Sunday, October 4, 2015 | 8:00 a.m.

A Feast for All

Victoria G. Curtiss
Associate Pastor, Fourth Presbyterian Church

Psalm 24
Isaiah 25:6–10a
Mark 8:1–10

"Now bread and wine are before us . . . And we give thanks for all that holds us together in our humanity; that binds us to all who live and have lived, who have cried and are crying, who hunger and are thirsty, who pine for justice, and who hold out for the time that is coming."

“Eucharist of Liberation,” World Student Christian Federation

While Pope Francis visited the United States recently, the question was asked on more than one television news panel: “Was the pope’s message political?” Prior to his coming, some presidential candidates had already staked out ground in opposition to the Holy Father’s public leadership. Last summer, right after the encyclical on climate change, Jeb Bush, a Roman Catholic, said, “I think religions ought to be about making us better as people and less about things in the political realm.” Chris Christie, also Roman Catholic, stated in reference to Pope Francis’s role in reestablishing diplomatic ties between the U.S. and Cuba, “I think the pope is wrong. . . . The fact is that his infallibility is on religious matters, not on political ones.” U.S. Representative from Arizona, Paul Gosar, explained why he would not be attending Pope Francis’s speech before both houses of Congress, by saying: “If the pope stuck to standard Christian theology, I would be the first in line. But when the pope chooses to act and talk like a leftist politician, then he can be expected to be treated like one.”

The way Pope Francis was treated by most people was as a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ, whose actions as well as words reflect the gospel. The words and actions we witnessed did not start with Pope Francis. They started with Jesus Christ and the prophets of God who went before him. Caring for the poor, feeding the hungry, welcoming immigrants, offering aid to refugees, being good stewards of creation, moving nations toward reconciliation are all expressions of our Christian faith. The Holy Father connected these dots in his humble, gentle way, showing unmistakably, through his very being and through the Golden Rule, that the pastoral is also—and inescapably—prophetic, that the Bible and “standard Christian theology” are clearly the basis for his social teachings. In order to implement love for our neighbor to a significant degree, followers of Jesus must take action on a systemic level, which inevitably is political.

It is clear that Jesus cared for the economic and physical well-being of people, not just their spiritual growth. In the beginning of his own ministry, Jesus quoted the prophet Isaiah for his personal mission statement, stating, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18–19). Good news to the poor is not that after one dies one will go to heaven. Good news to the poor is that you no longer need to worry about where your next meal comes from; you can provide for your family so no one is hungry. Release to the captives and liberation of the oppressed is not about escaping confining mental frameworks. It is about breaking whatever social bondage causes people to suffer.

Jesus’ teachings and ministry were very practical. In today’s story of the feeding of the four thousand, we find Jesus quite aware that the crowd who had been with him for three days was hungry. If he sent them away, with empty stomachs, to their homes, they would faint along the way. Some had traveled a great distance. He wanted to feed them.

His disciples did not see him as very practical: “How can we feed these people bread in the middle of nowhere?”

It’s an understandable question. Isn’t that often how we respond when we become aware of the vast needs of others? How can we do anything? The number of people living in poverty in this country, let alone in the world, can overwhelm us to the point that we become blind to any possible response we can make.

Jesus breaks through such paralyzing thoughts by asking, “How many loaves do you have?” Let’s start with what is on hand. Let’s look at the resources that are available to us. Let’s act as if that is enough—enough at least to get the ball rolling. Seven loaves and a few fish was what they produced.

It was enough. Jesus ordered the crowd to sit down. He blessed the bread, broke it, and instructed that it be distributed to everyone. Somehow—and we don’t know how—that meager beginning became more than enough for everyone to eat and be filled. In fact, there were seven baskets full of leftovers.

We will never know how that worked exactly. It is unlikely that the incarnate Son of God would simply snap his fingers, and presto! there would be bread for all. That, you may recall, is exactly what the devil tempted Jesus to do at the outset of his ministry, saying, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” Jesus rejected such a demand then, so why would he accept it now?

Pastor Eugene Bay wrote,

This little episode brings us right smack into the question of how God’s love reaches our world. While I do not wish to deny that, sometimes, God’s healing touch is felt directly, or that God’s transforming power is experienced in ways that seem miraculous, long years of experience and observation tell me that these are not God’s usual ways of working. Food does not magically appear for the refugees . . . . Most cancer cells are not prayed away. . . . Individuals or nations who do not want to are not made to reconcile their differences. By and large, God’s love does not come at the push of a button called “faith” or at the flick of a switch labeled “prayer.” Mostly . . . God’s love reaches people through people. (Eugene C. Bay, “On Being a Means of Grace,” sermon preached 28 October 2001 at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church)

Many believe that the miracles of the feeding of the thousands found multiple times in the Gospels had to do with a transformation of the heart. People were changed. It seems unlikely that folks in that crowd would have traveled without having brought any food along at all. Upon seeing the willingness of Jesus and disciples to come forth and share what little they had for others, they were moved to reach beneath their tunics for the bread they had kept hidden. Everyone looked for what they had and began to share it with others. What was previously an experience of personal hoarding and scarcity led to an abundant potluck feast for all. Why? Because people’s hearts were opened to one another in compassion. They made sure no one was left out, no one left hungry. All were satisfied. Not just in their stomachs, but in their spirits, for the sharing of God’s love does, indeed, fill us full.

We have many people in our country and in our world who are hungry. In the United States alone more than 49 million Americans—about 15 percent of our population—live in households that struggle to put food on the table. Among American children, more than 20 percent—one in five—live in poverty and at risk of hunger. Many of these children have parents who have jobs and work hard, but their wages aren’t enough to cover the high costs of rent, transportation, utilities, and daily meals. Much of our nation’s hunger is hidden, but school teachers notice when their students lack enough food, because they cannot concentrate on their studies. Moreover, malnutrition in children from the time they are in their mother’s womb through their second birthday causes stunting and other development problems in their bodies and brains.

Communities of color tend to experience higher levels of poverty and hunger than the general population. David Beckman, President of Bread for the World, writes,

Giving children a healthy start in life—solid nutrition—pays off for years, and not just for individual children but for whole communities and countries. Healthy children who have received adequate food and nutrition grow strong physically and intellectually. They perform better in school and get sick less often. Their chances at better jobs are higher, and thus their earning potential and productivity are higher. They are more likely to stay out of trouble with the law. They are more able to provide for their families, and they contribute to their communities and our nation’s economy in stronger ways. (David Beckman, “An Invitation: Use Your Influence on Congress,” Bread for the World 2015 Offering of Letters)

Jesus was concerned that people in the crowd around him might faint from hunger. Imagine how concerned he would be about those who live with hunger week in and week out and the great loss to life that brings.

A growing number of churches, like ours, have made the connection between following Jesus and feeding the hungry. Through our Meals Ministry and the Chicago Lights Elam Davies Social Service Center, a food pantry, bag lunches, and two community meals twice a week every week help reduce hunger. Our Tutoring and Summer Day programs serve meals for students. The Chicago Lights Urban Farm provides fresh produce accessible to people who live in a food desert. Still, all these good efforts only reach a limited number of people. The reality is that to duplicate in the private sector what our government provides in terms of food for the hungry, every single church in the United States would need to spend $50,000 per year on food for the poor. Currently only one in twenty grocery bags that feed people comes from church food pantries and other private charities. To care for the poor in any significant way involves redistribution of resources, which is a political as well as religious matter.

The U.S. government funds important programs to help feed people in America, such as WIC, the school lunch program, and SNAP, formerly known as Food Stamps. SNAP moved 3.7 million people out of poverty in 2013. All these programs are crucial safety nets for those who fall on hard times. But all of them are also vulnerable to budget cuts. This past Wednesday, on September 30, the congressional authorization for many of these child nutrition programs expired. As people of faith, we need to urge Congress to continue strong investments in child nutrition programs and not to pay for them by making cuts to other safety-net programs such as SNAP. I hope during Coffee Hour you will go to the Mission Table to find and use an email address or sample letter to contact your congressional representatives.

Today we celebrate World Communion Sunday. Christians all over the globe, in many different cultures and time zones, will this day remember our Lord Jesus Christ by coming together around his table, sharing bread and cup. Regardless of one’s background or income, all are welcomed and offered the same portion. We share one loaf and one cup. Jesus gave his very life that all of us may have life, life abundant. He took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and instructed that it be distributed to everyone. This is a feast for all. It is possible now, as it was then, that everyone can be fed. There can be enough food in the world. It is mostly a question of distribution. Remember the way God’s love reaches people—through people. World Communion is more than a symbolic ritual to remember Jesus’ death. It is also a call to us to embody how Jesus lived his life—giving of himself so that no one goes hungry. So honor Christ by doing what you can so that all people may be filled.