JUNE 02, 2013 : THE SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ 
Lectionary: 169

Reading 1GN 14:18-20

In those days, Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine,
and being a priest of God Most High,
he blessed Abram with these words:
"Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
the creator of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who delivered your foes into your hand."
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

Responsorial PsalmPS 110:1, 2, 3, 4

R. (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The LORD said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand
till I make your enemies your footstool."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The scepter of your power the LORD will stretch forth from Zion:
"Rule in the midst of your enemies."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
"Yours is princely power in the day of your birth, in holy splendor;
before the daystar, like the dew, I have begotten you."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The LORD has sworn, and he will not repent:
"You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.

Reading 21 COR 11:23-26

Brothers and sisters:

I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, 

that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, 

took bread, and, after he had given thanks,

broke it and said, "This is my body that is for you.

Do this in remembrance of me."

In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, 

"This cup is the new covenant in my blood.

Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, 

you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.

GospelLK 9:11B-17

Jesus spoke to the crowds about the kingdom of God,
and he healed those who needed to be cured.
As the day was drawing to a close,
the Twelve approached him and said,
"Dismiss the crowd
so that they can go to the surrounding villages and farms
and find lodging and provisions;
for we are in a deserted place here."
He said to them, "Give them some food yourselves."
They replied, "Five loaves and two fish are all we have,
unless we ourselves go and buy food for all these people."
Now the men there numbered about five thousand.
Then he said to his disciples,
"Have them sit down in groups of about fifty."
They did so and made them all sit down.
Then taking the five loaves and the two fish,
and looking up to heaven,
he said the blessing over them, broke them,
and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.
They all ate and were satisfied.
And when the leftover fragments were picked up,
they filled twelve wicker baskets.

www.usccb.org

Scripture Study

This Sunday the Church in the United States celebrates the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. In most of the rest of the world this feast day was celebrated on Thursday, June 10, in many countries as a national holiday. In America, however, it typically was largely ignored in the recent past. Because of its importance, the American church transfers it to the following Sunday when it can get the attention it deserves. The readings call us to consider the meaning of the Holy Eucharist in the life of the Church and in our own personal lives. The Holy Eucharist is rooted in both the Jewish Passover Seder tradition and in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. To what extent do I live out the promise and the reality of the Holy Eucharist with which God so frequently blesses me?


First Reading: Genesis 14: 18-20

18 Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine, and being a priest of God Most High, he blessed Abram with these words: 19 "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, the creator of heaven and earth; 20 And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your foes into your hand." Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.


NOTES on First Reading:

* 14:18 Although Salem is traditionally identified with Jerusalem (Psalm 76:3), the Hebrew text is not certain. Some scholars have argued that instead of the present "melek shalem" ("king of Salem"), the original may have been "melek shelomo" ("a king allied to him"). However, in Hebrews 7:2 "king of Salem" is interpreted as "king of peace" (shalom).

* 14:19 The patriarchal religion tends to be confusing. Here "God Most High" translates "el-elyon" in Hebrew. In Canaanite texts, each element may occur separately as the name of a specific deity, or they may be applied together to a single deity, as is done here by Melchizedek. For the Israelites, el became a poetic synonym for elohim ("God"); elyon ("Most High") became one of the titles of their God, Yahweh.

* 14:20 Abram gave him is literally "he gave him". Abram is to be understood as the subject of the sentence because the tithes were the tenth part assigned to priests although this rule was not a part of Israel's law until much later. See Hebrews 7:4-10.


Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 11: 23-26

23 For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread, 24 and, after he had given thanks, broke it and said, "This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." 25 In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.


NOTES on Second Reading:

* 11:23-25 This earliest written account of the institution of the Lord's Supper in the New Testament emphasizes Jesus' action of self-giving as expressed in the words over the bread and the cup and his double command to repeat his own action.

* 11:23 The language Paul uses here is traditional wording used to indicate the handing on of traditional teaching. Paul places himself in the line of tradition reaching back to Jesus.

* 11:24-25 Although Paul's version of the words of institution are closest to those presented by Luke they were not dependent on Luke but came from an independent source and had already undergone some liturgical development.

* 11:25 Unlike Luke, Paul includes an "anamnesis" for the cup. He may have added it himself or it may have been part of the liturgical usage. The sense of the statement, "Do this in memory" is seen in verse 26.

* 11:26 This verse is both a confrontation of the Corinthians and Paul's commentary on verse 25. It is principally in the shared eating and drinking of the Eucharistic banquet that the death of the Lord is proclaimed. Authentic remembering is best accomplished only in imitation of Christ whereby God's saving love is made present in our world.


Gospel Reading: Luke 9: 11b-17

11 The crowds, meanwhile, learned of this and followed him. He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and he healed those who needed to be cured. 12 As the day was drawing to a close, the Twelve approached him and said, "Dismiss the crowd so that they can go to the surrounding villages and farms and find lodging and provisions; for we are in a deserted place here." 13 He said to them, "Give them some food yourselves." They replied, "Five loaves and two fish are all we have, unless we ourselves go and buy food for all these people." 14 Now the men there numbered about five thousand. Then he said to his disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of (about) fifty." 15 They did so and made them all sit down. 16 Then taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing over them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 They all ate and were satisfied. And when the leftover fragments were picked up, they filled twelve wicker baskets.


NOTES on Gospel:

* 9:11-17 This account of the feeding of the multitude ties the gift of food to the cross of Jesus. By placing this account of the feeding of the multitude between the story of Jesus' sharing of His ministry with the Twelve (9:1-6) and Jesus' prediction of His passion and His instruction to share in that by bearing one's cross daily (9:18-27), Luke closely ties the Eucharist, of which this event is a symbol, with both His mission and His cross. In order to properly share in the Eucharist, "in memory of Jesus" (22:19) we must share in Jesus' mission and His dedication to the Father's will symbolized by the cross.

* 9:11 This verse summarizes the Galilean ministry.

* 9:12-15 Luke portrays Jesus in the role of fulfilling God's promises of feeding His hungry creation (Isa 25:5-6). Jesus' joyful table fellowship with sinners, alluded to here, is one of the major themes of Luke's gospel.

* 9:13 Jesus draws the apostles into His ministry by asking them why they don't feed the people themselves. He implies that it is their responsibility. By sharing His ministry with them (9:1-6) He has given them this responsibility.

* 9:16 The language Luke uses to describe the actions of Jesus recall the institution of the Eucharist in Luke 22:19 and the Emmaus story in 24:30.

* 9:17 Luke strengthens the Eucharistic symbolism by using the Greek word for "fragments" which was the most common word used by the early church for the broken pieces of consecrated Eucharistic bread.  

 www.st-raymond-dublin.org

Meditation: “All ate and were satisfied”
Are you hungry for God and for the abundant life he offers you? Jesus put his disciples in a difficult spot when he commanded them to do what seemed impossible – to feed a large and hungry crowd when there was no adequate provision of food in sight. Jesus, no doubt wanted to test their faith and to teach them to rely upon God for their provision. The signs which Jesus did, including the miraculous feeding of the five thousand signified that God the Father had indeed sent his only begotten Son as the anointed Prophet, King, and Savior for his people. Jesus' feeding of the five thousand is the only miracle recorded in all four gospels. What is the significance of this miracle? The miraculous feeding of such a great multitude pointed to God's provision of manna in the wilderness for the people of Israel under Moses' leadership. This food foreshadowed the true heavenly bread which Jesus would offer his followers. Jesus makes a claim only God can make: He is the true bread of heaven that can satisfy the deepest hunger we experience. The feeding of the five thousand shows the remarkable generosity of God and his great kindness towards us. When God gives, he gives abundantly. He gives more than we need for ourselves that we may have something to share with others, especially those in need. God takes the little we have and multiplies it for the good of others. Do you trust in God's provision for you and do you share freely with others, especially those who lack?
Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand points to the superabundance of the Lord’s Supper or Eucharist. Jesus transforms the passover of the old covenant into the meal of the "new covenant in my blood". In the Old Covenant bread and wine were offered in sacrifice as a sign of grateful acknowledgment to their Creator. Melchizedek’s offering of bread and wine, who was both priest and king (Genesis 14:18), prefigured the offering made by Jesus, our high priest and king. The unleavened bread at Passover and the miraculous manna in the desert are the pledge of God's faithfulness to his promises. The "cup of blessing" at the end of the Jewish passover meal points to the messianic expectation of the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Jesus gave a new and definitive meaning to the blessing of the bread and the cup when he instituted the "Lord's Supper" or "Eucharist".  He speaks of the presence of his body and blood in this new meal. When at the Last Supper Jesus described his blood “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28), he was explaining his coming crucifixion as a sacrifice for sins. His death on the cross fulfilled the sacrifice of the paschal lamb. That is why John the Baptist called him the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Jesus made himself an offering and sacrifice, a gift that was truly pleasing to the Father. He “offered himself without blemish to God” (Hebrews 9:14) and “gave himself as a sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2). This meal was a memorial of his death and resurrection. Do you hunger for the bread of life?
"Lord Jesus, you are the "Bread of Life" and the "Cup of Salvation". Fill me with gratitude and longing for the true Bread of Heaven which gives strength and healing for body and soul."
www.dailyscripture.net

My Lord and My God

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

Father Timothy Mulcahey, LC Luke 9:11-17 Jesus received the crowds and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and he healed those who needed to be cured. As the day was drawing to a close, the Twelve approached him and said, "Dismiss the crowd so that they can go to the surrounding villages and farms and find lodging and provisions; for we are in a deserted place here." He said to them, "Give them some food yourselves." They replied, "Five loaves and two fish are all we have, unless we ourselves go and buy food for all these people." Now the men there numbered about five thousand. Then he said to his disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of (about) fifty." They did so and made them all sit down. Then taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing over them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied. And when the leftover fragments were picked up, they filled twelve wicker baskets. Introductory Prayer:Oh Sacrament most holy, oh Sacrament divine, all praise and all thanksgiving be every moment thine! Petition:Lord give me the Bread of Life so that I may never hunger again. Make me worthy to receive you today and every day of my life. I want my life to be melted into yours. Just as bread is made from wheat grain that dies and is ground into flour to be kneaded into a mass of dough, shaped, and passed through fire, so I want my life to be part of yours. Grant me the grace to receive you often in this sacrament. 1. Give Them Some Food Yourselves: The Apostles are incapable of doing what Jesus did for the crowd. They could never meet this challenge. Christ wants them to feel their helplessness in order to illustrate his power and his care for the multitude. How often we try to fix all of life’s problems on our own! We think that we are so powerful until we come across a great obstacle such as the one facing the apostles. They wondered in that moment what they could possibly give. We have received so much from God that we can become spoiled by his gifts. He lovingly has given us the ability to solve many problems in this life – whether our own or those of others. But sometimes we are faced with the impossibility of independently reaching a solution; here we can become proud and disgruntled. We often don’t know how to put this type of problem in God’s hands. 2. They All Ate and Were Satisfied: Christ feeds us with the living bread. No one has a better solution to our problems than Christ. The Apostles were thinking on a much smaller scale. Anything they could come up with would be very small and incomplete. Christ has an abundant solution. He feeds the multitude until they are completely satisfied. There is so much bread left over that it fills twelve baskets – one for each apostle. Was this perhaps a personal sign to each of them of Christ’s ability to do what they couldn’t? One day they would also provide living bread through their priesthood. It would still come from Christ but would be distributed through their hands. This gift comes down to our age too. Christ has commissioned many apostles to provide the living bread to the multitude of the members of the Church. Today we celebrate this great sacrament as the continuing presence of Christ among us. He continues to give himself to us as our daily Bread. 3. Living Bread for the Living Body: The sequence written for today’s Mass reminds us of a reality: the Eucharist is food for the living only. Those who would approach his altar unworthily do not receive his love but condemnation. It seems odd that this longstanding teaching held zealously for centuries is so hotly contested today by public figures who, while giving complete support to intrinsically evil acts (abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, etc.), claim to be faithful in their love to Christ, thus having the “right” to receive Him in Communion. We need to convert our lives and approach him in the sacrament of penance before approaching him as the “true bread of his sons and daughters that should never be given to dogs.” Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, you revealed yourself to your Apostles through the wonders of your miraculous love. Help me to see you with eyes of faith, to know you in the great works you do for me and for others through me. Teach me as you taught your Apostles to unite myself to you in living my life for others. I pray that you may use me as you used them to touch the lives of many. Help me be humble and confident in your presence in the sacrament of the Eucharist. Resolution:I will visit the Lord in the Eucharist this week. I will try to spend some time before him in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, thanking him for the gift of himself in this sacrament and asking him to make me his apostle.

www.regnumchristi.org

SUNDAY, JUNE 2
LUKE 9:11b-17

SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST
(Genesis 14:18-20; Psalm 110; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
KEY VERSE: "They all ate until they had enough" (v.17). 
READING: When Jesus sent his disciples out to proclaim the reign of God, he told them to "take nothing for the journey" (Lk.9:3). Just as Israel had to learn to depend on God for their daily needs, Jesus' disciples must trust in God's providence. As a parable in action, Jesus multiplied the bread in the wilderness and fed the multitude. Jesus' four Eucharistic acts sum up every aspect of his life. Just as he takes, blesses, breaks, and shares the bread with the people, Jesus takes God's revelation, blesses it by his words and deeds, offers his body and blood on the cross, and shares God's life with the world. Jesus is our daily bread, our nourishment on our journey to God's kingdom. His precious blood sacrificed on our behalf gives us everlasting life. 
REFLECTING: In what ways does our parish care for the hungry poor?
PRAYING: Lord Jesus, fill me with your life-giving food so that I may feed others.

The Church is the body and blood of Jesus Christ on earth. One day Fr. Anthony DeMello saw a starving child shivering in the cold. Angrily he looked up and said, "God, how could you allow such suffering? Why don't you do something?" There was a long silence, and then Fr. DeMello heard these words, "I did...I made you!"

www.daily-word-of-life.com

You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
He said the blessing over them.

Luke tells us about a huge crowd who stayed with Jesus all day. When they grew tired Jesus saw their need and miraculously provided more than enough food for all of them. Since then Jesus has continued to feed and satisfy his hungry followers. He is eager to show his love and care for us, and he does it by giving us his body and blood.

Ignatius of Antioch, one of the earliest church fathers to write about the Eucharist, called it ‘the one bread that provides the medicine of immortality, the antidote for death, and the food that makes us live forever in Jesus Christ.’ Thank you, Lord Jesus, for feeding and strengthening me with your body and blood. Help me to mirror your generosity by feeding others.
www.churchresources.info






June 2
Sts. Marcellinus and Peter
(d. 304)

Marcellinus and Peter were prominent enough in the memory of the Church to be included among the saints of the Roman Canon. Mention of their names is optional in our present Eucharistic Prayer I.

Marcellinus was a priest and Peter was an exorcist, that is, someone authorized by the Churh to deal with cases of demonic possession. They were beheaded during the persecution of Emperor Diocletian. Pope Damasus wrote an epitaph apparently based on the report of their executioner, and Constantine erected a basilica over the crypt in which they were buried in Rome. Numerous legends sprang from an early account of their death.

Comment:

Why are these men included in our Eucharistic prayer, and given their own feast day, in spite of the fact that almost nothing is known about them? Probably because the Church respects its collective memory. They once sent an impulse of encouragement through the whole Church. They made the ultimate step of faith.

Quote:

"The Church has always believed that the apostles, and Christ's martyrs who had given the supreme witness of faith and charity by the shedding of their blood, are quite closely joined with us in Christ" (Vatican II, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, 50).

www.americancatholic.org

LECTIO: THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST (C)

Lectio: 

 Sunday, June 2, 2013  

The multiplication of the loaves for the hungry
Jesus teaches sharing
Luke 9:10-17

1. Opening prayer

Lord Jesus, send your Spirit to help us read the Scriptures with the same mind that you read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In the light of the Word, written in the Bible, you helped them to discover the presence of God in the disturbing events of your sentence and death. Thus, the cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life and of resurrection. 
Create in us silence so that we may listen to your voice in Creation and in the Scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor and suffering. May your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples from Emmaus, may experience the force of your resurrection and witness to others that you are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice and peace. We ask this of you, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed to us the Father and sent us your Spirit. Amen.

2. Reading

a) A key to the reading: the literary context:

Our text comes from the middle of Luke’s Gospel: Jesus expands and intensifies his mission in the villages of Galilee and he sends the twelve disciples to help him (Lk 9:1-6). This news reaches the ears of Herod, the same who had John the Baptist killed (Lk 9:7-9). When the disciples come back from their mission, Jesus invites them to go to a solitary place (Lk 9:10). Then follows our text concerning the multiplication of the loaves (Lk 9:11-17).
Immediately after this, Jesus asks: “Who do people say that I am?” (Lk 9:18-21). Then, for the first time, he goes on to speak of his passion and death and the consequences of all this for the disciples (Lk 9:22-28). Then we have the Transfiguration where Jesus speaks with Moses and Elijah concerning his passion and death in Jerusalem (Lk 9:28-43). There follows another proclamation of his passion, to the consternation and incomprehension of his disciples (Lk 9:44-50). Finally, Jesus decides to go to Jerusalem to meet his death (Lk 9:52).

b) A division of the text as an aid to its reading:

Luke 9:10: They go to a place apart.
Luke 9:11: The crowd learns that Jesus is there and he welcomes them.
Luke 9:12: The disciples worry about the people going hungry.
Luke 9:13: Jesus makes a suggestion and the reply of the disciples.
Luke 9:14-15: Jesus’ initiative to resolve the problem of the people’s hunger
Luke 9:16: Eucharistic connotations and sense
Luke 9:17: The great sign: all will eat

c) The text:

10 On their return the apostles told him what they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a city called Bethsaida. 11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him; and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God, and cured those who had need of healing. 12 Now the day began to wear away; and the twelve came and said to him, "Send the crowd away, to go into the villages and country round about, to lodge and get provisions; for we are here in a lonely place." 13 But he said to them, "You give them something to eat." They said, "We have no more than five loaves and two fish -- unless we are to go and buy food for all these people." 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, "Make them sit down in companies, about fifty each." 15 And they did so, and made them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And all ate and were satisfied. And they took up what was left over, twelve baskets of broken pieces.

3. A moment of prayerful silence

so that the Word of God may penetrate and enlighten our life.

4. Some questions

to help us in our personal reflection.

a) What did you like best and what struck you most in the text?
b) In what situation does the crowd find itself according to the text?
c) What is the reaction or feeling of the disciples before the situation of the crowd?
d) What is the reaction or feeling of Jesus before the situation of the crowd?
e) Which facts from the Old Testament story does this text recall?
f) Do you know of any initiatives of persons who, today, give the hungry crowd food to eat?
g) How do we help the crowd? Do we distribute fish or do we teach them to fish?

5. A key to the reading

for those who wish to go deeper into the theme.

a) The historical context of our text:

The historical context of Luke’s Gospel always has two aspects: the aspect of the times of Jesus, that is, the 30’s in Palestine, and the context of the Christian communities of the 80’s for whom he is writing his Gospel. 
At the time of Jesus in Palestine, the people lived in expectation of a Messiah who would be a new Moses and who would repeat the great signs worked by Moses in Exodus: leading the people through the desert and feeding them with manna. The multiplication of the loaves in the desert was for the crowd a sign that the messianic time had come (cf. Jn 6:14-15).
In Luke’s time, in the Greek communities, it was important to confirm the Christians in the conviction of their faith and to give them direction in the midst of difficulties. The way Luke describes the multiplication of the loaves, recalls the celebration of the Eucharist as celebrated in the communities in the 80’s, and helps them to deepen their understanding of the Eucharist in their daily lives. Besides, in his description of the multiplication of the loaves, as we shall see, Luke recalls important figures in the history of the people of God: Moses, Elijah and Elisha, thus showing that Jesus is truly the Messiah who is to come to fulfil the promises of the past.

b) A commentary on the text:

Luke 9:10: Jesus and the disciples go apart in a lonely place
The disciples return from the mission to which they were sent (Lk 9:1-6). Jesus invites them to go to a lonely place near Bethsaida, north of Lake Galilee. Mark’s Gospel adds that he invites them to rest a little (Mk 6:31). When Luke describes the mission of the 72 disciples, he is also describing Jesus’ revision of his missionary activity, an activity carried out by the disciples (Lk 10: 17-20).

Luke 9:11: The crowd seeks Jesus and Jesus welcomes them
The crowd knows where Jesus went and they follow him. Mark is more explicit. He says that Jesus and the disciples went by boat whereas the crowd followed on foot by another road to a specific place. The crowd arrives before Jesus (Mk 6:32-33). When Jesus arrives at the place of rest, He sees the crowd and welcomes them. He speaks to them of the Kingdom and heals the sick. Mark adds that the crowd was like sheep without a shepherd. Before such a situation, Jesus reacts as a “good shepherd”, leading the crowd by his words and feeding them with loaves and fishes (Mk 6,34ff).

Luke 9:12: The worry of the disciples and the hunger of the crowd
The day is fading, it is almost sunset. The disciples are worried and ask Jesus to send the crowd away. They say that it is impossible to find food sufficient for so many people in the desert. For them, the only solution is to let the people go to nearby villages to buy bread. They cannot imagine any other solution.
Reading between the lines of this description of the situation of the crowd, we find something very important. People forget to eat in order to stay with Jesus. This means that Jesus must have known how to attract people, even to the point that they forget everything to follow him in the desert.

Luke 9:13: Jesus’ suggestion and the reply of the disciples
Jesus says: “You give them something to eat”. The disciples are frightened, because they only have five loaves and two fish. But it is they who must solve the problem and the only thing that comes to their mind is to send the crowd away to buy bread. They can only think of the traditional solution, namely that someone has to obtain bread for the people. Someone has to get money, buy bread and distribute it among the crowd, but in the desert such a solution is impossible. They cannot see any other possibility. In other words, if Jesus insists on not sending the crowd away, then there is no solution to the hunger of the crowd. It does not occur to them that the solution could come from Jesus and from the crowd itself.

Luke 9:14-15: Jesus’ initiative to solve the problem of the hunger
There were five thousand persons. A lot of people. Jesus asks the disciples to make them sit in groups of fifty. It is at this point that Luke begins to use the Bible to throw light on the facts of Jesus’ life. He recalls Moses. It was Moses who first gave the hungry crowd something to eat in the desert after leaving Egypt (cf. Num chs. 1 to 4). Luke also recalls the prophet Elisha. It was he, in fact, who in the Old Testament, had made that a few loaves were more than sufficient to feed a multitude (2 Kings 4:42-44). The text suggests, then, that Jesus is the new Moses, the new prophet who must come into the world (cf. Jn 6:14-15). The multitude of the communities knew the Old Testament, and half an allusion would have been sufficient for them. Thus they discover gradually the mystery that is unfolding in the person of Jesus.

Luke 9:16: Recalling the Eucharist and its meaning
When the people sit on the ground, Jesus multiplies the loaves and asks the disciples to distribute them. It is important to note the way Luke describes this action. He says: “Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, raised his eyes to heaven, and said the blessing over them; then he broke them and handed them to his disciples to distribute among the crowd”. This manner of speaking to the communities of the 80’s (and of all times) recalls the Eucharist. For these very words will be used (and are still used) in the celebration of the Supper of the Lord (22:19). Luke suggests that the Eucharist must lead to the multiplication of the loaves, that is, to sharing. It must help Christians to take care of the concrete needs of the neighbour. It is the bread of life that gives courage and leads the Christian to face the problems of the crowd in a new way, not from outside, but from among the crowd.

Luke 9:17: The great sign: all will eat
All will eat, all will be satisfied and there will be basketsful left over! An unexpected solution, performed by Jesus and born from within the crowd itself, beginning from the little that they had brought, five loaves and two fish. And there were twelve baskets full of scraps after the five thousand had eaten of the five loaves and two fish!

c) A deepening: The greater miracle:

Some will ask: “There was no miracle then? It was just a sharing?” Here are three reflections by way of an answer:

A first reflection: Which would be the greater miracle today: for instance, that on a certain day of the year, say Christmas, everyone has enough to eat and receives a Christmas hamper; or perhaps that people begin to share their bread so that no one goes hungry and there would be leftovers for other crowds. Which would be the greater miracle? What do you think?

A second reflection: The word Miracle (miraculum) comes from the verb to admire. A miracle is an extraordinary action, outside the normal, that causesadmiration and leads to think of God. The great miracle, the greatest miracle of all, is (1) Jesus himself, God made man! Thus God becomes extraordinarily human as only God can be human! Another great miracle is (2) the change that Jesus succeeds in working among the crowd that is used to solutions from outside. Jesus succeeds in making the crowd face its problem from within and to take into account the means at their disposal. A great miracle, an extraordinary thing is (3) that through this gesture of Jesus’, all eat and there are leftovers! When we share, there is always more... and leftovers! So there are three great miracles: Jesus himself, the conversion of people and the sharing of goods leading to an abundance! Three miracles born of a new experience of God as Father revealed to us in Jesus. This experience of God changed all mental categories and the way of life, it opened an entirely new horizon and created a new way of living together with others. This is the greatest miracle: another world made possible!

A third reflection: It is difficult to know how things happened. No one is saying that Jesus did not work a miracle. He worked many miracles! But we must not forget that the greatest miracle is the resurrection of Jesus. Through their faith in Jesus, people begin to live in a new way, sharing bread with the brothers and sisters who have nothing and are hungry: “None of their members was ever in want, as all those who owned land or houses would sell them, and bring the money from them to present it to the apostles” (Acts 4:34-35). When a miracle is described in the Bible, the greater attention is drawn not towards the miraculous aspect, but rather towards the meaning the miracle has for life and for the faith of the community of those who believe in Jesus, the revelation of the Father. In the so-called “first world” of the so-called “Christian” countries, animals have more to eat than human beings of the “third world”. Many people are hungry! This means that the Eucharist has not taken deep root yet nor does it reach out as it could and should.

6. The prayer of a Psalm: 81(80)

The God who frees and feeds his people

Sing aloud to God our strength; 
shout for joy to the God of Jacob! 
Raise a song, sound the timbrel, 
the sweet lyre with the harp. 
Blow the trumpet at the new moon, 
at the full moon, on our feast day. 
For it is a statute for Israel, 
an ordinance of the God of Jacob. 
He made it a decree in Joseph, 
when he went out over the land of Egypt. 
I hear a voice I had not known: 
"I relieved your shoulder of the burden; 
your hands were freed from the basket. 
In distress you called, and I delivered you; 
I answered you in the secret place of thunder; 
I tested you at the waters of Meribah. 
Hear, O my people, while I admonish you! 
O Israel, if you would but listen to me! 
There shall be no strange god among you; 
you shall not bow down to a foreign god. 
I am the Lord your God, 
who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. 
Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. 
"But my people did not listen to my voice; 
Israel would have none of me. 
So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts, 
to follow their own counsels. 
O that my people would listen to me, 
that Israel would walk in my ways! 
I would soon subdue their enemies, 
and turn my hand against their foes. 
Those who hate the Lord would cringe toward him, 
and their fate would last for ever. 
I would feed you with the finest of the wheat, 
and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you."

7. Final Prayer

Lord Jesus, we thank for the word that has enabled us to understand better the will of the Father. May your Spirit enlighten our actions and grant us the strength to practice that which your Word has revealed to us. May we, like Mary, your mother, not only listen to but also practise the Word. You who live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

www.ocarm.org