Jesus says, “I am the Bread of Life.” “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.”
Jesus is nourishing people being starved, with food and with wisdom. He is cautioning people whose resources, lives, and spirit are taken by rulers for the death of the world, to not hunger for physical bread alone. Do not take on your oppressors’ deadly value of taking things and starving people. Like the rulers, you too will be spiritually hungry. You will take and take but you will never be satisfied. You will be taken up in a monoculture of taking. That monoculture is diagnosed in the book, Rethinking Food and Agriculture. The deadly monoculture of taking affects hunger and reflects the “dominant interests of funders, international organisations, corporations, governments and wealthy individuals while ignoring the realities on the ground” – specifically, nature. Ignoring the realities of nature has deadly consequences, evident in the Covid 19 tragedy, “Industrial animal factory farming, along with the associated habitat destruction for feed production and the wildlife trade, has also led to the increasing spread of novel zoonotic diseases. COVID-19 is just one of several zoonotic infections” that have resulted. The monoculture is taking our resources, livelihoods, community well-being, and our environment itself. Nature’s polyculture of giving can replace it. A polyculture of giving requires grassroot systemic change through “‘bottom up’ efforts… to reverse the structural forces that currently promote the large” top down monoculture of taking. Nature’s polyculture can “enhance local economies; strengthen food security; and produce healthier food.” “At the grassroots, people are building prosperous local economies that provide more meaningful, productive work and renew place-based relationships that reflect the desire for love and connection,” specifically with nature which embodies giving. When we are living in touch with nature we are living in touch with a spirituality of giving and are provided the nourishment we need, physical and spiritual. In Rethinking Food and Agriculture, Vandana Shiva relays this truth, “There are two paths to the future of our food and farming.” “The path of death is the industrial path based on fossil fuels and poisons, of war against the earth and her biodiversity. This path was paved by the Poison Cartel, the group of corporations born during WWII to create chemical weapons, which were redeployed as agrichemicals. Consequently, industrial agriculture has eroded biodiversity, disrupted the planet’s climate systems, desertified soils, destroyed water systems and is leading us to the sixth mass extinction.” “The path of life is based on co-creation with nature and her principles of diversity, giving back and sharing the earth’s gifts.” Which path are we choosing? Is it rulers’ monoculture of taking or nature’s polyculture of giving?
“Rivers do not drink their own water; trees do not eat their own fruit; the sun does not shine on itself and flowers do not spread their fragrance for themselves. Living for others is a rule of nature. We are all born to help each other. No matter how difficult it is… Life is good when you are happy; but much better when others are happy because of you.” (Sanskrit Proverb and Pope Francis)
Prayer: Spirit, we live with gratitude for the abundant generosity of nature.
Question: What am I doing or could I be doing to reflect nature’s way of giving?
August 8, 2021 Gospel John 6:41-51 Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time