine all of which are essential for our survival as disciples of Christ.

It’s interesting that the Book of Proverbs is gender exclusive in its reference to wisdom. Several explanations have been proposed in the course of time especially over the last few years. Pat Sanchez in her excellent commentary on this passage suggests “Wisdom should be understood as a feminine personification that reveals the motherly love and compassion of God as in Hosea’s touching description of the divine, maternal caring.” [Preaching Resources, NCR Publications, Kansas City, 2006]

I’m inclined to accept her ‘wisdom’ but I would push it further. The feminine reflects the strength of God as much as God’s tenderness. For too long despite advances in feminist theology we have been inclined to view women as reflecting the soft side of God instead of God’s strength and courage. Think of the women of Scripture who have demonstrated great strength—Ruth, Judith, Anna, the prophetess, Elizabeth, Mary, Martha, the Samaritan women at the well and Mary Magdalene, to name only a few. And think of the women of the Church who have mixed courage and candor with charity, weaving wisdom into their words through ‘music and dance’—Joan of Arc, Catherine of Siena, Hildegard of Bingen, Teresa of Avila, Theresa of Calcutta, and even more recently, Joan of Erie and Edwina of Chicago.

I had occasion recently to preside at a liturgy for a group of ‘soul women’ gathered for retreat at Xavier Center. I had misgivings not because I was not welcome but because as male priest, I felt intrusive. Why could not Edwina who facilitated the retreat with her unique wisdom also preside at soul worship in Eucharist? Why not indeed!

Then I switched gears and realized that perhaps if I opened my ears to the wisdom of the group, I might learn something. Indeed, I did. I came away with a thirst for more and was bold enough to request an invitation to lunch later in the week. In many ways, that luncheon was Eucharistic and the effects have been enduring.

I also came upon this bit of wisdom from Joe Hassan, a colleague in ministry working in the reform movement within the Church. He shared this insight recently in his commentary on John’s gospel:

“Centuries before John composed his gospel, the Greek philosopher Plato became well-known because of his unique explanation of our human condition. In his view of he world, we’re slaves chained together facing the rear wall of a cave, unable to turn around and look at what’s going on at the entrance behind us. All we know of reality are the shadows of objects [that] pass by the mouth of the cave, projected on the wall. One of the goals of Plato’s philosophy is to help us break our chains, turn around and experience things as they really are, to discover the ‘true’ in life.” [Joe Hassan, patjohas@hotmail.com]

He rightly points out that in John’s mind, Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. And this was the point of this passage in which Jesus claims to be the bread of life for the salvation of the world. “Amen I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and rinks my blood has eternal life.” [John 6:53-54]

But this is not just about receiving Holy Communion. It’s about becoming the bread that we eat. The gospel of John contains no narrative or description of the Last Supper. The only reference to that pivotal event that looked to Calvary and Resurrection was the ‘mandatum’—the washing of the feet of the apostles by Jesus.

“So when he had washed their feet [and] put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, ‘Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me “teacher” and “master,” and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and the teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.” [John 13:12-15]

Jesus connected the meal with service to humanity. “What I command is that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” [John 15:12-13]

So living the life of a disciple has to do with the lifting of one another burdens and untying the shackles of the oppressed. And this begins right here in this assembly, in this church within the larger Church.

My dad was right. We need to feed on food that sticks to the ribs—not just the ribs of our bodies but to the ribs of the soul.

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