Brief synopsis of the readings: In the 2nd book of Kings we read about a man who brought 20 barley loaves to Elisha. Elisha told him to give it to the people but the servant protested that it wasn’t enough to feed 100 people but Elijah insisted that he do it anyway. After they all ate there was food left over. In John’s Gospel we find Jesus with his disciples close to the feast of Passover. A large crowd followed them and Jesus asked Phillip where they could purchase food to feed the crowd. Phillip responded that it would take over 200 day’s wages to pay for that much food. But Andrew found a boy with 5 loaves and 2 fish; Jesus told the 5000 men in the crowd to sit down and he blessed the food. When the crowd finished eating, the leftovers filled 12 wicker baskets.
In our history as humans few things have commanded our attention more than food. Paleontologists have been able to tell us what ancient civilizations ate by analyzing pottery shards and knife marks on animal bones. Anthropologists have tracked how different peoples have used animal sacrifices to appease their gods. Finally, some religions have divided some food (primarily meats) into what can and cannot be eaten.
And that makes sense. As I’ve said before, we need food to survive, and even more to thrive. The fear of starvation has driven world events. When I worked for hospice I quickly learned that food is not only nutrition: it’s also a sign of love, belonging and hospitality. We knew that loss of appetite was a sign that our patient’s body was shutting down and this often created family conflict. Well meaning and loving families sometimes asked about and even demanded that feeding tubes be placed because “we can’t just let him starve.”
Given all this it’s no surprise that food figures prominently in our readings. Because for as long as we’ve been aware of our need for food there has been food inequality. God has always provided enough food for all of us but we don’t distribute it evenly. Every time someone gives another person food without being compensated we are making dent in that inequality. Our readings show that feeding the hungry reaches to the heart of our responsibilities to each other.
Sounds easy, right? Well, sometimes we make it more complicated. I think most of us are aware of the Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s. Peasant farmers relied virtually exclusively on potatoes but for three years the potatoes rotted in the fields due to mold. Their landlords had enough food for their tenants but it was withheld because they felt it would make them lazy and thousands starved. In our own day we have several politicians who revere the writer and philosopher Ayn Rand. She believed the same thing: that everyone has the same opportunity and the same access to the things we need; inequality happens only when someone chooses not to work. Poverty and hunger are entirely self inflicted.
If anything runs completely counter to Jesus’ message this is it. Our readings give us examples of feeding large groups of people and both are a little fuzzy on the details. Did the food come out of empty bags or out of the generosity of those who had more than they needed? Well, in a sense, it doesn’t matter. Whether it was magic or conversion it had the same result. And it involved the same people.
An all powerful God could make our needs equal but that wouldn’t give us credit. It would rob us of the opportunity for generosity and the community it builds. Today’s Gospel recounts the only miracle common to all four Gospels and as you would expect don’t contain all the details. But they all have the people sit in groups. When we think of feeding large groups we tend to line them up and wait for their turn but asking those gathered to sit together allowed them time to build community. Now some readers suggest that the abundance of food came not from the boy with the loaves and fishes but from those who came with more food than they needed and shared with those who didn’t have enough.
There’s no way to know but I do think that the time it took to feed the multitude provided them with the opportunity to build communities and reach out to others. Sharing a meal with others often provides an introduction to relationships that last and perhaps that happened in small ways all over the crowd.
As I said we normally think of feeding people as “food lines” and while there’s no bad reason to feed the hungry I think this loses something. When we do that the energy focuses on the line. “How long will I have to wait here?” “I hope they don’t run out before it’s my turn.” And while we may talk with the person ahead of us or behind us, that conversation often stops once the line starts moving.
I think we lose something there. Over the years I’ve given a fair amount of money to charities; it’s given me the opportunity to reach out to those in need all over the globe. Because of mass communication we know about suffering in far corners of the world and donations increase when we learn about earthquakes, hurricanes, famines, etc. far away from us. But, frankly, writing a check is easy. The few times I’ve been able to hand food to people I’ve found it much more rewarding. Not everyone was grateful but that’s OK. As I said earlier, giving away food for free is simply healing the food inequality we can’t help but see. If I’m giving from my surplus to another’s need I’m not going above and beyond the call of duty. I’m doing my duty.
We’re still a long way off from the food equality we seek; the amount of food that is wasted should shock our conscience. And without going down the well trod “guilt road” we can see that while some areas suffer from famine, other areas report record numbers of diabetes and obesity.
The road to food equality is a long one and the goal is far enough that it’s below the horizon of what we can see. But it’s a road that needs to be traveled. We need this as much as we need the community it builds.