Meditation Minute

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

“And they all ate and were satisfied.” In today’s Gospel (Mark 6:34-44), we hear the miracle of the loaves and fishes. Jesus comes ashore to find a large crowd of people which he compares to a flock of sheep without a shepherd. It says, “and he had compassion on them.” Jesus greets the large crowd and begins to teach them and shepherd them. The crowd is fed the Word of God. They were hungry and he fed them spiritually. Their souls were empty and misguided and Jesus had compassion on them. Jesus fed the desire of their hearts with his love. At the end of his teaching, Jesus commanded his disciples to feed the crowd, but they only had five loaves and two fish. Jesus took the bread and looked upon heaven, blessed the bread and broke it. He gave it to his disciple to feed the crowds. The bread which fed the 5000 was the manna from heaven. This same bread of life that had fed the Israelites as they fled Egypt now feeds the 5,000. Not only does it feed the 5,000, but there are 12 baskets left over after everyone has been satisfied.

This miracle is a foreshadowing of the Pascal Supper. The bread of life, Christ himself, is what we need to satisfy our hunger. The Eucharist is the bread of life which feeds our soul. Without the Eucharist, we are not fed; we are sheep without a shepherd. In this Gospel we reading, we learn that we are nourished by the Eucharist. The Eucharist is the bread of life which satisfies our deepest hunger; the hunger of our heart and soul. When God gives the bread, he gives abundantly. His gives more than we can eat. He gives until we are satisfied. God always gives in surplus. He gives us enough that we can share with others. God’s graces fill our souls to overflowing capacity. We are to share these blessing with others. When the crowd was done eating, they had 12 baskets left over. These 12 baskets did not go to waste, they fed more people. This is the same bread of life which we consume during the Eucharist.

We too are like the crowd who awaited Christ on the shore. We are like sheep without a shepherd lacking guidance and direction. The Gospel, the Word of God, nourishes us and satisfies us. We are brought together to be one great herd. God takes each of us and forms us into his greatness. Together we become the body of Christ. Together, we are joined through the Eucharistic bread. Together, we are called to share the bread of life with others.

We are just three weeks away from the beginning of lent. Take this three week period to prepare yourself for the Lord.

A Simple Prayer Jesus, You are the Bread of Life. You satisfy my every need with abundance. May I learn to share this abundant love with others So they too can share in the Eucharistic Supper.

Yours in Christ Michael Marcon