Here, in the middle of the summer, the Church invites us to ponder (for five Sundays in a row) St. John’s 6th chapter. Over the centuries, the whole chapter has taken on the name “The Bread of Life Discourse.” It is one of the clearest and most profound teachings of Jesus on the Eucharist. Really good homework this week would be reading the whole chapter – especially in order to give us an idea of where it will take us, Sunday after Sunday, this month and next.
The Eucharistic “coloring” of the multiplication of the loaves (6, 1-15) is clear in Jesus’ blessing, breaking, and giving. Thus, the miracle itself becomes a symbol of the Eucharist, the Sacrament of unity.
Let’s remember that the previous 5 chapters of St. John’s Gospel have told us convincingly that God is a caring Father, and He wants us to cooperate with Him and become part of His love for all of us, His children. Cooperating with Him and becoming part of His love is precisely what the early Christians did, generously sharing what they had with the needy. They were utterly convinced that everything they needed to experience a fulfilling life was already there, in their gifts and talents and in the gifts and talents of the people around them. Is the same true for us?
It seems that the people of our time need to be encouraged to share, especially when we think we have little (or nothing) to offer. However, whatever we offer, through Jesus, will always have a life-giving effect.
Worth pondering: We are shown two attitudes in today’s Gospel story – that of St. Philip and that of St. Andrew. St. Philip said, in effect: “The situation is hopeless; nothing can be done.” But St. Andrew’s trusting attitude was: “I’ll see what I can do, even though it likely won’t be enough” … and Jesus did the rest and it was enough.
***
St. Augustine reflected on today’s Gospel (John 6, 1-15) in this way: “The miracle, or ‘sign,’ is meant to lead the human mind through visible things to the perception of the Divine. Christ did what Father does. Just as God multiplies a few seeds into a whole field of wheat, so Christ multiplies the five loaves in His hands – for there is power in the hands of Christ. Those five loaves were like seeds, not because they were cast on the earth, but because they were multiplied by the One who made the earth. This miracle was presented to our senses to stimulate our minds; it was put before our eyes in order to engage our understanding and so make us marvel at the God we do not see – because of His works which we do see.”