Sermon Notes: Eighth Sunday After Trinity, July 26, 2015, The Grosvenor Chapel
Fr Thomas A. Kane, CPS, Boston Collegen School of Theology, USA
Gospel: John 6.1 - 21
Have you ever experienced a miracle?
Something unique
A sudden healing
An end to worry
Winning the lottery
Getting a prize for spelling
Miracles come
In different ways
In different sizes
and usually unexpected.
Today’s gospel story is a miracle food story of sorts
set in the Middle East.
The crowd is huge;
Hungry in a deserted place
and hungry for still more.
hungry to be acknowledged,
to feel counted and recognized.
hungry for what Jesus had to say about God.
They hunger to know that God is on their side,
when the rest of the world considers them insignificant.
these Galileans were considered next to pagans; ignorant and a long way from God.
There is some food there,
but almost nothing in the light of the numbers
who are hungry.
John notes that it is barley bread,
the food of the poor.
It's given by a boy,
it's all he has, and he makes it available.
We tend to measure the size of the problem
and then we back away,
shrugging our shoulders,
"What can I do about such a big problem?"
The boy is a good example for us:
better to do something than nothing.
Who knows what might be multiplied?
Things are picking up in the story.
We have some food and the occasion is right too.
The people are in another wilderness
and once again God is with them step
by arduous step.
Not just observing; not judging
how we're making it our own.
But feeding us, day by day..
Jesus had a plan,
He instructs his disciples,
"Have the people recline."
He has the thousands "recline" –
how mid easterners eat at a banquet.
They are no longer desperate peasants
but honored guests at a banquet.
Listen in on the conversations
they would have had:
–"Didn't I work with your father?
-"How's your mother's health?"
-"My name is Sarah, what's yours?"
The simple offering of that little boy was multiplied. John tells us, "They all had their fill."
And there were lots of leftovers!
A miracle of multiplication..
There is another miracle in the story.
People's hearts were changed.
It wasn't a grab-eat-run miracle,
a McDonald's drive-through quick bite.
There was a lot of food,
and it was the middle east!
They know meals, and how to share food
with one another.
Jesus knew exactly what he wanted to do:
build community from a group of strangers
using food to gather them;
That what we do today
We have picnics, garden parties, outings
To bring people together
have friends and strangers, even enemies,
enjoy a meal together.
John wrote the story 60 years later,
his community would have been breaking bread
and sharing the cup for a long time.
They would have appreciated the story
of Jesus taking a little bread and
giving thanks to God.
They would have seen the meaning of Eucharist
in the story. As a result, they would also have to examine their consciences
about being grateful for even a little,
and not always thinking
about how much more they wanted.
They would have had to notice Jesus
didn't want any leftovers wasted. "
Gather the fragments left over."
This is a crucial time to build a more just framework that puts poor and hungry people first,
serves small and moderate-sized family farms, promotes sustainable stewardship of the land and helps vulnerable farmers and rural communities both at home and in developing countries."
John describes the miracle in Eucharistic terms.
Jesus takes the loaves,
gives thanks and distributes them to those reclining: friends, strangers, even enemies
like a church gathering on Sunday mornings.
John was reminding his community, and us, "Remember who God is, a nourishing,
strengthening, traveling companion
who uses bread to draw people together
to form a caring community,
who in turn feeds the hungry and the needy.
If you are in a hurry you don't want
to sit down to eat with middle eastern people.
You have to allow time at a meal
in the Middle East for family talk,
names of friends, the weather,
playing with children, toasts and good wishes.
And, oh yes, there are always discussions
about the food. Who cooked it?
How does is compare with how other family recipes, "My mother adds mint to this dish."
Each course evokes more conversation
and there are a lot of courses!
There is fruit for dessert, plus sweet cakes and rich deep coffee sweetened with a liquor.
Departures also take a while, hugs and kisses
and best wishes.