As we pick up this familiar miracle, Jesus is looking for a moment of peace. He just found out that his friend, his cousin, his prophet, John the Baptist, has been tragically killed. He is looking for some time to reflect on the solemnity of his loss and be by himself. This picture comes from the beach of Nassau in the Bahamas, January, 2013 right as an afternoon storm was coming in. Can’t you imagine someone looking for a bit of reflection time right by the tree?
Instead of self-time, Jesus finds that the crowds that he has been teaching and caring for, had followed him. He had compassion on them, curing their ailments. But time came for dinner, and there was no local pizza shop to call out to. The disciples were ready to send the crowds on their ways, but Jesus would not have it. Hospitality and compassion extends even to the most basic needs.
Now this story is in all four gospels, with slight variation. Many of us are familiar with the little boy who offered his lunch, the loaves and the fishes. But Matthew does not include that part. Instead, we merely hear the disciples have come up with two fish and five loaves of bread. So, my mind wanders –where did the bread and fish come from?
Have you ever played the party game where you try to solve a problem with just what it is in your pockets or your purse? You watch people pulling out old tissues and sticky pennies alongside rubber bands and receipts, band aids and balloons all to figure out how to fix a wardrobe malfunction or engineer a solution to a car window that wouldn’t stay up. I wonder if the collecting of loaves and fishes wasn’t a bit more like that. I wouldn’t ask you this morning what you have in your pockets and your purses, or if we could really feed this crowd based on what we brought to church. But through Jesus, the little bits that were offered became abundant and over-sufficient for the whole crowd. There were even leftovers! Jesus blessed and broke the loaves and the fishes, offering them to all. So, that all would take, eat, and be filled.
Jesus used this same pattern in the institution of the Holy Communion: blessing, breaking, and offering to all. The crowd whom Jesus fed, and the group of disciples with whom he instituted communion, ALL received. There was no precondition, no checking of membership, no making sure that they believed the right thing, no making sure that they wouldn’t betray him, no making sure they understood. ALL were offered.
One of my regular visits while I was at Ackermanville was to Marilyn, who lives inside of a locked Alzheimer unit at a continuing care facility. She needs the regular attention of the caregivers for most of her daily needs, as well as for her safety and the safety of those around her. Without a lot of choice and variation in language and agency, she often finds herself frustrated and acts out. Her responsiveness is limited. Marilyn has few words; her main word is Yes. So, when I offered her the sacrament of Holy Communion, it did not surprise me that her answer was “yes”. What did surprise me was her clear tone and resounding variation of joy. “YES!” She almost shouted with excitement.
As I prepared my communion kit, she curled into my lap as a child who is spent and finds rest with a parent. As I celebrated communion, I did so with one arm around her and the other interacting with the elements. She eagerly received the wafer and juice on her tongue. Soon, she nodded off to sleep on my shoulder. Neither baptism, good standing, nor full understanding is required for an invitation to the Communion table. Celebrating the sacrament of communion with Marilyn is a reminder of the wideness of God’s mercy. God offers a heaping helping of grace in which the ordinary beat-up couch in a continuing care facility becomes holy ground for the means of grace that are the sacraments. God’s grace is not just for those who can articulate a clear sacramental theology, but for all, even those whose facilities are limited.
All of us, even Marilyn, have something we offer to Christ, like the loaves and fish, gathered from the crowd. Sometimes what we have to offer is our “YES”, like Marilyn; sometimes we have compassion for others.
There is an old story that comes from at least two origins, Jewish folklore and Arab tradition. This story of the Brother’s Promise goes something like this: Once there were two brothers who inherited their father’s land. The brothers divided the land in half, and each one farmed his own section. One night, the younger brother lay awake. “It’s not fair that each of us has half the land to farm,” he thought. “My brother has six children to feed and I have none. He should have more grain than I do.” So that night the younger brother went to his silo, gathered a large bundle of wheat. Leaving the wheat in his brother’s silo, the younger brother returned home, feeling pleased with himself. Earlier that very same night, the older brother was also lying awake. “It’s not fair that each of us has half the land to farm,” he thought. “In my old age, my wife and I will have our grown children to take care of us, not to mention grandchildren, while my brother will probably have none. He should at least sell more grain from the fields now so he can provide for himself with dignity in his old age.” So that night, too, he secretly gathered a large bundle of wheat, climbed the hill, left it in his brother’s silo, and returned home, feeling pleased with himself.
The next morning, the younger brother was surprised to see the amount of grain in his barn unchanged. “I must not have taken as much wheat as I thought,” he said, bemused. “Tonight I’ll be sure to take more.” That very same moment, his older brother was also standing in his barn, musing much the same thoughts.
After night fell, each brother gathered a greater amount of wheat from his barn and in the dark, secretly delivered it to his brother’s barn. The next morning, the brothers were again puzzled and perplexed. “How can I be mistaken?” each one scratched his head. The third night, more determined than ever, each brother gathered a large pile of wheat from his barn, loaded it onto a cart, and slowly pulled his haul through the fields and up the hill to his brother’s barn. At the top of the hill, under the shadow of a moon, each brother noticed a figure in the distance. Who could it be? When the two brothers recognized the form of the other brother and the load he was pulling behind, they realized what had happened. Without a word, they dropped the ropes to their carts and embraced.
Doesn’t that sound like God? Blessing the offerings we make and out of that, creating more than we could imagine? That is the theme of the miraculous feeding of the multitudes and the miracle of Holy Communion. We offer ordinary bread and juice and are blessed with God’s very presence with us. And this miracle is for everyone!
One uniqueness about the United Methodist Church, is the completely open communion table. Completely. No requirement. No prerequisites. The Communion table is offered to anyone and everyone. Really. This is unique. Across history, the Church has struggled with who should receive communion, when, and how often. Some portions of the church have required that you are a member in good standing of a particular church or faith group. Some portions of the church have required that you have fulfilled expectations prior. Many Christian churches today require that you are connected with some church somewhere and that you have been baptized.
John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement believed that communion, itself could be a converting ordinance, in which you come to know or re-know God. So, as a result, he urged the people called Methodists to follow the example of Christ. ALL are welcome, ALL are fed. Eat and be filled. Even then, there will still be leftovers.
So, I remind you that the Jesus who has compassion on the crowds is the Jesus who has compassion for you today. As you come to receive communion this morning, please know there are no preconditions and no requirements. There is an offer of grace and abundance. Eat and be filled. There will be leftovers of the bread and cup, but also of God’s mercy. There is more than enough to go around. I wonder how God will use the gifts that we offer.
This is the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, thanks be to God, Amen.
General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church, This Holy Mystery, 13-4.
Harber, Frances and Thor Wickstrom. The Brothers’ Promise. (Whitman and Company, 2009).