Miracles pave a path back to Eden
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
The repetition of feeding folks and calming the sea is more about the breadth of Jesus’ involvement than the celebration of miracles. Lots of things are going on because Jesus is resetting the playing field about what it means to live a life of faith. Jesus doesn’t introduce new ideas. Rather, he explains the the holy scriptures as they properly should be heard. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Genesis 3:9-24
Mark 8:1-10
Mark tells us two stories of Jesus crossing the Sea of Galilee in a boat with the disciples — Mark 4:35-41 & Mark 6:47-53. Mark also reports the two times that Jesus fed thousands of folks by duplicating loaves and fishes — five loaves and two fish in feeding the five thousand (Mark 6:31-44), and then seven loaves and a “few” when he fed four thousand (Mark 8:1-9).
In all four of these scenes we watch the dumbfounded disciples, their heads spinning as Jesus’ performs miracles and re-frames their understanding of God’s intense presence among them. It’s a big enough deal that Jesus can calm the seas, walk on water, and turn a handful of sandwich pieces and parts into a feeding festival, but Jesus repeats these miraculous displays and grows his followers.
Over and over, he heals the lame, leperous, and looney (‘possessed’ is probably a better term, but alliteration got the best of me). It’s not just repetition for emphasis by Jesus, though the point could easily be made that he is searing into people’s minds what he can do. The repetition of feeding folks and calming the sea is more about the breadth of Jesus’ involvement than the celebration of miracles. Lots of things are going on because Jesus is resetting the playing field about what it means to live a life of faith.
He teaches eager listeners. For goodness sake, they spend three days having their brains and hearts realigned. Jesus doesn’t introduce new ideas. Rather, he explains the the holy scriptures as they properly should be heard. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
He builds camaraderie among the disciples, who must work together like a quilt rather than chaotic patchwork. They collaborate, orchestrated by Jesus.
The Christ, glowing with the charism of the Messiah, is revealed to the crowds. He astounds thousands of folks focused upon his every word. The result is that Jesus establishes an evangelization framework — forming minds, hearts, and followers full of witness and testimony.
The picture of God joining humanity as a man, one of us, contrasts with the reading from Genesis for this Saturday. Adam and Eve are banished from Eden, where they could eat from the Tree of LIfe and live forever. A life of toil and death awaits them. Jesus offers a doorway back to the Tree of Life.
When his disciples become increasingly aware of his interventions, watching miracle after miracle, their preparation isn’t complete. It’s only just begun. Jesus reforms how they see things, but more is to come. When Jesus is taken from them and crucified they can only be consoled by his resurrection. This awakening to Jesus’ conquering of death required that horror and the subsequent renewal. All of these events are part of a long process.
They will shift, bit by bit, from dumbfounded by Jesus’ generosity and love into collaborators and saints.
Jesus repeats his miracles to draw us nearer to him. He repairs us, restores our health, and rebuilds our relationships. He not only gives us spiritual food but knows our needs — needs that don’t stop after one magical meal.
Giving us food is not a bad thing. "My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat.” It is simply a sign of who Jesus is. The crowds then follow him, evan after he sends them home, because it is his presence that attracts them.
Jesus answered them and said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled. Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal.”
Jesus is attractive for all the right reasons, physical and spiritual. He wanted his disciples, and now us, to know that intimacy with God means taking him into us. Jesus is the bread of life and he sustains us. The Spirit dwells within us and comforts us. The truth is planted in our hearts by the Father, and he loves us.
The miracles repeat, paving a path back to Eden.