Peace, Bread, Life – the forgotten dimension of Sunday

‘… the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (John 6:51)

John 6:41-51 (Year B: Trinity+10)

Peace, Bread, Life..

Peace, Bread and Land was the rallying cry of the Bolshevik revolutionaries in Russia almost a hundred years ago. But, the promise of peace, bread and land was not to be in the years and decades that followed, though.  All social upheavals require a combination of simple ideas and the French set the precedent more than a century prior to the Russian revolution with the call to ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity’.

If we were to summarise the Gospel message and call to action of Jesus Christ with a Johannine emphasis (in the gospel of John) we might focus on:

• Peace
• Bread
• Life

Peace, Flesh, Life..

And countless witnesses over the centuries have testified to the reality of peace, bread and life for those who have surrendered all to Jesus – not without tribulation, persecution and all the typical sufferings of this life.  The idea of peace crops up many times in the ministry of Jesus as recounted by John. In chapter 6, which is the focus a number of recent Sundays, the words that come to the fore are:

• Bread
• Flesh
• Life

The story of the feeding of 5,000 followed by a long and rich conversation between Jesus and his closest disciples reveals a new understanding of God’s own life shared and continued through his people. At this point many (including the disciples) don’t get the message. They either seek a quick fix and spectacular solution to their immediate needs, or, they take offence at what they are hearing and seeing.

Jesus challenges us to hear again and seek those goods to which the visible, the earthly and the fleshy point. However, always rooted in this earth and reality Jesus and his word is no phantom or non-material substance (John uses the term ‘sarx’ – flesh in ancient Greek and not body as the other evangelists do).  In the course of his ministry he uses materials such as water, bread, wine, oil and flesh to press home the deeper reality of our communion with him and with one another and that the material, of itself, is good.  So, though many might take exception or offence at the use of the word flesh both then and now this manner of speaking has the potential to shock us into a deeper realisation that flesh is good and that in sharing the life of God with others we share - spiritually – in the flesh. My Irish (Gaelic) version of the bible is even more graphic and uses the word ‘feoil’ or meat. No wonder the early Christians had some explaining to do in Rome before being fed to the lions after accusations of cannibalism!

As in so many areas of belief and religious practice, we do well to accept the truth behind what is happening without trying to ‘scientifically’ explain the mechanics of what is happening. We are best to leave that to God. The point of this discourse in chapter 6 and in the liturgical and worshipping life of Christian communities is that God brings us life – right in front of us and within us.  Our mission is to embrace such life and live such life to the full.

Are we really living off the Bread of Life..?

In our lives where are the signs of new life? What does it mean for us today to eat the ‘bread of life’ which comes down from heaven? Where is this life visible in us, others, ourselves? What sort of daily bread do we feed off? Are we genuinely bread for others or do we seek to keep this bread for ourselves? Do we respond to the hunger for bread in our world today? Millions, many of them children, go to bed (or no bed) hungry every night and this doesn’t just happen in far off places and lands. As we write and read these words hundreds if not thousands of refugees are packed into open boats somewhere in the Mediterranean sea.  How does the eucharist connect us to others including those ‘with no bread’?  In our communities, workplaces and homes are we living signs of hope, life and blessing for others more than the opposite?

And what about Sundays..?

Sunday is a good occasion to re-connect with the local community in which we seek bread and life with others.  It seems to me that a Sunday without such communion is less than the full celebration and actualisation of the resurrection. We have missed something if we do not, together with others, break bread – both the living word and the spiritual food of the eucharist –  all in memory and in the current day living out of the Lord’s death and resurrection.

Thank God it’s Friday (TGIF) is a saying on social media. May be we should invoke more the hashtag on twitter which reads #thankgoditssunday ! Why so?  People celebrate Sunday in different ways. 24-hour shopping and Sunday opening has changed the pace of Sunday from a relatively quiet and relaxing day involving, in many cases, Church, visiting and family time together to a less relaxed day with racing to catch up on shopping, washing, ironing and various ‘chores’ before another week begins. And perhaps some social outing or meeting up is managed. Add to this the rise of Sunday morning sports and the picture is complete. Taking time out for a community celebration of the Lord’s resurrection has become a minority activity and that mainly among the very young and the very old. It’s called Sunday demographics.

But, at the heart of Sunday is the idea of a Re-Creation. We need to re-create our minds and bodies through a combination of restful and purposeful activity and a re-opening of the mind to the beauty, goodness and truth all round us.

We may ‘murmur’ because we don’t trust or don’t understanding all this talk about flesh and blood. But, at least we might try to listen and listen again to these so very familiar words of Jesus as reported in chapter 6 of St John’s gospel. Let us be ‘drawn’ as the Father draws us to His Son. And we will be taught wisdom in the secret of our hearts (Psalm 50).