Word to the Wise
Wednesday, December 2, 2015 - 1st Week of Advent - Wed
[Isa 25:6-10a and Matt 15:29-37]WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2015 WEDNESDAY IN THE FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT [Isaiah 25:6-10a and Matthew 15:29-37] 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] The great Broadway musical, OLIVER, begins at an orphanage with the orphans singing, "Food, Glorious Food!" It represents their longing for something besides "GRUELLLLL." In today's scriptures, the scene is a mountain top where we know important things happen. Isaiah promises a banquet to end all banquets and the tender care of God who will "wipe away the tears from all faces." Jesus goes up the mountain where his heart "is moved with pity for the crowd, for they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat." He feeds the multitude with seven loaves and a few fish. It was not easy to come by an abundance of food in Jesus' or Isaiah's time. Three meals a day would have been a dream. And it is a scandal in our own nation of abundance that we still have people who starve. What are we doing with our abundance? The connection between nourishment, love and worship is a profound one. We literally consume The Lord of love! If we do this without helping to feed the truly hungry in our midst, we are missing the significance of the Eucharist. "When I was hungry, you gave me to eat!" Advent comes in the season of giving. It can remind us to help feed the hungry, but also to know that hunger knows no seasons. AMEN