My wife, Elise, is a throw back. Now I mean that in the best possible way. Sometimes I think she should have been born in the early 20th century. Probably farming land in the American West. Sort of “Little House on the Prairie” like (for those of you who are not older than dirt, like me, this was a TV show from the 1970s featuring a family living a hard existence in the late 19th century in rural Minnesota). She never takes the easy way for anything. She makes her own soap. She makes Pesto (an Italian sauce made from Basil). She cans (preserves) spaghetti sauce, peaches and apple sauce. She makes her own salad dressing. I am half expecting to come home one day and see her knitting a few roles of toilet paper.
Why does she do it? According to her (and I know this for a fact because I just turned to her and asked her in the middle of writing this) it is because 1) She enjoys doing it and 2) It gives her a sense of personal satisfaction. She could very easily just go out and buy some Ivory, or Prego or Mott’s to name a few name brands. But that is just not who she is. She has always been one to take the road less traveled.
When I was in behavior veterinary practice I loved using analogies to get a point across to a pet owner. When discussing how to alter a pet’s behavior I often used this image to convey what it would take to change the animal’s behavior. I said for the person to envision standing at the edge of the woods in front of a choice of two paths. One path is well traveled with the grass worn down making it easy to pass. However, that path leads to a location that is less than desirable. The other path is overgrown and will take some effort to walk…at least at first. However, that path leads to a much more desirable place. If you choose to do the work, to make the hard choice, you will be rewarded greatly. And eventually that trail will become easier and easier to travel.
In today’s Gospel Jesus gives the crowd a choice. He had just told them that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to have life eternal. Remember these disciples of His were mostly Jewish and they would have been well aware of the prohibition of not eating the blood of animals. So what Jesus was saying was heretical indeed. For them to continue to follow Jesus would have been hard. In fact, the Gospel tells us that they said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” And their response was to walk away from Jesus and His teaching. Jesus was left with His 12 Apostles. And one of them would betray Him. When He asks the twelve if they wanted to leave as well, Peter responds with:
“Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”
The crowd had just seen Jesus feeding 5,000 people with just a few loaves of bread. Jesus was the “bread man” for them. Taking care of their short term needs. To fill their bellies. But Jesus was focused on the long term. On the eternal term. He was offering them Himself. Asking them to follow Him down the overgrown path that leads to life eternal. Sure it was going to involve struggle and persecution but, in the end, will give them EVERYTHING they need.
It is also important to notice that, when these disciples walked away from Jesus and went back to their former way of life, Jesus did not call them back and soften the message. He did not say to them, “Hey come back. I was only speaking metaphorically.” No. He in fact doubled down on the message. Making it very clear that He really meant that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood. Foreshadowing the Eucharist and the truth of the Real Presence. The world today tells us that we are crazy. That this is really only a symbol. How can this wafer and wine be Jesus’ body and blood?!
Do we follow the crowd and walk away from this hard teaching? Or do we buck the trend of the world and say to Jesus what Peter did. You have the words of eternal life. Are we willing to work our way down that overgrown path. To go to Mass and worship instead of playing golf on Sunday morning. To fast from meat on Fridays during lent…even if it is St. Patrick’s Day. Or refrain from gossiping about a co-worker at the office. To not tell that off color joke in order to fit in with the group you find yourself hoping to impress. Are we willing to sometimes make soap instead of buying it.
