The Fig Tree

We walk the path to the Passion with Christ for 6 days. But the Passion began in eternity, before the earth was formed, before the first fig tree grew, before God breathed Life into a handful of dust and endowed it with the Image of Himself, a God who hungers.

God walked in the Garden with His creation. He desired them.

When Adam and Eve hid from Him, He called out for them.

God walked toward Jerusalem with His disciples, the City He breathed life into and endowed with the Image of Himself.  They hid from Him and He called to them because He desired His people.

God hungers and so He walks among men. 

God hungered because He walked among men.

God curses the barren fig tree, and it withers.  The disciples marvel that the fig tree withers immediately.

But God does not destroy the fig tree.  Fig trees wither and die every day because that is what we brought into the creation.  A barren tree is sick.  A barren tree is dying.  A barren tree has no life in itself.  God merely manifests what is inevitable.  The disciples marvel at what is truly common.

They do not marvel that death is not intended to be common.

They do not marvel that God is hungry.

God hungers.  He who is Life desires His dying creation.  He who is Food desires to consume us.

But we will take our Hungry God and with our reason created to see God, with spears fashioned from the gifts of the earth, with our mouths fashioned for praise, we will feed Him.  We will feed His hunger for us with our sins, our sickness, our death.

On the Tree of the Cross hangs the Hungry God.  The Tree is not barren, it buds forth the Fruit of the Vine.  

God hungers still... and I marvel.