First Tuesday of Advent – 12.5 | Isaiah 25:6-10a

 

On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples

    a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,

    of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.

 

And he will destroy on this mountain

    the shroud that is cast over all peoples,

    the sheet that is spread over all nations;

  he will swallow up death forever.

 

Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,

    and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,

    for the Lord has spoken.

 

It will be said on that day,

    Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.

    This is the Lord for whom we have waited;

    Let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

 

For the hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain.

 

 

Often, we live life as if we are playing a zero-sum game: if a colleague gets paid more, that means we have less opportunity for advancement. If we don’t take more than we need, someone else will, and we will be left wanting. Others have experienced lack and know what it’s like to watch others take more than they need while they themselves, hungry for food and for justice, struggle to find their next meal. 

 

Both experiences are vastly different, but both stream from a common felt experience: we long to have enough.

 

The image of a feast of abundance for all people connects to the root of our insecurities. In a world where every injustice is made right, there is no lack. There is no need for people to take more than they need, because there is no longer any fear that they will not have enough. The rich foods and well-aged wines that were once reserved for the rich and powerful are shared and enjoyed by everyone. 

 

When we practice hope in the Advent season, we begin to see the feast in the prophet’s vision as truly a reality. As we wait for the coming of light, we hope for a feast where everyone will have more than enough. 

 

  • How have you experienced lack? 

 

  • What does it mean for life to be a feast, rather than a competition for resources?

 

  • What would you do differently if you knew that there would be enough food, money, resources and recognition to go around?

 

  • What is your vision for a world marked by a feast for all?  What is one concrete step you can take to move toward this vision today?