The series of readings from the Hebrew Scriptures we read first every Sunday is a story of change and transition among God’s people. Where once they were content to be led by prophets and judges, the idea of a real nation with a real king (like all the other nations) becomes too hard to resist. The people are warned (it always reminds me of when my mother used to say, “If all your friends want to jump off a bridge, are you going to do it too?” This was in the days before bungee jumping. Out of this come flagrant abuses of power, civil warfare and great suffering – as well as the greatest leader the people have ever known: King David. It seems that in all situations, in all people, there is both good and bad, and that God is involved in turning even our wrong desires into blessings.
The second reading takes us through Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, and then the letter to the Ephesians. 2 Corinthians explores problems which affected Paul’s leadership of the church in Corinth. We hear Paul’s voice speaking out about personal suffering, maturity in community, using a local surplus to support the church in Jerusalem, and ecstatic religious experience. By contrast in Ephesians we hear, in the words of J.D.G. Dunn, the letter’s “mood of elevated composure, sustained prayer, and uninhibited confidence in God … and its vision of the church, united, growing to maturity and loved … [which] have been uplifting and inspiring for countless individuals and communities over the centuries.” (The Oxford Bible Commentary, p 1165). The Church is explored in its fullness, a mystery of both human community and divine inspiration.
In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus continues to travel, crossing social boundaries as well as physical ones to heal, to teach and to provide an example to his disciples of how far God’s love extends. We then switch to John’s gospel, where Jesus feeds five thousand and walks on water, leading to his revelation as the Bread of Life: food for our communal life and for the life of the world God loves.