3rd Week of Easter, Monday, May 2nd
Acts 6:8-15 / John 6:22-29
Stephen is arrested; Stephen was the Church's first martyr.
Today and in the next few days, two unrelated Scripture texts run parallel – Stephen’s martyrdom presented as an imitation of the martyrdom of Christ and the Eucharistic discourse of Jesus, as given in John 6 after the multiplication of bread.
***
Westerns once enjoyed great popularity on TV. We liked them because they projected a savior-hero who made us feel good. The hero wore a white hat, won his battles without getting hurt, and, in the end, rode off into the purple sunset.
In time, new TV savior-heroes replaced the man in the white hat: nurses, detectives, and teachers. They too saved people: the brutalized child, the disturbed teenager, the senior citizen. And they too saved people without denting their shining armor.
In sharp contrast to the TV savior-hero are the
savior-heroes in real life-heroes like Jesus, Stephen, Joan of Arc, Gandhi, and
King. These authentic heroes tell us a different story. They tell us that
waging war against evil involves great personal cost and suffering.
***
How willing are we to suffer to right wrongs? "Some men
... go down in flames, but, most men perish inch by inch, Playing at little
games." Author unknown
***
Jesus confronts us today with the question: “Why are you
looking for me?” Why are we looking for God, for Jesus? Is it merely for the
things he gives us? We receive much from God, but do we look for Jesus himself,
for what he means in our lives? Let us look to get closer to him and to become
more like him. He asks us for faith in his person and mission.
***
One of the seven deacons was Stephen. Being a Hellenist, he
went to the Synagogue of the Freedmen. The Freedmen were former slaves. When
Pompey had annexed Palestine, he took many Jews with him to Rome and sold them
as slaves. Many were freed and joined the same synagogue. Stephen proposed to
them his idea of a "Church for the world". God could not be
worshipped only in one temple. No building can confine the Infinite. No law can
be enforced with those highly cultured Greeks and Romans that is not fulfilling
a purpose. They argued and debated. Stephen proved every point from Scripture.
These the most sensitive issues: The temple and the law. As always, the volume
of the voice took the place of the force of an argument. They hired false
witnesses. This is exactly what happened in the case of Jesus. Stephen was
dragged before the Sanhedrin. The accusations were the same. The members of the
Sanhedrin saw before them a spiritual man. He had meditated the Bible. They
felt the presence of God in him. That made him convincing.
***
Jesus speaks about hunger; "Spiritual hunger demands
spiritual food. "
There are over six billion people in the world. More than a
half billion of these people suffer from chronic physical hunger and
malnutrition. We have heard this statistic so often that it no longer makes a
great impact on us. But there is a more frightening statistic about hunger that
is never mentioned. It's the statistic that of the four billion people in the
world, perhaps three billion or more are suffering from chronic spiritual
hunger and malnutrition.
This is the point Jesus makes in today's gospel. That's why
he tells the people to seek not just "body" food but also
"soul" food— "food that endures for eternal life."
***
It is often said: “Be careful as to what you pray for. You
might receive it.” It might mean that not everything we ask for is good for
us. It could also mean that we might ask for a lesser good and miss out
on a greater good which was there for the asking. Today Jesus cautions us
against missing out what is truly worth asking for. “Work then, not for
perishable food, but for the lasting food which gives eternal life.” How often
we find people frequenting places of worship for financial benefits and
physical healing! Not that they are not worth asking for. But if only we asked
more for “higher things,” things that matter for the soul! Let us not be
satisfied with the many tangible gifts our God gives us. Instead, let us
continuously pray and work for the greatest of gifts: the very person of God as
our inheritance.
***
To what extent might we be suffering from chronic spiritual
hunger and malnutrition? Chronic spiritual hunger and malnutrition is more of a
threat to modern society than is chronic physical hunger and malnutrition.
***
This most astonishing miracle, the multiplication of loaves
should have had one effect: A readiness for faith in Christ. Readiness to
believe is only possible where there is a pure intention. As long as the people
seek only material benefits from the practice of their religion, faith lasts
only as long as the benefits are received. Faith means to hear and accept what
God reveals to man. It is openness to truth. The miracle is only the seal God
attaches to his revelation. It is a sign that God confirms the words. The readiness
to believe leads to doing what God demands. As Jews they think it is doing what
the law demands that leads to salvation. Faith in him is the irreplaceable
condition. Faith is not only to believe in God but also belief in Christ whom
God has sent. Of this, the miracle is the sign.
***
Prayer
Our living God, we hunger for lasting life and happiness and
the fulfillment of all our hopes. Satisfy all our hungers through your Son,
Jesus Christ, who is our bread of life. And when he has filled us with himself,
may he lead and strengthen us to bring to a waiting world the food of
reconciliation and joy, which you alone can give to the full. We ask this
thorough Christ our Lord. Amen
