Subject: Sun. 18 B
The readings for this Sunday tell of a grumbling, unsatisfied people and a patient, always-providing God. I had to laugh after I read the first reading from the Book of Exodus because it reminded me of a very candid comment my three year old grand daughter made recently. We were reading an updated version of "the old woman who lived in a shoe" where the woman was a mouse and the shoe was a house. At one point, the momma mouse had baked a cake and the many children actually complained because they wanted a pie instead. I paused after I read that part for her reaction and was pleasantly surprised when she said, " Oh La La (that's me), they should take what they get and not throw a fit ! "
Whether it is the Israelites or the people waiting for Jesus to perform yet another sign or miracle or us today, we just don't seem to be a very grateful or satisfied lot. It seems that present day teens and young adults exhibit more and more of the attitude of "I want what I want, when I want it, and how I want it", possibly because technology makes almost everything instantaneously available these days. I'm sure my parents said the same about me! I do believe that there is hope for us all, however, because the youngest among us still knows about gratitude and being satisfied and so do most older folks. Perhaps it is the everyday practice that is difficult at first when so many possibilities can become reality ...and the continual practice of prioritizing, self-denial, and giving thanks makes (almost) perfect.
I do think that part of us is programmed by what we see and how we are raised, kinda like "input, output". There are so many teachable moments for educating children and re-evaluating our values as adults, all provided by the God who gives us His very self. In the Gospel selection from John, Jesus said ,"I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst." Each of us hungers and thirsts for various things both physical and spiritual. We, too, all of us, want to be satisfied but are rarely happy about the opportunities we see as obstacles we face on the journey. We often don't like what we get any more than the Israelites liked quail and manna ! Sometimes the grass looks greener elsewhere. Nonetheless, God continues to provide, daily at the Eucharist, daily in other ways we might not even recognize.
It might be helpful to listen to what is said in the reading from Ephesians "be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self". To me, that suggests acquiring less of the tangible things of life, a kind of simplicity that truly appreciates but not owns, and acquiring more of a reflective attitude about from where and from Whom all things come. Gratitude and thanksgiving, whether through the Eucharist or other means, will surely help form that new self, "created in God's way".
(Comments to Lanie at lanieleblanc@mindspring.com.)