On the Sundays that we listen to John's Bread of Life discourse we will also have readings from the Old Testament, which also focus on food and on how God feeds his people. Our second readings will be from Paul's letter to the Ephesians.
The Miracle of the Loaves and Fish
John's miracles are signs-pointing to a deeper reality, namely, to the identity of Jesus. The miracle of the loaves and fishes (the only miracle that appears in all four Gospels) reveals to us One who feeds not only our belly hungers, but also our soul hunger. Jesus presents himself as the one who feeds our deepest needs. The miracle has strong Eucharistic overtones. Just as at the Last Supper, Jesus takes bread, blesses it, and distributes it to them. The twelve baskets of leftovers stresses the abundance that characterizes the Messianic era. The gospel ends with the crowds misunderstanding the miracle or sign that Jesus had just worked. When the people see what a wonderful Wonder Worker Jesus is, they want to make him King so that he will drive out the Romans and take care of their material needs. Jesus wants them to see him as one who will nourish their deepest soul needs without, of course, ignoring their other needs.
First Reading-Trusting in God to Provide
As you probably know by now, the first reading each Sunday is chosen to connect in some way with the gospel reading. The connection this week is pretty obvious.
In this reading, an unnamed man brings to a shrine twenty barley loaves, which represented the first fruits of the harvest. Normally, these would be offered to God in thanksgiving for the harvest. But, in this case the prophet Elisha orders that the bread be given to the one hundred starving men. The donor objects, but Elisha insists saying this is what God wants ("Thus say the Lord"). Not only will there be enough bread but also, there will be leftovers to stress the generosity of God. The key point in this story is the efficacy of the word of God delivered through a "man of God".
The Second Reading-could be posted on everyone's refrigerator. Lets listen to it again. Paul writes:
Noblesse oblige! Nobility obliges! In a sense, this was what the Ephesians author was telling his readers when he advised: "Live a life worthy of the calling you have received". Called to salvation by God and baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus, believers are thereby responsible for reflecting their relationship with Christ in every aspect of their day-to-day existences. Previously in this letter, the author had described the essence of Christian vocation in terms of unity among believers established by union with God through Christ and in the Spirit. In these verses he explains how the believer can translate that unity into a moral or ethical expression.
Citing what William Barclay has called "five of the great basic words of the Christian faith," the author of Ephesians painted a portrait of a model disciple.
1. Rooted in truth and an awareness of one's unworthiness, Christian humility begins to evolve when a person compares his/her life to the life of Christ and begins to accurately assess the demands of God. True humility is not obsequious kowtowing but an acknowledgment of the need for conversion and a trusting in the power of grace to transform who we are into what we have been called to become.
2. Second of the virtues is meekness. Meekness strikes the balance between two extremes. As Barclay explained, the meek person is kindled by indignation at the wrongs and sufferings of others but is never moved to anger by the wrongs and insults he himself/she herself has to bear. Animals which had been tamed or domesticated were also called meek. For the Christian, this meekness comes from surrender to the power and will of God.
3. Patience or long-suffering is that quality of spirit which never gives in to weakness. "Golden-tongued" John Chrysostom defined patience as the spirit which has the power to take revenge but never does so. Patience does not retaliate; it is the spirit that bears injury and insult without complaint. In the Christian scriptures, it is God who is continually characterized as patient (Romans 2:4, 1 Timothy 1:16, 1 Peter 3:15). Since believers have become one with God in Christ, it devolves upon them to strive for similar patience.
4. Fourth among the basic words of faith is love. Of the four Greek terms for love-eros (sexual love), philia (warm, affectionate friendship), stroge (familial affection) and agape (complete altruism) - the Ephesians author called his readers to aspire to agape. Agape moves beyond physical, friendly and even familial love and beyond emotion; it is a virtue of the will, mind and heart which always seeks the ultimate benefit and welfare of the other without reciprocity.
5. These four Christian virtues issue forth in peace so that believers may live together in all the glorious one-nesses of God. The seven-fold proclamation of unity with which this reading ends provides the reasons for and fruits of the harmony of the Christian community: one body of believers with one hope and one faith, sharing one baptism in one Jesus, belonging to one God in one Spirit. This unity has yet to be fully realized. Perhaps, this call from our elder brother in the faith will whet our appetites and sharpen our hunger for the oneness which is to distinguish us as Christ's own.
Do It Anyway
The following poem was written by Dr. Kent Keith. Mother Teresa hung it on the walls of one of her orphanages.