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September 3, 2023: Thirsting for the Living God
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Hunger and thirst. Physical and spiritual.
There’s the hunger and thirst our Human Services division of St. Anne’s Parish excels at relieving, having done so for years now. The Monday morning crowd of volunteers and “customers” is vibrant and active each week; volunteers preparing for a horde of folks who will stop by, collect some goods to satisfy their bodies, and assist at making the upcoming week one that eases the hunger pains many would otherwise come to know. Can we place ourselves in the shoes of those who arrive on the grounds on Mondays to take home a box, a bag or more of foodstuff that will be used to satisfy one of the most fundamental, if not THE MOST fundamental need in our bodies? To satisfy our hunger? Just the fact that much of our lives revolves around meals, whether eating in our out, shows the vital importance of satisfying our hunger needs. Does a day go by without our thinking about food? I believe not.
Again, imagine being one of the folks who come here on Monday mornings, or other mornings too, seeking to acquire a load of food for themselves or their families. Imagine being in that situation. I remember growing up in a large family (extra large!) where there was, at times, very little food to consume in the house. And this was prior to food banks and numerous food pantries and such. I suppose I could blame a few of my brothers for their off the chart appetites, consuming much of the food in the house before the rest of us had a chance to snag a sandwich or two. But, I won’t blame them for being hungry, coupled with voracious appetites. It happens to the best of families. However, the folks who arrive here on Monday mornings and other days are gladly taking advantage of a Christian system that helps to momentarily satisfy the hunger needs of some of God’s children.
Physical hunger, I suspect, will never be done away with completely. I’m not saying I want this to be the case, because I don’t. I would love to see all physical hunger disappear from this world. A world where all food satisfaction is satisfied every day of the year for all people. Where there is not only enough for everyone to go around, but also developing a system between Church and State combined, and not one entity only, an all-encompassing system that cares for the hunger pains of anyone in need. I see signs and advertisements out there that say “let’s end all hunger.” Throughout the world, that is. We’re all for it. Human hearts are in a great place when we think such big, loving thoughts, doing our best to make it a reality. But I’m not fully convinced this will happen. I would love for it to come about and have it stick, if you will. Where the entities of Church and State can in unison do away with all hunger for all people. But, as of this writing, while we strive for this perfection of addressing world hunger, and as we make some headway toward this ambitious goal, we remain very distant from the creation of a system that does away with all hunger in our midst. May we never stop trying as a nation and a world to prove me wrong on this point. There are times when I would love to be wrong in my point of view. This is certainly one of them.
There’s the issue of physical hunger we have before us each day, as we do our best, I pray, to address the needs of those who know it so well. Again, many food banks and food pantries are found in communities to ensure that anyone who needs assistance can find it. At least in many parts of our nation. The same cannot be said for all parts of the world. While the issue of physical hunger for many folks remains with us for the foreseeable future, there is the other issue connected to hunger for which many of us thirst; spiritual hunger. There’s a great verse in this week’s first reading spoken by the famous Old Testament prophet Jeremiah that addresses the idea of spiritual hunger. In other words, hunger for God in our lives. As many folks sadly lose their religion for whatever the reason, thus very possibly losing their lynchpin to eternal life in a very secular world, or never have religion presented to them by parents or others, there remains the deep desire for those who, in the words of the psalmist this week, “thirst for the living God.”
Jeremiah accuses God of duping him into becoming a prophet. I love this image, and can personally relate to it on a smaller scale at least. Jeremiah knew himself pretty well. However, as we love to say, God knows us better. God saw the divine talent within Jeremiah. Within his heart, his soul, his body, and his mind. Jeremiah was a man of God, and God knew this well, while Jeremiah not as much. Jeremiah knew himself to be, like Moses, a poor speaker. But God could fix that small human issue of the tongue. So out Jeremiah goes to the Israelites to proclaim what God gave him to proclaim. Predictably, they mock him, probably spit on him, which Jesus would come to know, and deride him to the point of wanting him dead. “You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped.” In other words, God had his way with Jeremiah. But notice how Jeremiah does not blame God for his unwanted position of Old Testament prophet. It’s not the job he was looking for in life. Jeremiah was thinking of something on Wall St. the whole time. Or, to be left alone as a shepherd to real sheep, and not people-sheep.
After his realization of being duped (Has God ever duped you?), what we find in the reading is a verse that speaks to the depth of who Jeremiah happens to be. I pray the same for each of us. Despite being duped by God and mocked by his people, Jeremiah, after experiencing a flavor of God that very few do, rather than walking away from God, he understands himself to be a person who has a fire for God inside that burns in his heart and bones, really to the point of no longer being able to keep it in. How is this not a holy gift? While our world is consumed with satisfying all sorts of physical hungers that lead to the abyss of some place we are not meant to travel (for there are many places, if you will, we are not meant to travel in the created order), Jeremiah seeks to satisfy a spiritual hunger burning within that will draw him into the peace and presence of God. It sounds like his being duped was a rather good duping. While Jeremiah was being rejected by his own people for speaking to them what God revealed to him, at the same time he entered a spiritual space with the Lord that he never could bring about on his own. Jeremiah came to know God intimately, not by walking away from him as the Israelites did too often, but rather thirsting for the living God after having a taste of how richly good God is. I’m tempted to say only the saints come to know Jesus this well, but that would not be true. There are many “uncanonized” saints who lived intimate lives of faith in Jesus, and I suspect we all happen to know one or two of them.
The Jeremiah scene in the first reading connects well to what St. Paul writes to the Romans in this Sunday’s second reading. From Chapter 12 of his lengthy Epistle to the Roman Christians, the Apostle writes of the renewal of their minds, thus being able to discern what is the will of God in their lives, what is good, pleasing, and perfect. Renewal of our hearts and minds is another way of saying we live in a state of daily conversion. We are called to reflect upon our faith lives each day as we get up and face the world. Do we do this? Do we reflect upon how our minds are to be renewed for Christ Jesus in a worldly state of affairs? With all the confusing ways and division of politics and cultural values? Are we tempted to separate our faith in Christ from certain parts of our lives that we may see as not being connected to Jesus? This thought was not possible for Jeremiah when his heart began burning for God after being lovingly duped. The only correct answer to protect our spiritual hunger against worldly forces that conform to worldly ways is the constant renewal of our minds, a renewal that favors one Man, the Savior of the world. Favoring anything or anyone existing outside of the life of Jesus is not a renewal of our minds for the better, but a reverting of our minds to a passing world.
The ever-present Jesus in our lives, ever-present through steadfast faith, prayer, and works of mercy, will lead us to a spiritual hunger on par with that of Jeremiah. A hunger that burns and thirsts for the living God. A hunger that stays in tune with the holiness of God, knowing what to accept or reject in the present culture. Hunger that truly satisfies the human soul in authentic ways that knows the difference between good and evil. The fire that burned within the heart of Jeremiah a very long time ago is the same fire, the Holy Spirit, that invites us to reach a level of spiritual maturity and satisfaction that prepares us well for the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jeremiah was a simple guy doing his job on some hill in ancient Palestine. God likes simple people and simple lives. He can do wonders with the lives of simple folks. Simple folks who grow into saints through our burning desire and thirst for the living – and resurrected – God. Is there a better disposition and lifestyle we can call our own? I don’t believe so. Increasing our hunger for God and decreasing our hunger for worldly satisfaction, while caring for the physical hunger of others, is a good system for getting things done in God’s favor.