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“Food for body and soul” is the tagline for my ministry on a university campus. We serve a lot of free meals in a hospitable setting, and the campus food bank is in our building. It is my hope that when more demanding situations arise, students and others on campus will remember the Chaplaincy Center as a place of comfort and consolation. Our ministry tagline is a sequel to the first invitation to food for body and soul found in the Gospel of John.
Today’s gospel offers the source of that food, and it is Jesus. Some disciples complain, and in today’s text, they have a dispute among themselves, asking how this can be. What is meant to unite us can cause division, even today. How do I approach the table? Who else comes to the table with me? When disputes arise, we must not lose sight of the gift and the Giver. Jesus offers us not only living bread but eternal life.
Today, may I leave my questions and my disputes at the door so that I—so that we—may live forever.