Sermon for August 16, 2015

The reading

John 6:51-58

I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

The message

So after 3 weeks of reading these scripture verses from John 6 about Jesus identifying himself as the bread of life and then talking about something else (the youth gathering and pulpit exchange with Prince of Peace in Cambria Heights), I am actually going to talk about the gospel reading this week.

John’s Gospel, his telling of the story of Jesus life, death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins, is the last of the 4 Gospels and is rather different from Mark, Luke and Matthew. The first 3 are narratives, they are basically a timeline and story.  They describe the places Jesus went as well as the things that Jesus said and did.  John is organized based on 7 signs of power or miracles. Each act is followed by a discourse or long conversation Jesus has in which he explains the deeper significance of what happened, of what the sign reveals about God’s power and love for each of us.  In today’s reading, the sign of power is Jesus feeding of a great crowd with a few fish and a couple of loaves of bread and the discourse is about Jesus as the bread of life. 

After Jesus feeds the crowd, some of them figure out what happened and they follow Jesus to see more. They track him down and expect magic. I get the sense that they are telling Jesus “feeding all of those people was pretty good but show us the best you can do, and if it impresses us, we will believe you are from God and we will follow you”.   The crowd wants another sign, Instead Jesus tells them  “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”  The people are taken back by this language and get uncomfortable (like many of us probably are). Since Jesus is right there in front of them, they do not have to figure out what he means, they just ask him “How can you give us your flesh to eat?”  Instead of backing down, saying It’s just a metaphor or figure of speech or explaining his choice of words, Jesus is even more aggressive and clear, he answers them by saying “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life”.  This is not what the crowd expected. They anticipated a great sign of power, something even more miraculous then feeding thousands of people with a little bread and fish. What they got instead was Jesus telling them the way to everlasting life.  In some ways this is like meeting your partner, the true love of your life, for a quick lunch at the local diner and they ask you to marry them, you expect a decent meal and you get a life changing, joyful moment.  

Unfortunately though, the way to eternal life involves eating Jesus’ flesh and drinking his blood.  In this case, the way does not seem easy, it seems downright nasty. This stuff about eating flesh and drinking blood sounded as creepy and bizarre then as it does now.  In fact, verses like these led some opponents and enemies of the early church to accuse them of being cannibals and performing rituals that involved human sacrifice or the drinking of human blood.  I mentioned this a few weeks, but it bears repeating, often when I read these verses, I think of blood sucking Vampires and brain eating Zombies.  This is not the most comfortable part of the bible for us to talk about (trust me, every 3 years when these bread of life readings come up for 4 or 5 weeks in a row, most pastors that follow this shared list of readings are complaining (the whining usually starts sometime in May and goes through September). Many pastors talk about the other bible texts from the Old Testament or Paul’s letters or doing a summer series about something else.     

Of course, when we are given only 6 or 7 discourses in John’s Gospel, its hard to just ignore one of them, especially since this one about the bread of life comes after the feeding of the crowd, one of only two miracles in all four Gospels (the other one is Jesus resurrection).  Plus when Jesus says you need to do this to inherit eternal life, we ought to pay attention. Before we have a blood drive and put Jesus steaks on the BBQ, we need to look a little deeper about what Jesus means.  I hate to say but this is one reading I have a hard time dealing with.  I am going to try and share how I understand all this talk of flesh and blood.    

(Late Saturday night I decided I did not think the end of my sermon was good or correct so I changed it on Sunday morning, I will try to write what I said here)

The first question we need to ask is “if the bread of life is talking about Holy Communion or something else?"  Scholars, priests and teachers in the Roman Catholic Church argue that John 6 is clearly a communion text.  Luther and many others from different Christian faith traditions have argued otherwise.  In John 6 Jesus uses the word for flesh, in all the references to communion Jesus uses the word for body.  There is no ritual or invitation to share in John 6 and the timing is off. This conversation about the bread of life happens at least a year before Jesus celebrates the first Communion with his disciples on the night in which he was betrayed.  Perhaps the biggest problem with thinking about this conversation about the bread of life as Holy Communion is that Jesus tells the crowd that to inherit eternal life, to be part of God’s promises and kingdom, they must eat his flesh and drink his blood. Now, as important as Holy Communion is to us, and as much as it is a time when we mysteriously encounter the presence of the Risen Christ, the act of receiving communion alone is not how we inherit eternal life. 

In some ways, it helps make sense of the bread of life by asking the question, “what is the way we inherit eternal life”. That is accomplished by God grace, God’s gift of faith, and through Jesus Death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins. That is the message of the God’s revelation to us, through the scriptures, though Jesus words and actions, and through our experiences.  That means whatever Jesus is talking about when he refers to eating his flesh and drinking his blood, must point to those things.  It must be a way of Jesus telling the crowd that to part of God’s kingdom they need be joined to him, to be one with him. There are many examples in John when people misunderstand Jesus by thinking he is talking about physical things when he is really talking about Spiritual things, for instance when Jesus tells Nicodemus “you must be born again”, Nicodemus asks “how can I enter my mother’s womb and be born a second time”. In that sense, by eating and drinking, Jesus may be simply reminding the people that to inherit eternal life, We must be connected to him.    

Sermon for August 8 (reflection on church exchange with Prince of Peace)

Our Gospel readings for the next few weeks are very similar (all from John 6 and focused on Jesus’ identity as being the bread of life).  Instead of talking about the reading today, I am going to spend time talking about my experiences at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Cambria Heights.  Two weeks ago, on Sunday, July 26^th   , I had the opportunity to exchange churches with Pastor Brenda Irving.  She led worship here and I led worship at her church in Cambria Heights.  I’d like to talk a little about how and why this happened and share some things I learned from the experience.  

First, I would like to recognize and celebrate that Brenda was amazed at the level of welcome, care and support she received from all of you as she meet our church and led worship in our community.  I am not surprised but I am so glad that you were able to show Brenda who we are and what is so special about this congregation. This happens because each of you understand that the church is a place for everyone and take that fact very seriously.     

The church exchange came out of some comments that Brenda made at a dean’s meeting in May. She lifted up the importance of churches and leaders being together, getting to know each other, and thinking of the church as more than the building and people we see every Sunday.  She discussed the possible role pulpit exchanges could have in this work. This was not the first time she has brought this up, but it’s the first time I heard it and after some discussion we scheduled the first exchange for Sunday, July 26^th.  I’m not sure we knew what to expect, how to prepare, or how it would go, we just knew it should happen and trusted that our communities would figure it out.

Prince of Peace is a mainly African American Lutheran Church located in Cambria Heights, a middle class African American neighborhood behind JFK airport  (E train to last stop and then a bus for about 20 minutes, I’m sure cars can go there too, I just don’t have one). They had about 60 people at worship, which seemed like a decent summer turnout.  The first thing I noticed was that their Pentecost banners, inviting in and proclaiming the presence of the Holy Spirit, were still up in the sanctuary.  This is something I wanted to do for a long time and something I started to do here this year. We are a Pentecost people, able to function, thrive, care for each other and experience God’s joy because the promised Holy Spirit is here. That is the bread of our life together, the stuff that nourishes, sustains and supports us (figured id at least mention the Gospel reading). The banners were a beautiful, strong red reminder of that.

I was amazed at how welcomed and comfortable I was at Prince of Peace. The music and praise band were uplifting and joyful. I found myself semi hidden behind the pulpit, clapping and singing along (which, as you have all seen, is very rare for me to do). Something just drew me into the worship.  Other than the occasional confusion about where to stand, what to do, or why there were so many different things on the communion table, things went incredibly well.  Members at the church patiently walked and talked me though the service with care. The time flew by (the service was about 45 minutes longer than it is here but I barely noticed). The sharing of the peace took a long time and everyone tried to make sure they greeted everyone else (a practice and tradition we have here every week as well).  There was a great spirit, joy and energy at Prince of Peace. I could feel that everyone was happy to be there and so was I.  The entire service and community projected God’s love, a true openness to others, acceptance and welcome

For my sermon, I preached just like I would here. The only change was that my message was longer then usual, about 2 sermons in one. I talked about Jesus feeding the crowd as a reminder of God’s care for us and an invitation for us to care for each other. A few years ago, I preached and led worship at the Indonesian Baptist congregation that shares the space with us.  I quickly learned how ridiculous it will feel, look and sound to adopt a style you are not comfortable with because you think it’s what people expect. (I think many of the members there still remember how awkward it was). 

Although there were many, I want to share two moments  from the day that stayed with me.   First, throughout parts of the service, there was a baby crying near the front of the church.  During one crying session, the assisting minister whispered to me “there is so much hope in that sound”. I was amazed by the depth, faith and beauty of that thought.  Some people would apologize about the distraction or ask the family to take the baby outside, but here, it was the sound of joy, a cry that filled the congregation with hope for the future. Second, at the end of the service, we sang “Go My Children, With My Blessing”. This is the song we sang here a few weeks ago as a sending to the National Youth Gathering and one of my favorite hymns.  This time, as we sang “Go, My Children, Fed and Nourished, closer to me” and  “Here you heard my dear Son’s story, here you touched him, saw his glory”, I felt like that is exactly what happened in this church that morning. 

Last week, as I talked about the youth gathering, I celebrated the idea that we did not pretend Detroit was okay and the church was doing great.  The speakers, events , leaders and work were honest, facing the reality of struggle, poverty, doubt, and racism with faith.  I want to say something similar now.  As much as I love the diversity of people here at St Jacobus, at worship with us and in the churches who share our space ,I know its not normal. The ELCA, our church is the second least diverse church in the United States.  The only church body in America with less diversity then ours is a group called the National Baptist Convention, which is a black church  that was founded on the principle of being apart to confront and counter racism. (other historically black churches like AME are actually more diverse than we are).  I do not want to claim or pretend this one church exchange has fixed all that,  but hopefully it will be a start of something exciting in our synod and church, All it takes is a willingness for us to get to know each other, a desire to learn from one another and chances to share our faith, beliefs and traditions. I am glad we all had a chance to do that on July 26^th and I look forward to other opportunities to do so in the future.

Sermon for August 2, 2015

I have been away from our church for the past 2 Sundays. Two weeks ago, I was away for the ELCA National Youth Gathering in Detroit and last week was the church exchange with Pr Irving and the community at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Cambria Heights.  Since our Gospel readings are going to be very similar for the next 4 or 5 weeks (Jesus talking about the bread of life metaphor)  I am going to talk about and focus on my experiences in Detroit and in Cambria Heights, this week and next week.   

This is actually the second time I am going to talk about my experiences in Detroit.  Due to a series of decisions and events, which in an amazing way all turned out for the best, I ended up flying home from Detroit a little early with Ellie and Maria. I got back to NY on Sunday morning at 7:30 am.  At 7:31 am, Pr Jean from Grace in Forest Hills, who we went to the gathering with, called me to see if I could lead worship at her church (their scheduled supply pastor called out with a health emergency).  At Grace, I talked about the 23^rd pslam and our experiences in Detroit. That was a big change for me. I am used to talking about the 23^rd pslam as God’s care and presence with us during difficult days, at times of struggle, extreme loneliness, uncertainty, at the end of life, or to share God’s comfort with those who mourn.  There at Grace, I had a chance to ask what these words about the Lord being our shepherd mean for us while we are healthy, strong, able to serve, welcome others and share our faith.  Not only is the 23^rd psalm a proclamation of God’s care, it is also an invitation for us to care for each other.  

The Youth Gathering was about care. There was the care people at the gathering had for each other.  Groups welcoming new friends, individual kids who were there alone with a parent or pastor and getting bored. There were people walking with and helping those who were getting sick from the heat and long days, there were kids caring for worn out leaders and leaders trying to help make the trip great.  One thing I will remember is that on our first day, I took my phone for a swim in the hotel pool. After my phone was destroyed, I had to borrow phones from people to find a store to get a new one, talk to Jennifer and check in with a few people.. Maria and Ellie lent me their phones when I needed to call Jen, check in with someone or check my email.  I have described our time in Detroit as exhausting but great. A large part of what made the experience great was being immersed in a space of care, faith, community and hope.  

There was also care for the city of Detroit.  For many of us one highlight of the trip, the part that impacted us all the time, was the fact that it was good to be in Detroit, to be in a place where our spending, work and presence mattered. People who lived and worked in Detroit,  who were worn out and losing hope in the struggle to bring Detroit back, would stop, honk, pull over and yell “thank you for being here” as we walked on the streets.  One of the majors service projects at the gathering was helping a local non-profit clean up a 100 block area.  It was a mixed neighborhood (the mix was abandoned houses, empty lots where abandoned houses where knocked down and places people still lived). My conversations with some of the residents in these areas were filled with needs, hope and thankfulness.       

We could pretend people had a good attitude and things were fine, that it was all about cheers and welcome. I could talk about the Art Museum, which was incredible and the new parking lot covered with 10 stories of murals and a great view of the city. The truth is that Detroit is not a positive city in good shape with some plucky people ready to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. There are abandoned skyscrapers all over the downtown area. It is one of the most violent and dangerous cities in the United States. They have lost hundreds of thousands of jobs, there is very little tax base and almost a million of the 1.7 million residents of the city have left. The street lights are not on at night since the city cannot pay its electric bill and they are so far behind on the water bill, there are actual rumors of a shut off.  

Most of the speakers at the gathering did not pretend things were okay either.  They spoke about real, difficult truths with faith, During the mass gatherings, when all 30,000 or so Lutherans got together at Ford field (the stadium for the Detroit lions football team) to listen to bands, speakers and bishops, things were not positive, neat and easy.  One ELCA staff person talked very publically about her very private struggles with divorce, depression and mental illness as she invited everyone there to get help if they needed it.  One Pastor talked about the feelings and events after a young black man who was a vital part of his church with a bright future, was killed by a neighbor for no real reason other than being black. One pastor serving in NYC talked about the aftermath of Sandy in the Rockaways, where many poor people struggled alone with little or no help from anywhere. One speaker talked about that awful list of inequalities between the very rich, poor, and very poor and encouraged us to do something about it (one of my favorite points she made was that anyone, especially young people could do things that mattered. Her example was that the titanic, which sank on its first voyage, was built by the best professional engineers and boatbuilders in the world while Noah’s ark, which survived the great flood, was built by amateurs).   Each of these conversations confronted the dark and ugly parts of our church, society and world with the light of God and the command to love one another. The idea was as people of faith together, we could rise up. 

Personally, one of the most profound experiences for me was part of a booth at the cobo center (this convention center was set up with 100s of displays and things to do).  There was an area put together by the ELCA group that advocates for and works with the disabled.  Part of the area was something called disabled dodgeball.  Each player was randomly assigned a disability. There was a wheelchair, crutches, googles to experience being blind, and headphones to experience deafness.  Once these items were taken, everyone else had allergies to certain colors and could only touch one color ball (there were 10 balls, 2 of each color). I ended up being allergic to everything except red. My first thought was that, that’s not a real problem, this will be easy. Of course a minute into the game, it turns out the red balls were not getting used. They were just sitting there on the other side of the court and I had nothing to do. Im not sure if the other team was intimated by my great throwing strength or if it was random, but I just stood around for most of the game doing nothing while everyone looked on and wondered why I was doing nothing. Towards the end I started to break the rules and run across the line to get the red balls (a highly risky strategy for which I should have been disqualified). My disability, being allergic to anything but red, meant I could not participate.  

At this time I am going to invite Maria and Ellie up to share some of their experiences.  

Sermon for July 26, 2015 Church exchange with Pr Irving and Prince of Peace Cambria Heights

This sermon was preached at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church,  a mainly African American congregation in Cambria Heights NY where I preached and led worship this morning,  Brenda Irving, their pastor, preached and led worship at St. Jacobus. 

The reading 

  

John 6:1-21

After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias.A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.  When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?"  He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, "Six months' wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little." One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, "There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?" Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, "Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost." So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world."

  

The message 

 

I am glad to be here this morning with all of you, to worship, to share God’s word, to lift up our prayers together, to receive the gift of God’s forgiveness, to sing praise, to give thanks, to encounter God’s amazing presence in simple bread and wine, to celebrate our shared faith which centers around God’s love for all people and to remind each other that God accepts, welcomes and cares for each of us just as we are.    

This morning the Gospel reading from John about Jesus feeding 5000 men (plus an unidentified number of women and children) seems like the perfect scripture to talk about in a new place. I do not know most of you and when Pr Irving and I scheduled this pulpit exchange, I was not quite sure what to expect.  I say this reading is perfect for this morning because, at its core, it is about a community of all different people that forms around the recognition of Jesus as savior and the sharing of a sacred meal (which in many ways is exactly what church should be).  As I look at this reading, I am going to talk about some of my own memories and experiences and how they can help us all understand what exactly happened in this field of hungry, excited, different and curious people almost 2000 years ago.

There are meals I will never forget.  There are the meals from my childhood, Steak and Potatoes at my grandmother’s house on Saturday nights, Pasta on Sundays after church service, and of course, the Christmas Eve fish dinner.  After my Grandmother’s death a few years ago, we struggled to plan, experience and enjoy these meals. We still long for the way it used to be, the way people sat, the tastes and recipes, the plates we only used a few times a year, the good silverware, and of course, all of the conversations and stories.   

Also, among the meals I will never forget are the first times out with my wife Jennifer.  There was our first date at John’s pizzeria and the awkward, nervous, exciting getting to know you conversations.  Then there was our perfect dinner a few months later.  We were walking around Park Slope in Brooklyn and it started pouring rain so we ran into this small corner restaurant.  It didn’t look like much from the outside but inside was just beautiful. We got the last table, the food was great and the service was excellent. Our conversation was deep and wonderful. We got to know each other that night and I knew she was someone special. We tried to go back a few weeks later, to re-experience that evening, with all its emotions and joys, but the restaurant had gone out of business.

With these meals at Grandmas house and my first dates with Jennifer, It was not just the food that made them unforgettable, it was the people they were shared with, the history, the anticipation and the feeling that being part of it created.  The people sitting in this field when Jesus feeds them with a few loaves and fishes would never forget their meal.  Being there showed, reminded and let people feel that God would provide.   Even the writers of the Gospels did not forget this meal. The feeding of the crowd is one of the only two miracles in the New Testament that is reported in all four Gospels.  You find this story told in Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, Luke 9:10-17 and John 6:5-15.    All four writers found this story to be important enough and central enough to our understanding of Jesus that they included it in their books.  The only other miracle found in all four Gospels is Jesus’ resurrection.

The people who ate with Jesus that day will not only remember eating bread and fish in a field. They will remember that this feast was shared with every single person there, regardless of their need, regardless of their color, regardless of religion, need, or status, regardless of their age, size, shape or anything else. At this meal which Jesus blesses, gives thanks for and serves the crowd, everyone eats. friend and enemy, strange and familiar, young and old, serious and silly, local and foreign, rich and poor all eat together.   When Jesus feeds the crowd, he does so, because all people are God’s children and all could eat. If you had no money, you could eat your fill, if you were an outsider, you could eat your fill, if you just got there, you could eat your fill, if you have been following Jesus for days, week, months, or years you could eat your fill, if you were good, you could eat your fill, if you were sinful, you could eat your fill, if you were hurting, you could eat your fill, if you were scared, you could eat your fill, if you were anxious you could eat your fill.     

Jesus action, the multiplying of bread and fish is not just a miraculous way of addressing temporary hunger and need for nourishment. There is something about food that unites people. At my church we share our building with five other congregations. I eat with most of them at least 7 or 8 times a year.  I have gone to Indonesian Anniversaries, Chinese Christmas banquets and BBQs,  Filipino weddings, Bengali baptisms and Vegetarian Indian family celebrations.  At these meals, I am always reminded that we are not so different.  I also know it’s a chance to show people we are not all that different through knowing about their food, enjoying what they serve, and having a decent tolerance for very spice things.  In Jesus time, there were a lot of restrictions on what you could eat, who you could eat with, and what you could afford to buy.  These rules were longstanding and rooted in religious and cultural traditions.  All that seems to disappear in this story; if you were there, you ate. At this meal, like in God’s kingdom, there is room for everyone.          

Along with being a reminder that God cares for all people, this meal in the field is also an invitation, or even a command for us to care for each other.  This story of Jesus feeding the crowd can be seen as one of sharing abundance. People who have studied this story of Jesus feeding the multitude from a perspective of social justice, suggest this story is not quite what it seems. It is an amazing miracle but it is a different kind of miracle. It is one about sharing our abundance.  In the story, the little boy had 2 fish and 5 loaves, enough food to provide a feast for himself and the people traveling with him.  Instead, he shares his bread and fish with the crowd. We are left to assume others in the crowd were carrying food too, holding onto bags of bread, fish or other items just in case they or their families got hungry. Perhaps, the miracle here is getting them to open their containers of food, to give away what they have and trust that there will be enough.  

Personally, meals have been a central part of my own faith, development and ministry.  My first serious thoughts of being a pastor came though my work volunteering at soup kitchens and food pantries around the city. I spent this time among people who were often ignored, dismissed by society, or at best viewed as an inconvenience, Many of the people I meet during this work were desperate for the bare necessities of life, physical and spiritual, for healthcare and prayer care,   food and hope, water and understanding, help and compassion,  shelter and someone to listen to them.  It helped me understand that our faith is about announcing God’s presence to people who need to hear it.  

In some ways, during my time at the seminary in Philadelphia, I survived and finished because I addressed my anxiety and my desire to go out and do something. A friend and I started a street ministry program. We gathered and distributed whatever food there was leftover from the cafeteria along with donations and purchases from a local food warehouse.  Each week, we drove to Center City, Philadelphia, walked under the train stations and gave away whatever we gathered. For me, this work was not just giving people something to eat. It was talking with them, sitting with them, meeting them where they were, listening to them, treating them with respect and realizing that we are all children of God, with deep faith and serious questions, as well as physical, psychological and spiritual hunger. This work renewed people’s sense of hope in the communities we served.  People received something to eat but they also realized that people recognized them, knew they were hungry, living on the streets, in the stations and under the city, and offered them help, because it’s what our faith tells us to do.  Jesus wanted his disciples to see the crowd the same way.  Jesus tells Phillip, these people are God’s children, feed them, care for them.

One of the biggest surprises from this project on the streets of Philadelphia was the finding of needs in our own community. We started a food bank on campus as a way to get cheap access to resources. Students started to show up for food as well. I learned there were some students who needed help with food, especially when the cafeteria was closed on weekends.  This was a complete shock to me. After all, this was a graduate school and seminary, and not cheap. It turned out that scholarships and loans covered the meal plan but not money for other food. We had students, people in class and dorms with us, people struggling with their sense of call and racing to finish papers, in our community and in need.

In summary, Jesus feeding the crowd is about a community formed around God’s care for us and our calling to care for each other.  I know this is idealized, our communities, our neighborhoods, our cities, our world, even our churches are far from this vision of a place where everyone eats and is satisfied.  There is work to be done, serious, honest, faith filled and spirit led work.  Many of you here know a lot more about not being cared for then I do, many of you here know a lot more about not being welcomed then I do, Many of you here know a lot more about being ignored and judged then I do, many of you here know a lot more about feeling unsafe then I do. That is not how God wants us to live. Jesus message is an invitation for us to spend time together, to eat together, to see each other as children of God.  We are told to give them something to eat. We are told to live as people who know there is plenty to go around, who trust that there is plenty of bread, plenty of fish, plenty of space to sit down, plenty of things that unite us, plenty of comfort and joy to share, and plenty of room in God’s kingdom.