Freedom from want is a theme of these three readings. The Lord in Isaiah will provide us a rich feast; for the psalmist the Lord is a shepherd that shields us from want; Jesus both heals the hurting and feeds the hungry. And although the theme is expressed in terms of easing hunger, it also resonates with satisfying our spiritual needs – Isaiah says the Lord will destroy death forever, and the psalmist indicates we will live in the house of the Lord all the days of our lives.
Jesus has just finished giving a three-day seminar. His message was so captivating that most people forgot to go home and eat. Jesus understood their needs. He cared about them so much that he worked a miracle, taking what was insufficient and converting it into a generous heaping of more than what was necessary. Clearly, there was no limit to Jesus' generosity that day.
Jesus understands our needs! He cares about us! He can and wants to give us more than we need! But he also wants us to perform what he performed on the desert. Develop compassion for the hungry and lonely, and become the hands in feeding the hungry. It is our obligation as Christian servants to feed the poor, give water to the thirsty and clothe the naked.
During this period of renewal and waiting, we need to consider the circumstances of those desperately in need and do what we need to do to come to their aid. At every Mass, Jesus comes to us whole and entire filled with the same desire and power to heal that moved him two thousand years ago. Let us come to the banquet of the Lord eager for him to wipe the tears from our eyes and to heal us body and soul.
What is missed in this whole passage is : Jesus heals and then feeds. Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, the preacher to the papal household puts it best. He said that just as the dinosaurs became extinct in the Ice Age, so also today miracles are less common because of the lack of faith.
ReplyDeleteHe has so much compassion on people that He heals them first. Then He feeds their physical hunger.
Just a thought: I wonder if going up the mountain by the Sea of Galilee in Matthew Chapter 15 is the same mount on which He taught the beatitudes in Matt Chapter 5!. Which then gives more weight to " Man does not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God!
This lends even more credence to First things first and so on: the Liturgy of The Word precedes The Liturgy of The Eucharist--- The Word becomes flesh daily at our Eucharistic celebration.
Excellent
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