THANK
YOU
I thought he was coming to ask me to do something but he
wasn’t. He came to say thank you. Why was that a shock? Why does that unsettle
me? Somehow it makes me vulnerable. It softens me; reminds me others want to
relate to me as I do to them. If I accept their thanks something happens. A
relationship is born or is strengthened. Do I accept it? Or do I walk away?
People cry out for contact, for a bond. The worst poverty is to be alone –
locked up in my cell. No one to listen. No one to talk to.
John tells us Jesus fed thousands. He doesn’t say they
thanked him. They don’t get it. John called Jesus’ acts ‘signs.’ A sign points
beyond itself. Here it points to an invitation: will you receive what I have to
offer? Jesus calls the food he gave the people the ‘bread of life’. He offers
bread but he offers life. It would overflow into something unimaginable.
There are people in the Tokyo Olympics like the Tunisian
swimmer in the news today who will rejoice in their victory. They will thank
all who helped them get to this peak of achievement. Their joy is a sign. Peaks
of achievement are for great athletes and artists but they are also for
everyone under the sun They are not just for the few. Everyone who responds with
all their heart reaches the peak.
There are widows in Tigray today who weep for themselves and
for their children. Their life is a misery. God is weeping with them. Those who
have caused their weeping have not tasted the bread of life. They are stuck. This
is terrible, tragic. They cannot say ‘thank you’ to life. ‘When will we ever
learn?’ as Joan Baez used to sing.
The early Christians knew from day one that the Eucharist was
central to their new way of life. The word means ‘Thank you’. It is our thanks
to God. For what? For the relationship that heals and gives life. It is always offered
even if I and my family are torn apart by conflict.
Twelve baskets were left over. This is also mentioned in the
Elisha reading from 2 Kings. Another sign, a sign of abundance. Life simply overflowing
- like Victoria Falls at its fullest – that is God’s gift. Can we say, ‘Thank
you’ with all that that means?
25 July 2021 Sunday
17B
2 Kings 4:42-44 Eph 4:1-6 John 6:1-15
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