Feed Them Yourself

Our Gospel tells of Jesus feeding thousands with just a few loaves and fishes.

This is of course a miracle, but it's also a foreshadowing of the Eucharist.

Jesus’ actions at the Last Supper are very similar to those in this passage.

As are the priest’s at every Mass.

… looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples.

These are familiar actions and words.

And we know that the offering is more than just the physical food.

That the food is a symbol of Jesus offering his whole self.

We hear: This is my body and This is my blood.

And know that the bread and wine have passed beyond the symbolic stage.

And have actually been transformed in substance.

We experience this miracle often, many of us daily.

So, even though we can’t explain it, we’re familiar and comfortable with it.

But today’s Gospel passage also raises a less familiar aspect.

The disciples tell Jesus that the crowd’s hungry.

And Jesus responds, Give them some food yourselves.

The disciples have no idea how to do that.

But with Jesus’ guidance they do actively contribute to the feeding.

They scout up the five loaves and two fishes.

They distribute the miraculously-multiplying food to the crowd of thousands.

And they collect the leftovers.

That idea of active contribution is also carried into our Eucharistic celebration.

We bring our gifts to the altar.

We bring the gifts of bread and wine—the works of human hands.

But at that point they’re already taking on added symbolic meaning.

They represent all the gifts that all of us offer at that moment.

Then we each join in praying that the gift we chose to offer may be acceptable to God.

We also add a few drops of water, symbolizing ourselves, into the wine.

And pray: By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ,

Who humbled himself to share in our humanity.

So, before consecration, the bread and wine are already symbolic of much more.

And already mingled with the gift each of us is offering.

It’s only after all that is prepared that we move on to the consecration.

Where those already-symbolic gifts are transubstantiated into the body and blood of Christ.

So, we’re not only fed, but like those early disciples we actively contribute to the feeding.

Whatever gift we choose to offer gets incorporated into that body and blood of Christ.

At every Mass when the gifts are presented at the altar,

We each have an important decision to make.

How much of myself will I offer today?

Tuesday After Epiphany

Mk 6:34-44     Read this Scripture @usccb.org 

Feed Them Yourself

Even in our secular, cynical culture,

The vast majority of Americans still believe in Divine miracles.

The other day a Facebook entry led me to a HuffPost article.

That article quoted a recent Pew Survey on miracles.

It found that 75% of Americans believe in the miracles of Christmas.

They believe that Jesus was born to a virgin.

They believe that angels announced the birth to shepherds.

And they believe that a star led wise men to the stable.

And there are still many more Americans

Who don't believe in all three of those Christmas miracles,

But do believe in other miracles.

For us Catholics, our faith requires belief in some of the major miracles.

Like the virgin birth—that's a matter of dogma—it's part of our Creed.

But some other miracles are more open to interpretation.

I was a little surprised at the survey results and at the positive tone of the article.

It quoted a number of professors and scholars who offered their take on miracles.

They said miracles are God's interventions in this world.

God's drawing our attention to some important truth.

Catching our attention and making us look at everything in a different light.

They agreed that belief in miracles requires a leap of faith.

One scholar was a former atheist who's now a Jewish theologian.

He had decided he was more comfortable living with faith than without it.

The importance of a miracle, they said, is less its violation of natural law or science.

And more its drawing us to the particular message or truth associated with it.

And to the insight that we really don't know all there is to know about this world.

In today's Gospel passage we have another miracle.

The feeding of more than 5,000 people with just a few fish and loaves.

Many of us accept that miracle as a historic fact.

Some may view it as just a metaphorical story.

But we can all get the associated message:

Feed the hungry—whether they hunger for physical food or spiritual food, or justice.

Tend to the sheep who have no shepherd.

Recognize that we have the responsibility and the power.

Jesus tells us, Give them some food yourselves.

And he shows us that the power is available to us.

We just have to take that leap of faith and call on that power.

Tuesday after Epiphany

Mk 6:34-44      Read this Scripture @usccb.org