Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15

Resources

1. James G. Williams, The Bible, Violence, & the Sacred, ch. 3 on "Moses and the Exodus," especially the section "Sacrificial Crisis in the Wilderness (excerpt)," pp. 81-84.

2. James Alison, The Joy of Being Wrong, p. 141. Alison links the murmuring in the wilderness of a passage like Ex. 16 to John 6 in his explanation of the Girardian explication of skandalon:

What we can see in the light of this is the way Jesus' teaching and practice leading up to his death had, already, as its object the setting free of his hearers and disciples from their being scandalized by him precisely so that they could become part of the new edifice that was to be founded in his rejection. There is ample evidence that the apostolic witnesses were able to re-read Jesus' practice with them exactly in terms of his attempting to lead them out of scandal, to prevent them being caused to stumble by him. So, he tells the disciples of John the Baptist, at the end of a list of signs that accredit him as the "one who is to come," "And blessed is he who is not scandalized at me" (Matt. 11:6; Luke 7:23). Those who are unable to accept his teaching are described as having been scandalized by him (Matt. 13:57;15:12; Mk 6:3). In the parable of the sower some are scandalized by persecution (Mt 13:21; Mk 4:17) and so do not bear fruit. The process of Jesus attempting to lead his hearers beyond scandal is shown in John 6. There Jesus attempts to bring his hearers on from their understanding of his miraculous feeding of the five thousand, an understanding rooted in food and a kingly messiah, towards his own subversion of the Passover and the Manna in the desert as pointing to himself as the authentic bread from heaven. During the discourse, the eager listening of his audience is gradually turned into furious questioning, linked by allusion with the murmuring of Israel against Moses on its way to the Promised Land. Finally even many of his disciples find it hard to take, and Jesus asks them if this scandalizes them (Jn 6:61). The scandal is what prevents people perceiving the unity of Jesus and the Father (v 62), and for John the flesh is precisely the human condition locked in scandal, while the spirit is what leads people beyond scandal into a belief in Jesus as revealing the Father, and the Father as he who sent Jesus into the world (vv 63-65). Many of the disciples are caused to stumble, but Peter and the other eleven stay, having perceived that Jesus has words of eternal life: that is, they have overcome the scandal, at least to some extent. Even so, Jesus knows that one of them is a diabolos who will betray him (v 70). The word diabolos here is quite specifically not used to indicate a metaphysical entity, but a human person locked in scandal.

1. This passage not only fits the gospel's theme of a miraculous giving of bread, but also of the "famished craving" (see below). The Lord gives and they still aren't satisfied. The repetitious back and forth between complaint and answer emphasizes the futility of trying to satisfy a famished craving. Moses seems to sense that he is in a bad position, being the focus for the people's famished craving, and keeps trying to shift the complaining to the Lord.

Ephesians 4:1-16

Resources

1. James Alison has a section on Ephesians called "Redeeming the Time" in The Joy of Being Wrong, pages 229-232. It is most helpful to read the whole of chapter 8 to get the full context, but this exposition of Ephesians can also stand alone and provide some help to the interpreter.

2. Ched Myers and Elaine Enns, Ambassadors of Reconciliation I, ch. 4, "...And Abolished Emnity: Jesus' Cross and the Peacemaking Vocation of the Church (Ephesians)," pages 82-118. The chapter begins:

The U.S.-Mexico border fence, erected the same year the Berlin Wall came tumbling down, poignantly symbolizes the social architecture of division that defines our world. . . .

The border wall reminds us that there have always been two Americas: one of inclusion and one of exclusion. The former has found expression in the ideal of “liberty and justice for all,” and has been realized whenever Indian treaties were honored, civil rights embraced, “huddled masses yearning to be free” welcomed, or child labor laws passed. The latter was articulated in a Constitution that originally enfranchised only white landed males, and has been consolidated through land grabs, Jim Crow segregation, Guilded Age economic stratification, restrictive housing covenants, and laws precluding gay marriage. These two visions of America continually compete for our hearts and minds, not least in our churches. The America of inclusion is the only hope for democracy; the America of exclusion, as. Lincoln’s ultimatum about a “house divided” warned 150 years ago, is unsustainable.

Reflections and Questions

1. Is all the language about ascending and descending akin to Phil. 2, in which Jesus, though he was equal to God, lowered himself to the form of a servant, even to death on the cross; at which point God exalted him. Here, the one who empties himself for us showers all manners of gifts upon us in the process. The one who ascends in such a matter overturns the usual power schemes and makes captivity a captive. And the greatest gift that he gives is a new manner of oneness that is no longer at the expense of the scapegoat. Notice, too, that freedom and oneness are given together. Freedom is not the freedom to be a solitary individual; it is the freedom to be joined to the life-giving body of Christ.

John 6:24-35

Resources

1. Gil Bailie, audio tape series on "The Gospel of John"; tape 5 is on John 6.

2. Paul Nuechterlein, article entitled "Holy Communion," a section "Sacrifice, the table sacrament, and John 6" and "Conclusion," pages 216-220, the Spring 1996 issue of Contagion.

3. Andrew Marr, Abbot of St. Gregory's Abbey (Three Rivers, MI) is a long-time reader and writer on Mimetic Theory and in his blog, "Imaginary Visions of True Peace," made these reflections on this passage in 2015, "Bread That Is Enough."

4. Tom Truby, a member of Theology & Peace, used Girardian insights to offer a sermon in 2012, titled "Recruiters Follow Jesus to Capernaum."

Reflections and Questions

1. The title alone for Gil Bailie's audio tape series, "The Famished Craving: The Attention of Others, the Fascination for the Famous, and the Need for Faith" (the main title from T.S. Eliot's poem "Gerontion"), might be very fitting for this portion of John 6. The crowd persistently seeks out Jesus and asks him in 6:30, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing?" 6:2 tells us that this crowd "kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick." Then, they witness one of Jesus' greatest signs, his feeding of the five thousand, which they recognized as a sign (6:14). But now they still come looking for a sign. Talk about a famished craving! One of the ironies of this chapter seems to be this contrast between the crowd's famished craving and Jesus' ability to give bread that satisfies.

The famished craving that Bailie focuses on in the tape series is our craving for the famous, our focus on those who fascinate us, which stems from the fascination of the god/victim. The Eliot passage goes like this:

After such knowledge, what forgiveness? Think now
History has many cunning passages, contrived corridors
And issues, deceives with whispering ambitions,
Guides us by vanities. Think now
She gives when our attention is distracted
And what she gives, gives with such supple confusions
That the giving famishes the craving....

But their devouring of him will be different. As the revelation of this famished craving, he will offer the possibility of finally being satisfied, of being a bread from heaven just as he is the lamb from heaven, the Lamb of God.

(Link to the full text of Eliot's "Gerontian"; link to a page of insightful commentaries on "Gerontian.")

2. I have found the contemporary term "Affluenza" to provide a meaningful way to talk about the modern experience of a famished craving. "Affluenza" was coined from a public TV show, which still has a very informative website at:

http://www.pbs.org/kcts/affluenza/

Link to a sermon developing these themes entitled "Bread that Satisfies."