Jesus said to them, ‘Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?’ (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, ‘It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.’ Mark 7:18-23

Religion has always been concerned about what we put into our bodies. Jewish people have their strict kosher laws. Muslims can only eat halal food. Hindus have their own dietary restrictions and I am sure that there are many others. They believe that what goes into you has the possibility to defile you. This is not just true for religious groups. It happens among the non-religious, too. We have countless of diets out there. There are people who restrict what they eat because of ethical reasons. Whatever diet we follow, we cannot help but feel we are better than others for following our choices. It is human nature. However, this is not what Jesus is talking about here. He is addressing the idea that we are not better people morally because we don’t put certain things into our bodies. We judge those who do harshly.

In my neighborhood, there are many crack addicts. They are not hidden in some corner. They are very visible. I do not know if this is just true for this city or if it is a phenomenon in every mega city. The media loves to report on them. Almost everyday, reporters call the addicts all kinds of derogatory names making no qualms in painting them as the dregs of society. People paint a horrid picture of crack addicts. However, we encounter them everyday. Most of the time, they are oblivious to the world. Sometimes they apologize just for being here. It is quite sad. Recently one was begging outside a grocery store where Mary, my wife, was in line buying something. For no rhyme or reason, a woman in back of the line yelled out to the addict sitting outside the store to get a job and stop being an useless being. Another woman in line commented that she wished that she could be like him, sitting around and doing absolutely nothing all day long. My wife is a brave soul. She turned to this woman and asked her if she really wants to spend the night sleeping outside on the cold floor and eating leftover food everyday. Besides this, she would have to endure insults hurled at her all day long. The woman was taken aback from this statement. Then she changed her tone. She admitted that the addict’s life is nothing to be envied. However, the first woman that yelled at this addict was adamant. She thought that she was right in her opinion. I don’t disagree with her. She was right in her opinion. Jesus would have agreed with her although he definitely would not have expressed it in her way. The addict needed to seek a better life. However, the problem is not her opinion. The problem is her heart. It was full of hate. She hated this addict because of what he put into his body. Most likely, it had nothing to do with the addict. She just had a lot of hatred to vent and it was socially acceptable to pick on a crack addict. She assumed that he was someone evil and morally corrupt and, therefore, felt at liberty to discharge her words of hatred on him. I am sure that she left feeling justified. The Pharisees would have felt the same way.

A few days later, Mary and I had an opposite experience. We decided to take a walk in a neighborhood where we lived before. It just happened to be one of the seediest parts of the city. I know this is far from any romantic place one would go with one’s beloved. It just so happened that we were close to this area where we once lived in the 90’s. I was curious to see whether there was any changes. The neighborhood ironically is named, “Light” (Luz) when it is really quite a dark and depressing place. The buildings looked rundown and abandoned. Most of them should have be condemned decades ago. This area is also infamous for its drug addicted sex workers. Most of them look like the caricature of thin and haggard addicts. It is quite unsettling. A homeless man walked past us and then he stopped and said something. At first, I thought maybe he was asking for some money. He smiled and said that he knew us. Then he went on to say that he has seen us working with the homeless youth. He shook our hands and continued, “It always gave me great joy to see you working with the children.” He was really happy to see us. We told him that we were still working with them. He smiled and repeated, “I knew that I knew you!” He walked away smiling. The strange thing was that many years ago in the mid 1990s, around the very same area, as I was walking by, a sex worker approached me thinking I was a possible client and another worker stopped her and said, “Respect him. He helps us.” She then apologized and said that her friend did not recognize me. I never met any of them before and we did not minister to sex workers. However, she understood the meaning of the gospel wherever it is lived and that it cannot be contained to just one group. Its joy and hope always spreads all over. I will never forget her. Her kind words are imprinted in my soul. I will never forget this homeless man, too. His words, as simple as they were, came out of the abundance of his heart. They were words spoken out of love and they have a permanent and lasting impact in our souls. His personal situation is quite dire. Most likely he is an alcoholic as many homeless adults are. It wasn’t the alcohol which brought them to the streets. It was something else. They need alcohol to cope with the sense of hopelessness. However, despite his situation, there is still something hopeful in his heart. He is able to take pleasure in seeing hopeful things happening around.

There are two types of Christianity striving in this world. One follows the footsteps of the pharisees. It is a religion which judges people according to what we put into our bodies. In other words, it is a spirituality seeking to divide us into two groups, one that is worthy of love and the other which deserves all our hatred. Then there is the Christianity of Jesus, the only true expression. It preaches the good news for all peoples. It is a message that comes from the depth of God’s heart. It is not a message which tries to put a positive spin on everything. It is one which engages in the harsh realities of Life and yet always proclaims hope. It proclaims life-giving words of genuine Love; the most essential thing necessary for every human person in this world in order to derive meaning for their existence. It is a message of healing and restoring Love. It is a message proclaiming the goodness present despite the circumstances and situations. It also recognizes hope when hopelessness reigns. It is able to overcome the hatred which paralyzes and cripples the souls of many. In order to preach this gospel, we first need to allow the divine Light of the gospel to expose our desire to hate and allow His love to transform our heart. Only then, we can become agents of the gospel of Jesus and reject the religion of the pharisees.

‘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 for ever.’ He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum. When many of his disciples heard it, they said, ‘This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?’ John 6:56-60

It seems like we have been on this same theme for the past few weeks. Repetition in the gospel texts usually means they are really important. I have to admit that this is not the easiest theme to understand. There are no shortcuts nor simplistic formulas to comprehend its meaning. It requires much reflection and ponderation on our part. At the same time, this does not mean that it is beyond the capability of the common person to grasp it. It is meant for every single person because it deals with a subject which concerns everyone. It is about eternal life. Jesus said that if we eat His flesh and drink His blood, we will live forever. In this reflection, I will focus on these words, “to live forever”, sometimes thought of as “eternal life”.

There is a tendency to think about eternal life as life after death. It is interesting, as Christians, we hardly consider about life before birth. It wasn’t always the case. We have some early church fathers like Origen who did think about it. The word, eternal, means without time. Therefore, it stands above our time frame of the past, the present and the future. In some religions, there is a concern about the time before birth. In our apartment building, the ground floor is rented by a religious group which believes in the doctrine of reincarnation. Almost every night, we hear their drums and chants. It is not a teaching that I have ever considered in any shape or form but their presence reminds me of the question of life before birth. They believe that their past lives have an effect on this present life. In Hinduism and Buddhism, the reincarnation is not a blessing but a dreaded cycle. The adherents of these faiths do not want to live forever. They want to free from their past lives so that the cycle of reincarnation would end. In some branches of Hinduism, they believe that the ultimate goal is to be united with the eternal life-force.

During Jesus’ time many believed that when a person died, he or she passed into a shadowy existence in Hades. The word for ghost is similar to shadow in most ancient languages. It was a life that was a mere memory of something that “once was”. Naturally, death was feared because it was the end of a real and concrete existence. It was no wonder that during Jesus’ time, the philosophy of Epicurus was very popular. He was given the title of a savior because he taught convincingly that there was not such thing as life after death. Only this life mattered. People found joy in this message. They did not have live in fear of the dreaded future.

In our ministry, the subject of life after death hardly comes up except on certain occasions. The most memorable and honest conversation I had on the subject was with Bruno. It was something which cropped up in our conversations. He asked me if the Bible described what life was like after death. He shared what he had heard from people. All of it were mere speculation. It seems like people have avoided the subject of eternal life by taking refuge in speculative ideas of life after death. I told Bruno that Jesus taught about living life in the here and now. However, eternity was always the foundation of His actions. He did not tell us to wait for eternal life. He gave it to us now. No one knows what comes after death but we have a life to live now. He was satisfied with this answer. It does not mean he understood it.

Let’s address the challenge that reincarnation poses. It believes that we originate from something eternal. However, our actions from the past keep us from being fully reuniting with the eternal. It teaches that the actions of the past have an effect on our lives. In some senses, we can appreciate this without subscribing to this doctrine. We believe that our past has marked our lives in a way. Past traumas or blessings can either cripple or enrich our lives. The difference is that we do not go beyond the time of our birth and Reincarnation does. However, Jesus goes even further. He goes to the origin of everything existing in this world. He tells His disciples that He comes from the Living Father. It was not the merits of His past life that has transformed Him into the Savior but His special relationship with the Eternal Progenitor of all things. He shares His nature and lives according to it. This very union with the Father gives Him the courage and authority to live in the present. Therefore, when He offers us His body and blood, He invites to participate in His nature. It is not something we earn. It is something we receive from him. Feeding on His Body and Blood takes us beyond our past history to define our identity according to our eternal link with the Father. Our past identity can no longer restrict us because we are given new flesh and blood to live our lives in accordance with the Father of all things. The Living Bread of Jesus frees us from all the shackles of our past to be connected with the eternal Life who is the Father.

One of our greatest fears of death is linked with being forgotten. None of us want our names to be completely erased from pages of the living. In many Anglican churches, there are portraits of the priests who served in the parish. Their names and faces are registered but it does not mean that they are remembered. I think I have my picture in a church in the Northeast of Brazil. Most likely most of its members don’t even look at it. It means nothing to them because they never had a relationship with me. Those who remember me still have an affection for me and I for them. Eventually they will pass on as I will and all of us will together slip into anonymity. This is the tragic state of death. Despite all our efforts, we will eventually become forgotten. Therefore, striving to be to remembered is the wrong approach to understand eternal life. Instead, we should seek to feed on the living bread which gives the wisdom and courage to live our lives in accordance with living Father.

Living our lives in accordance with the Living Father is not something left to our interpretation. It is revealed through the Life of Jesus. It is revealed to us as we interact with the Living Bread and allow this Bread to transform the very being of who we are. John the evangelist used strong symbolic words to express this profound truth. In some churches, they have attempted to reduce this into something literal. I am afraid the literal observance of these precious words do not make them more powerful but instead it makes them lose some profundity. We cannot feed on the Body and Blood of Jesus on our terms. We cannot be connected with the eternal Life which Jesus offers through our rituals and rites. It comes to us through grace. Our rituals and rites serve to remind us that this Bread of Life is eternally present in our midst. They are not substitutes for the Bread of Life but they provide us with the opportunity to say to our Lord that we want to feed on His body and blood so that we can become like Him.

This is really the essence of eternal life for us. We become like Jesus just as He is like the Father. The Bread He offers to us is His Life. The testimony of His Life and teachings are revealed to us in the gospels. All we need to do now is to receive His body and blood and these will transform His words into eternal Life in our souls.

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.’ John 6:52-57

We need to avoid our tendency to soothe these words by spiritualizing them.
By the way, this still doesn’t even tone it down. The odd choice of words makes it almost impossible to make it sound less offensive. After all, any suggestion of cannibalism should always be offensive in any circumstance. Nevertheless, Jesus chose these words deliberately. John decided to register them in His gospel because he believed that it was important for his readers to understand. We are challenged with the task of interpreting these words in a way which is meaningful in our everyday lives. I have to interpret them to our homeless youth in a way in which they will understand. We have a great task before us. I am going to try it now. Maybe I need a little bit more of maturing but for now, I will work work with what I haver.

Let us to go back to the verses which started this whole conversation. The people came after Jesus after He had fed five thousand in the desert. Jesus told them,

“Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” (John 6:26-27)

Philosophers who were critics of religious faith in the ancient world used to say that people sought the gods because they wished to fill their stomachs. It seems like Jesus is echoing their words. Stomach is here used metaphorically to signify all our base needs and desires. By no means it is a negative statement. We need things to survive whether it be food or shelter. Many times it is a struggle for us to acquire the basic things of life. Many underprivileged people in Jesus’ time and in the present too feel like they need divine intervention to just survive. In the gospel reading, the people acknowledged that Jesus had a special divine gift and they followed Him because they believed that he could help them in some way to achieve what they needed and desired. The critics of religion were not questioning this attitude but just wondered if God was really relevant after our stomachs are full.

This week we had a special encounter with a former crack addict. Once upon a time this poor soul was completely lost in a desolate place known as “crackland” in this city. Thankfully, he decided to attend a treatment center operated by the Catholic Church. We know of this center. They have very peculiar practices. The participants wake up early in the morning and say their rosary for about an hour. They also follow a rigorous communal prayer life throughout the day. The idea is to pray the addiction away. This young man went through the program successfully. He had gone through several treatment centers before but none had a lasting effect on him. This time he was able to stay off crack for years. However, he confessed that he still was an alcoholic. He showed us a bottle of hard liquor which he had with him. He was not drunk by any means when he spoke to us. He was waiting for the vet to treat his canine companion. We actually met him at a free veterinary clinic. Now we have to add accompanying our homeless youth to get medical help for their animal companions as part of our job description.

This young man is satisfied with his life. He wanted to overcome his debilitating addiction to crack and he did. This was not an easy thing. We strongly believe that he could not have done it if he did not sense the love of God in his heart. However, Jesus has more to offer than being a mere cure for addiction.

All our homeless children and youth are satisfied with their lives. Most of them would even say that they are happy. They have grown accustomed to their homelessness. In spite of their tragic situation, they have learned to find joy and peace. They are satisfied but Jesus wants to give them more. It does not mean that Jesus is going to wave His hand and change their social circumstances. Homelessness is a complex social and political problem. I am not going to deal with it here. I just want to interpret these tough sayings of Jesus for our daily lives.

We, humans, have an incredible capability. We can adapt to any given situation and find satisfaction in it. It does not mean that this is all there is in life. Jesus is offering something higher and aligned with our true vocation as human beings. He is giving us His flesh and His blood. His flesh or body is how He lived His life in this world. His blood is Life connected with God the Father. Jesus is inviting us to open our hearts and souls to allow Him to live out His life through us. He doesn’t want to possess us. He wants to become united with our individuality. It is the definitely not the same as asking ourselves, “what Jesus would do” in any given circumstances in our lives. I know that one time this was a popular spiritual practice. However, it still keeps Jesus at a distance and we conjure Him up whenever we are faced with a dilemma. In this gospel passage, these words are talking about a complete integration of Jesus into our lives. In other words, we need to allow the person of Jesus to live through us in this world. We need ask ourselves this question, “Is this actually possible?” The greatest enemy of the Christian church, Nietzsche thought it was impossible. This is why he wrote his infamous words, “There is only one Christian and He died on the Cross two thousand years ago.” The philosopher wasn’t making a mockery of the Christian faith. He understood the words of Jesus in this gospel passage. The essential message of the gospel is that we become Jesus. We feed on His flesh and drink His blood so that He will become integrated into our entire being.

With God, all things are possible.

One of the young people is an addict. He uses drugs every night. We have had a very close relationship with him for ten years. Even though he is an addict, his major preference is to engage with people in the neighborhood where he sleeps in the streets. I told him once that his situation does not stop him from being a blessing to people. He can still allow Jesus to live His life through him. To my surprise, he took my words seriously. In most cases, my words usually don’t go very far. This week we spoke to a lady who lives in the building above where this young man spends most of his time. She told us how her life has become richer through her friendship with this young man. She said that she had to deal with depression and in a strange way this young man was part of her healing process. There is also an old widow who lives by herself and everyday she cooks a lunch for two and brings a hot plate to him. He is the only person she talks to during the day. There are tons of lonely and neglected people. For some of these, this young man is their only human contact. They sense his genuine interest and they feel connected to him. He is also very proud of his friendship with them. He never asks for money but always receives more than what he needs. He uses some of it for drugs. Sounds sad, but there is a great improvement. He used to be someone who used drugs all day long. Now, he only uses them at night when there is no one around. During the day, he has found something better to do. He spends time with the people whom he loves. Eventually drugs will lose their grip in his life.

Feeding on His flesh and drinking His blood is a lifelong process. However, it starts where we are now. It is not for perfect people. Those who are well do not need a physician. Those who are satisfied with their lives do not want to change anything. Jesus is irrelevant for these. However, there are those who sense a strong hunger for something more concrete and eternal in their lives. Jesus offers His Life to these so that He can live through them. Perfection is a not prerequisite, only openness and willingness. We can start where we are spiritually. We can start with reading His words and allowing them to speak to our souls. We can start by trying to imitate Him and love people like He did. It will not be easy. We need to feed on Him daily and eventually His body and blood will slowly transform our hearts and minds to become like Him.

Jesus became human so that humanity can become Him.

I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh. John 6:48-51

We often read these verses without paying much attention to them. Our minds skim through these words without dwelling on them too much because they are familiar words. For those of us in the Eucharistic traditions, we hear these words weekly, “This is my body which is given unto you!” We partake in the bread of the Holy Communion. We do not think too much of the fact that we are symbolically consuming His flesh. If we did, it should disturb us. Once I was talking to a friend who is a devout Christian and very well read when it comes to the Bible. She was appalled when I told her that Jesus told his disciples to feed on His flesh. She was shocked and asked half jokingly if it was in all bibles or just the Anglican one. Well, it is the gospel. We read it today. This verse is not the end of the argument but the mere beginning. It becomes progressively controversial and difficult to digest. However, for now, it is good for us to take these tough sayings in small doses. Jesus is the Bread of Life and we need to feed on Him.

These words of Jesus separate Him from all the prophets and priests of the past. They separate Him from the all the sages and religious leaders of the world. Buddha never told his disciples to feed on his flesh. Mohammad would have never imagined saying such a thing. It would have been scandalous and most likely diminished their status as religious leaders. The people who heard Jesus utter these words were scandalized, too. According to the gospel of John, many of them deserted him at this point. It was too hard for them to accept. They wanted Jesus to be their miracle worker. They wanted Him to be their great teacher. They even considered Him to be their prophet. The verses before these narrate an attempt of the people to crown Him as their King. All these were lofty roles and titles but none of them were worthy of our Lord. He is the living Bread; something which was common in that culture. Jesus used an everyday item to highlight the mystery of His work.

A miracle worker, a great teacher, a prophet or even a wonderful King are people who play a small role in our everyday life. You just need a miracle worker when you or a loved one is ill or in some sort of calamity. A great teacher is there to guide and help us. We can listen to him or her or we can just simply ignore them altogether. A King really has very little do to with the life of the common people. Anyway, bread, in the culture of that time, was essential for survival. It is something even the poorest of the poor had and needed on a regular basis. Without bread, we become weak. Without bread for sustenance, we will slowly die.

Everyday when we walk to where the children are, we pass by many churches. I know sometimes I sound like a broken recording and I cannot help it. I draw inspiration for my reflections on our everyday experiences. The first church we walk past is our own Anglican Church. Every Sunday, we have a Eucharistic celebration where we commune the Body and Blood of Jesus in our hearts by faith. Then we pass by another church that has daily celebrations. Each day the focus is different. On Mondays, it is to free the people from the curses. On Tuesday, it is to bring prosperity and happiness to one’s life. On Wednesday, it is about financial prosperity. I am not making this up. There are many more churches in a similar fashion. All of them focus on one aspect of the ministry of Jesus and some are based on local superstition. Our church might seem closer to these words of Jesus in their celebration but it does not mean that they are any different from the other churches. Feeding on the Bread of Life is not a question of believing nor knowing the right doctrine. Jesus said these words to deliberately shake the foundations of the people’s spiritual faith. If these words do not shake our spiritual foundations, then maybe it is possible that we do not comprehend them entirely.

These words of Jesus marked a turning point in the ministry of Jesus. People followed Jesus to benefit from what He did. Some followed in a manner of a spectator. The invitation to feed on Him is in reality to become like Him. His Life provides us the means to be transformed to become like Him. He becomes the focal point of our lives. He becomes the sustenance of our life here on earth. He is our daily Bread and this Bread needs to be manifested in our lives. It is an invitation to be transformed in our daily lifestyle to become more like Him. It does not mean we become more religious. This is many times defined according to the churches we belong. It goes beyond this. It is to allow His life to transform the way we think and act in accordance with His Life.

The problem with Truth expressed through faith is that there can never be a satisfactory answer to someone who does not participate in it. I have some agnostic friends and sometimes I imagine them asking me questions whenever I write these reflections. I am sure they would want to know how one feeds on the Bread of Life. In fact, some of the people who were discussing this very matter with Jesus wondered about this. We cannot go beyond the answer that Jesus gives them,

No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. John 6:44

Of course, like most things Jesus says in the gospels, this verse raises up more questions. It is not in my capacity here to address all of them. I am sure some might think that God is playing favorites by drawing some and rejecting others. There is no mention of rejection in these words. The invitation is open to all. The world is there for all to appreciate and admire. The marks of God are present in the universe. God is present in all the beauty and even in the darkness. However, most people are too busy or not interested to perceive His presence, or rather, His bread in the world.

Once as we crossed a busy pedestrian bridge we noticed an old woman who from her simple appearance looked like someone from the poorer class in this city. She was looking intently at something on the ground. Hundreds of people just walked past her without noticing her. Usually people like her are invisible to many. Some might have thought that she was out of her mind. She did behave a little odd. She was looking intently on the floor. Mary, my wife, said she was looking at an insect. We went to her and she pointed to it and asked us what it was. She said that she observed it walking across and avoiding the people. She was amazed with this tiny creature. I picked up the insect and we looked at it up close. I told her it was a praying mantis. She smiled. We stood there admiring this tiny creature peacefully moving around my hand. Tons of people passed by it oblivious of its existence. In a strange and simple way, it was a special moment for us and the woman. I actually talked about her with our youth yesterday. Among the hundreds of people who passed the bridge she was the only one who noticed this tiny creature. It was there for everyone but only one person noticed it. She was not more special than any one of these people. However, she was attentive and ready to be amazed by the simple things in Life.

Jesus is the bread of Life. It is a simple thing. It is present in our everyday life. However, only those who are attentive and open to be amazed will discover and feed on this bread. Some will feed on this bread and their lives will be transformed. They cannot claim this transformation as part of their personal merit. This is given by the grace of God. However, God does not play favorites. He calls everyone but only a few feed on Him. Only a few want to be sustained completely by His Life. Most people just want small doses of Him. Jesus does not want to be our Christ for occasional purposes. He wants to be our everyday live giving sustenance.