Intent: Spiritual Refreshment
If you’ve recently tried to call your insurance, credit card, utility or any of the other myriad companies you deal with on a daily basis, your call was no doubt answered by a pleasant but dispassionate voice inviting you to spend the next hour or so trapped in a kind of electronic purgatory. At least they support a Catholic belief structure.Welcome to “interactive voice response” — a way for you to feel like you are talking to someone without actually doing so.Companies spent billions to beef up their IVR systems, placing more and more layers of menus and information between themselves and their customers. In other words, many companies have found that it simply costs too much in terms of time and personnel to spend time chatting with us about our needs. Given the fact that trying to find a human to provide assistance on the other end of the line is a postmodern pipedream, it would be better for these corporations to just give us the real scoop up front. Imagine what that call would sound like:“Hello and thank you for calling Wylee Cayote AcmeCorporation. Your call may be monitored for our future entertainment. Your call is very important to us, but not nearly as important as it is to you. If you are calling from a rotary phone, well, that’s just sad.“Our automated voice system enables you to answer the prompts by voice instead of pushing buttons, making it seem like you’re talking to an actual person. We know that you’re not really fooled by this, but we’re going to do it anyway. We don’t have to pay the computer or give it a coffee break, health insurance or vacation, so the whole thing works great for our profit margin. Plus - You can scream at it all you want, but it will still be pleasant. We are here for you!“Please listen to the following menu options, as our menus options have changed and we have no idea what they are now either, and then press or say the number that corresponds with your choice. You will need to have in your hand your Social Security card, names of your entire extended family, 54-digit account number and your eighth-grade locker combination. Even though you enter these now, we’ll ask you to repeat them over and over again, because even though you’ve been sending us truckloads of money every month for our services we still have no idea who you are.“If at any time you wish to speak to a customer service representative, hang up and call the unemployment office …”When we need something badly we want to talk directly to the person who can get it for us rather than following the path of most resistance through a maze of menus. Servers and cubicle farms full of harried and underpaid call center reps (who are likely somewhere overseas) are no substitute for someone who will really listen and respond.The classic example of getting what you need when you need it is contained in this story of the feeding of the 5,000. That it occurs in all four gospels is a clue that it was an important story about the ability of Jesus to provide very personal and powerful service. The crucial point here is that the people had an immediate and pressing need, an immediate Person to address that need, and an immediate response to the need.The crowd that gathered by the Sea of Galilee had some definite needs. John tells us that many had come for healing, seeking the cure that getting close to Jesus might provide. Not only that, they were likely far from any town or village that could provide them with some fast food options. These people were hungry — physically and spiritually.Jesus knew this and was about to give his disciples the ultimate lesson in customer service. Seeing the predicament that was fast reaching crisis proportions, Jesus turned to Philip and asked, “Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?” It’s a rhetorical question, a problem that cannot be easily addressed by simply calling the local bakery and pressing “1” and banging in a credit card number – assuming you can even get throughThe disciples are thinking scarcity rather than abundance. Philip does the math — six months’ wages wouldn’t be enough to give all these people even a bite of food. You can almost imagine the disciples circulating among this crowd with people recognizing their closeness to Jesus and asking them questions: “Can we see Jesus up close? Got anything to eat? Can you tell me if I can get healed here?” “Are you going to open up any more lines?”Naturally, the disciples would try to distance themselves from the problem by simply pointing out that because of the huge call volume that day there would be no menu options and no real possibility of the crowd getting all their needs met personally by Jesus. In effect, the disciples are the automated voices you hear when you dial up a major corporation.That’s why the disciples frequently saw themselves as a cadre of cohorts whose function it was to keep the crowds from getting too close. They kept little children at bay, until Jesus reminded them that “such” are the kingdom of God. They tried to keep the blind and disabled from getting too close to Jesus as well. They saw themselves as an insulating layer between the people and the Christ — as though Jesus needed their protection.The history of the church too often reflects this paradigm. The professional clergy, the institution, the stained-glass windows and pipe organs and vestments, and bureaucracy often at the very least appear to be insulating factors which keep the people from connecting with an authentic God.So this story is a story about feeding, but it’s essentially a story about access. Will these people have access to Jesus who can — and will — feed them, i.e., respond to their questions and their needs?Sure, Andrew finds a boy with some loves and fishes, but in the midst of a crowd this big (5,000 men, plus women and children) it would have been the modern equivalent of a jumbo jet filled with passengers sharing one packet of airline pretzels. That’s a problem that isn’t covered in the manual, so the crowd is essentially on hold.
But that’s when the real miracle occurs. Imagine that you’ve called your insurance company in a panic and, lo, a person picks up the phone and it’s the CEO himself waiting and wanting to address your needs. How would that make you feel?That’s essentially what happens. Jesus takes the five loaves and two fish that have been brought to him and invites the people to have a seat. He then begins to act like the host of a Jewish meal, extending the invitation, making his guests comfortable, and then distributing the meal himself. While the synoptic gospels say that the disciples waited on the crowd after Jesus blessed the meal, John’s version focuses on the service of Jesus himself walking among the crowd and handing out bread and fish.That’s some serious personal contact! A picnic with Jesus! Better even than going quail hunting with the V.P. of the United States! Or maybe the V.P. overturn the election so we can have 4 mores of rollicking.That simple act provides an overflowing abundance of food, but also of hope for the crowd. Some scholars believe that Jesus simply pointed out the boy’s act of sharing his lunch and that encouraged everyone else to do the same, but such an interpretation misses the real point of the miracle. Jesus had not only given these people food, but in a larger sense he had also given them himself — his touch, his compassion, his word. Later, he would go so far as to allow himself to be broken and his sacrifice distributed as grace for all people in need of hope.The crowd responds with ultimate customer loyalty and satisfaction — they want to make Jesus king. A different king from that on the other side of the pond. Jesus would be king, but not according to their definition of power and prestige. His call would be for them to serve others and give of themselves, following his example.The good news for us is that we don’t have to wade through a myriad of messages and corporate minions in order to have access to Jesus himself. We bring our needs directly through prayer, and the CEO of the universe makes the connection with us. As John’s story makes clear, he knows what we need even before we do.The other side to this, though, has to do with our accessibility to others who are in need of a connection with Christ. As churches generate more and more programs and, in some places, get larger and larger, what happens when someone quietly utters a personal need or issues a subtle call for help? Do we give automated, churchy responses or do we say with compassion, “How can I help?” You could be the “real person” that makes all the difference in someone’s life.Let Jesus answer the phones and we shall hand out the loaves and fishes!
Let us pray.
In today’s Gospel, the feeding of the 5,000 grew out of Jesus’ tremendous compassion for the crowd. Let us go into the world, committed to live that compassion. We have a story to tell; it is the story of God’s grace. We have a meal to share; it is the nourishment of God’s shalom. Live that story, and share that shalom, in all that you say and do. We pray to the Lord.
On this Refreshment Sunday, we rejoice and are thankful that we have been chosen for eternal life by a loving Father who, even in this world, has bestowed on us so many wonderful gifts. We pray that we be worthy of God’s promise of everlasting glory. We pray to the Lord.
We pray for our earth and ask our loving Creator who so generously blessed us with such abundance in this, His World, to help us change our wasteful ways, so that this wonderful gift will be available for future generations. We pray to the Lord.
We pray for compassion for the thousands of men, women and children faced with death from famine and terrifying warfare and that those world leaders with influence use it to bring an end these unjust and horrific wars taking place throughout your creation. We pray to the Lord.
For people who seek to be strong in faith this Lent. May they find ways to nourish understanding and decide to courageously follow Christ in their lifestyles, value systems and life choices. We pray to the Lord.
For all who suffer in any way — the sick, dying and grieving; those who deal with mental anguish, depression, anxiety or addiction; those who suffer through war or who face injustice or persecution. May they find solace, healing and peace. We pray to the Lord.
We pray that our legislators will stop being afraid of, or taking gifts from, the gun lobby and start passing laws to protect our children and all peoples from unnecessary assault weapons. We pray to the Lord.
We ask that the Holy Spirit lead some benefactors to our humble parish and see our vision and invest in our ministry and parish so that we may have the financial wherewithal to continue our ministry. We also pray for vocations to the priesthood. We pray to the Lord.
For those on our parish prayer list, that they may receive swift answers to their needs and that they may find consolation through Christ’s healing presence. We pray to the Lord.
We bow our heads and remember in silence our own personal intentions and the intentions of those who have asked for our prayers (pause). We pray to the Lord.
Gracious and loving Creator, you are always answering us on the first ring and without IVR answering systems. Yet, when we sit down with our call to you, sometimes the words just are not there. God, you are so amazing that our words and thoughts of how best to praise you pale in comparison to the splendors of your name. You are the Almighty, you are the Redeemer, you are grace never ending and the embodiment of love itself. And when we come to you in prayer, sometimes words fail us in what to say. Yes, we lift up our concerns, and yet sometimes they seem so small in comparison to the tribulations encountered across your creation. How can our problems compare to disasters people face, or the fighting that surrounds people trying to escape, or the horrors that no child should ever experience? Lord God, sometimes when we come to you to pray, we are clueless as to what we should ask for. You know the thoughts in our minds and the desires of our hearts, and there are times when they conflict. Sometimes we want what is not always the best for us, and there are times that we long to hold on to the things we should let go of. There are times when really the best thing we can do is just pray thy will be done. In these moments, dear God, we are so very thankful for the lessons of your Son Jesus Christ for teaching us the words to pray when our own are insufficient.
Let us learn the lesson of the feeding of the 5,000 knowing well that this was your way to show us that no crowd is too large, not need to unable to be filled. As we now follow our Lenten observations in the last half, we know that you hear our hearts, even when the words do not come to our lips. Fill us with your love for one another as we continue to prepare ourselves for Easter. We ask all these things, through Christ our Lord. Amen
God Love You.
The Most Rev. Robert Winzens
Pastor – St. Francis Chapel
San Diego, CA.
As a small parish, we come to you all as beggars! All non-profits compete for your support, and many serve the community’s great needs, and we do not ask you to stop giving to them. But maybe one week or month, we ask that you consider a small donation to our humble parish. Your generous support also allows us to continue these important projects that fuel the movement of progressive Christianity. God will look on your donation grant you his grace in abundance! Thank you and God bless you! +++
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