As God’s beloved children, follow Christ by loving as he loved you, giving himself up as a sacrifice to God. May the Lord Jesus be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Michel DeVerteuil Textual Comments
In this passage, Jesus again draws lessons about life from the feeding of the five thousand.
I remind you that all teaching of Jesus recorded in the gospels is intended to speak to experience, and we must therefore appeal to our experience to discover its truth. This can be difficult with passages like these: one reason is that the language is not the kind that we use ordinarily. Some expressions – such as “eternal life,” “being drawn by the Father,” “living bread,” “flesh” – you will have to bring down to earth for yourself, applying them to what you have lived yourself.
Opening Stories: 1) The Samurai Warrior and the Zen Master One day, a Samurai warrior went to a Zen master for instruction. "Please," the huge man asked in a thundering voice that was used to instant obedience, "teach me about heaven and hell." The master scowled at the swordsman, then broke into mocking laughter. "Me, teach you about heaven and hell? I wouldn't waste a moment trying to instruct the brain of an overweight ignoramus like you! How dare you ask me for such a lofty insight?" Well, upon hearing these words, the Samurai grew furious. No one could insult him like this and get away with it. Enraged, his face flushed and he drew his sword to chop off the teacher's head. Just as he was about to strike, the master raised his hand and calmly said "That, sir, is hell."
Michel DeVerteuil Textual Comments
In this passage, Jesus again draws lessons about life from the feeding of the five thousand.
I remind you that all teaching of Jesus recorded in the gospels is intended to speak to experience, and we must therefore appeal to our experience to discover its truth. This can be difficult with passages like these: one reason is that the language is not the kind that we use ordinarily. Some expressions – such as “eternal life,” “being drawn by the Father,” “living bread,” “flesh” – you will have to bring down to earth for yourself, applying them to what you have lived yourself.
Like the crowds we have gathered here to hear the message of Jesus. Like those crowds we have gathered here to be fed from his hands. Like on that hillside, Jesus takes our loaf, gives thanks to the Father, and gives it to all of us who are sitting around ready to be fed by him.
Jesus came to bring the good news of peace: peace to those who are far away and peace to you who are close-by. May that peace be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Today’s passage, like those of the last two Sundays, is an account of the ministry of Jesus and contains several messages that are important for us today. We can feel free to identify with one of the three characters in the story: – Jesus, – the apostles, – the crowds. Verse 30. Jesus highlights the contrast between two aspects of teaching: – “what we do” – “what we teach”. These are two distinct realities and in our teaching we should reflect on both. We need to share how we feel about things – within ourselves, with one another, and finally with our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
