“The Feast:
Future, Past, and Present” by Colleen O’Sullivan
On this
mountain, the Lord of hosts will provide for all peoples
A feast of
rich food and choice wines,
juicy, rich
food and pure, choice wines. (Isaiah
25:6)
At that
time: Jesus walked by the Sea of
Galilee went up on the mountain and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, having with them
the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others. They placed them at his feet, and he cured
them. (Matthew 15:29-30)
Piety
The hungry heart he satisfies
Offers the poor his paradise
Now hear all heaven and earth applaud
The amazing goodness of the Lord
Study
As I pondered the Scripture readings for today, many images flashed
through my mind. The kids all around our
country who’ve been separated from their parents at our border with Mexico,
hungry for reunification with their moms and dads. Children whose only food comes in the shape
of the meals they receive at school. Families with empty cupboards, mocked by our
culture of abundance, hungry for the ingredients for a meal. Those who suffer from addiction and live for
their next high. The lonely, hungry for
human companionship. The millions of
refugees around the world hungry for a place to lay their heads down and call
home. The affluent, full of what the
world has to offer, but otherwise empty.
In the face of such need, in our reading from Isaiah, God promises a
heavenly banquet like nothing we’ve ever experienced. Think of the most sumptuous food and drink,
and that is what God is offering. Beyond
that, the Lord says there will be no more dying. God will wipe away all our tears. Think in terms of abundance, and that’s what
this passage is about, the abundance of God’s love for us. We look forward to this
abundance.
Hunger and thirst also take on other forms – the longing to be made
whole physically, emotionally, or spiritually.
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus heals the ills of those in the crowd. Jesus doesn’t wait for the future; he does
what he can at the moment. He takes
compassion on the crowd, knowing that they must be hungry. He takes what is available and makes it
enough to feed every single person there.
There is no hunger of the stomach or the human heart that Jesus didn’t
seek to heal while here among us. Our
Scripture readings today promise us a future in God’s Kingdom, where there will
be no more tears, no more needs, no more dying.
Action
The future and the past are addressed in our Scripture readings
today. That brings us to this present
moment when Jesus asks us to be his eyes, his ears, his hands and feet in the
world today. The Lord asks us to be
compassionate and merciful to our brothers and sisters. Take a few minutes today to make an Advent
contribution to an organization of your choice, which seeks to alleviate
hunger. Some suggestions:
Catholic Charities, Arlington
- https://www.ccda.net/about-us/our-programs/about-our-food,-housing,-and-clothing-programs/
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