Since Jesus in today’s gospel lesson continues to discuss what one eats not only defines who one is but also determines whether one will live eternally or not, I would like to further expand Feuerbach’s statement of “You are what you eat.” In this specifically Jewish context, there are two types of food: manna and the flesh and blood of Jesus. As Jesus refers to manna as the food that “your ancestors ate,” we can see how Jesus differentiates himself from his followers. This food that their ancestors ate is spoken metaphorically that those who eat this food are defined as Jewish. In this sense, this metaphor of manna is more than actual food. It’s the tradition and the culture that make them who they are. What they eat creates, defines, and strengthens who they are. For example, think about Kosher or halal food or veganism.
While this identity formation is crucial to human development and is helpful to discovering a sense of purpose and meaning in life, there’s the danger of exclusion when maintaining openness to differences fails as well as in the context where our formed identities hinder our spiritual growth. One gets locked in one’s fixated and often mythologized self-image. Jesus may have seen that his Jewish identity is not everything that he is. In his encounters with local religious authorities, it becomes much more evident that they appear to care more about the law than the people for whom the law exists. Rather than disowning his Jewish heritage, he expands that identity to a more universal level and invites his friends to do the same. “Don’t get stuck in that one identity or label but explore deeper.” Let’s ponder on this identity formation in a spiritual sense. Say, Frankenstein’s Creature is self-identified as the monster who is a composite of body parts grafted together from corpses and enlivened by electricity. He’s not immortal and can die in a biological sense. When his life energy is no longer left, he thinks he dies as the monster since his sole identity has never been anything but the monster in his mind. What dies is that very crafted and projected image of the monster. What is perceived to die is one’s identity and image. The sense of self he creates, identifies with, and projects onto himself dies. Because the monster is fabricated as the Creature’s identity, it is born and dead. But what if he’s free of that self-projection or identification? We name and label ourselves and others. That’s how we come to become who we are. But who are we before we’re given certain names and certain identities? You call me Paul to signify me, this specific person with distinct features. My family calls my Korean name Young, and Theodore calls me dad or abba in Korean. I can be labeled as Asian or Korean American. In the Episcopal setting, I am a priest whereas I’m a chaplain in a healthcare setting. My point is that our identities constantly change depending on the contexts we are in. What Jesus calls us into is this selfless nature of who we are as we unmask our identities that have been sometimes given by the society and culture, projected, and created on our own. Before God, we stand completely naked and simply be. Before God, only life is presented. Because Jesus sees through this selfless aspect of who we are before God, he can selflessly offer himself, his flesh and blood. Because he’s free of any sociocultural identity, he cannot die, meaning the sense of who he is is unborn. (Please keep in mind that Jesus’ promise of eternal life doesn’t mean immortality but the life of freedom in our union with God.) We are called to this selfless life in Christ. This is a daunting and challenging task. How can I let go of all my identities that we cling so much to and that we generate reasons, meanings, and purposes for our existence? It would be harder if one has more socioeconomic privileges! Even Jesus’ disciples end up leaving him. They say his teaching is difficult whereas Jesus thinks it’s offensive to them. What about us? We can consider his teaching both difficult and offensive AND still can stick with him as we learn to be selfless like he is to us. This, I think, is more than good enough reason to eat his flesh and drink his blood. We might not yet be ready to let go of all that makes who we are out of fear of losing ourselves, but our baptism has already revealed this selflessness in Christ, and in our partaking of the Eucharist we find ourselves eternally united with God. These are the hopeful signposts that can direct us whenever we fail to see who we truly are in this world. Amen. |
Paul"...life up your love to that cloud [of unknowing]...let God draw your love up to that cloud...through the help of his grace, to forget every other thing." Archives
January 2025
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