GOSPEL (Lc 7,16) R. Hallelujah, hallelujah. A great prophet has arisen among us, and God has visited his people. R. Hallelujah.
He distributed as much as he wanted to to to those who were sitting. + From the Gospel according to John 6,1-15 At that time, Jesus passed to the other side of the sea of Galilee, that is, of Tiberias, and a great crowd followed him, because he saw the signs he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up the mountain and sat there with his disciples. Easter, the feast of the Jews, was near. Then Jesus looked up and saw that a great crowd came to him and said to Philip, "Where can we buy bread so that they can eat?". He said so to test him, for he knew what he was about to do. Philip replied, "Two hundred denari of bread are not enough even for everyone to receive a piece. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him: "There is a boy here who has five loaves of barley and two fish; but what is this for so many people?". Jesus replied, "Sit them down. There was a lot of grass in that place. So they sat down and there were about five thousand men. Then Jesus took the loaves and, after giving thanks, gave them to those who were sitting, and so did the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they were satisfied, he said to his disciples, "Pick up the pieces left over, that nothing may be lost. They collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves, left over to those who had eaten. Then the people, seeing the sign he had made, said, "This is indeed the prophet, the one who comes into the world! But Jesus, knowing that they came to take him and make him king, withdrew again to the mountain, he alone. Word of the Lord.
Fausti - At the center of the chapter is bread: like the water from which you are born and the air you breathe, even bread is a primordial symbol of life: you eat it for a living. But, unlike water and air, it is not only a gift from the earth and the sky, it is also the fruit of work, seasoned with joy and hard work, hope and sweat. In it is inscribed, for better or for worse, the destiny of man, the only creature called to collapse with the Creator to bring creation to completion. Jesus has already spoken to the disciples of His food, which is to do the Will of the Father and do His work. He lives on this food, which is the Love of the Father to be communicated to his brothers and sisters, so that they may pass from death to life. His bread is to love as it is loved, his work is to give life to his brothers. Jesus goes beyond the sea to the mountain, followed by the crowd, and tests his disciples to make them understand the bread he will give. Moses went up to the mountain, where the ten Words of Life were given. Now the Word itself will be given as the Bread of Life. Only on this mountain can one live the freedom offered by God. Here the Lord will prepare His banquet, will tear off the veil that covers the faces of all peoples, will eliminate death forever and will show His Face. An insignificant little boy is at the origin of the gift for all. This little boy has put his bread at the service of others. He is the image of Jesus, the Son who came to serve and give Life for his brothers and sisters, calling his disciples to do the same. You can see that there are five loaves and two small fishes: their sum is seven, a number that recalls the completion of creation. This little shared food is the life of the seventh day, the end of creation itself. The Lord takes the initiative of the banquet and acts in the first person. As he takes the bread with thanksgiving, Jesus is the Son who has in himself, as a gift, the Life of the Father. But the Son is not only one who receives passively, he is the same as the Father because he is capable of distributing to his brothers and sisters what he has received. "Taking the bread", "giving thanks" and "distributing" are the words of the Eucharist, which restore to each bread its profound reality. In the Eucharist, creation is fulfilled and every desire of God and of man is fulfilled, every promise of His and our expectation: we receive the Life of the Son and we become children and brothers. The Eucharist makes every crumb of bread the fullness of Life. For it, creation returns to being "beautiful" as it was at the beginning, precisely because the man who takes, gives thanks and distributes, is "very beautiful", the image and likeness of God. Only this Bread can satisfy man's hunger. It is the food of the Sabbath that introduces us to the Presence, in intimacy with God. That is why he orders us to gather the surplus. Jesus wants to arouse the desire for this surplus, for this we must be hungry, not for the bread that perishes. The community of disciples is not always the guardian of this surplus. Yet they keep it and pass it on to us day after day, even if they do not understand it well. A perfect quantity of shared bread abounds, embracing the totality of time and people. Twelve baskets like twelve months of the year, twelve tribes of Israel. Of this fullness there is one for ever and for all.
GOSPEL (Lc 7,16)
RispondiEliminaR. Hallelujah, hallelujah.
A great prophet has arisen among us,
and God has visited his people.
R. Hallelujah.
He distributed as much as he wanted to to to those who were sitting.
+ From the Gospel according to John 6,1-15
At that time, Jesus passed to the other side of the sea of Galilee, that is, of Tiberias, and a great crowd followed him, because he saw the signs he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up the mountain and sat there with his disciples. Easter, the feast of the Jews, was near. Then Jesus looked up and saw that a great crowd came to him and said to Philip, "Where can we buy bread so that they can eat?". He said so to test him, for he knew what he was about to do. Philip replied, "Two hundred denari of bread are not enough even for everyone to receive a piece. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him: "There is a boy here who has five loaves of barley and two fish; but what is this for so many people?". Jesus replied, "Sit them down. There was a lot of grass in that place. So they sat down and there were about five thousand men. Then Jesus took the loaves and, after giving thanks, gave them to those who were sitting, and so did the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they were satisfied, he said to his disciples, "Pick up the pieces left over, that nothing may be lost. They collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves, left over to those who had eaten. Then the people, seeing the sign he had made, said, "This is indeed the prophet, the one who comes into the world! But Jesus, knowing that they came to take him and make him king, withdrew again to the mountain, he alone.
Word of the Lord.
Fausti - At the center of the chapter is bread: like the water from which you are born and the air you breathe, even bread is a primordial symbol of life: you eat it for a living.
RispondiEliminaBut, unlike water and air, it is not only a gift from the earth and the sky, it is also the fruit of work, seasoned with joy and hard work, hope and sweat.
In it is inscribed, for better or for worse, the destiny of man, the only creature called to collapse with the Creator to bring creation to completion.
Jesus has already spoken to the disciples of His food, which is to do the Will of the Father and do His work.
He lives on this food, which is the Love of the Father to be communicated to his brothers and sisters, so that they may pass from death to life.
His bread is to love as it is loved, his work is to give life to his brothers.
Jesus goes beyond the sea to the mountain, followed by the crowd, and tests his disciples to make them understand the bread he will give. Moses went up to the mountain, where the ten Words of Life were given.
Now the Word itself will be given as the Bread of Life.
Only on this mountain can one live the freedom offered by God. Here the Lord will prepare His banquet, will tear off the veil that covers the faces of all peoples, will eliminate death forever and will show His Face.
An insignificant little boy is at the origin of the gift for all. This little boy has put his bread at the service of others. He is the image of Jesus, the Son who came to serve and give Life for his brothers and sisters, calling his disciples to do the same.
You can see that there are five loaves and two small fishes: their sum is seven, a number that recalls the completion of creation. This little shared food is the life of the seventh day, the end of creation itself.
The Lord takes the initiative of the banquet and acts in the first person.
As he takes the bread with thanksgiving, Jesus is the Son who has in himself, as a gift, the Life of the Father.
But the Son is not only one who receives passively, he is the same as the Father because he is capable of distributing to his brothers and sisters what he has received.
"Taking the bread", "giving thanks" and "distributing" are the words of the Eucharist, which restore to each bread its profound reality.
In the Eucharist, creation is fulfilled and every desire of God and of man is fulfilled, every promise of His and our expectation: we receive the Life of the Son and we become children and brothers.
The Eucharist makes every crumb of bread the fullness of Life.
For it, creation returns to being "beautiful" as it was at the beginning, precisely because the man who takes, gives thanks and distributes, is "very beautiful", the image and likeness of God.
Only this Bread can satisfy man's hunger.
It is the food of the Sabbath that introduces us to the Presence, in intimacy with God.
That is why he orders us to gather the surplus. Jesus wants to arouse the desire for this surplus, for this we must be hungry, not for the bread that perishes.
The community of disciples is not always the guardian of this surplus.
Yet they keep it and pass it on to us day after day, even if they do not understand it well.
A perfect quantity of shared bread abounds, embracing the totality of time and people. Twelve baskets like twelve months of the year, twelve tribes of Israel.
Of this fullness there is one for ever and for all.