HOMILIES

Dear Audience,
For better understanding of the spiritual message behind this homily I kindly remind you to first read and contemplate the biblical texts before reading or listening to my preaching - a human reflection on the Word of God!

Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year B)

Jul 28, 2024

481

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First Reading

A reading from the second Book of Kings (4:42-44)

A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing to Elisha, the man of God, twenty barely loaves made from the first fruits, and fresh grain in the ear. Elisha said, "Give it to the people to eat." But his servant objected, "How can I set this before a hundred people?" Elisha insisted, "Give it to the people to eat. For thus says the Lord, "They shall eat and there shall be some left over."" And when they had eaten, there was some left over, as the Lord had said.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (145:10-11, 15-16, 17-18)

(R) The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

Let all your works give you thanks, O Lord, and let your faithful ones bless you. Let them discourse of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might. (R)

The eyes of all look hopefully to you, and you give them their food in due season; you open your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. (R)

The Lord is just in all his ways and holy in all his works. The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Ephesians (4:1-6)

Brothers and sisters: I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (6:1-15)

The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught. He said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."

Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near. When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, "Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?" He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, "Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little." One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, "There is a boy here who has given barely loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?" Jesus said, "Have the people decline." Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number.

Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, "Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted." So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, "This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world." Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdraw again to the mountain alone.

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

Today's gospel story of the feeding of the five thousand people is probably one of the most extraordinary miracles that Jesus performed during his earthly ministry, and it is the only miracle recounted in all the four gospels. As for the context, Jesus and his disciples had gone up on a mountain probably to get some rest and to pray. But a large crowd also had followed him, just as they always did. From the time He started to demonstrate God's power at work in healing the sick, a crowd was always following him, hoping to see more wonders and maybe hoping for healing for themselves or their family or friends they brought with them to see Jesus. Besides, as the Jewish feast of Passover was approaching, there were also many pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem in the crowd. In Jesus' time, every year, the Jewish families went to Jerusalem from all over the world for the Passover celebration, that is, the commemoration of their exodus from ancient Egypt and God's provision for them in the desert, John (12:14).

Now, Jesus, who always cared and provided for the people who came to listen to him and those He met in his earthly ministry, wanted to give the crowd something to eat as well. So, he asked his disciple, Philip, where they could buy bread for the crowd. John writes that Jesus had asked Philp this question to test him. Philip, feeling overwhelmed by the situation, replied that even two hundred days of wages would not be enough to buy bread for all, John (6:7). In other words, Philip expressed the impossibility of them providing everyone bread.

At this point, another disciple, Andrew, brought to Jesus a boy who had five loaves of bread and two fish but he too stated that they were far short of what was necessary. However, while it seemed little or insignificant for Andrew, it was enough for Jesus. Because from the beginning Jesus was planning a miracle. John writes that Jesus already had in mind what he was going to do, John (6:6). Jesus saw the timing of the provision as an opportunity to reveal his identity and power, and at the same time to shape his disciples' faith in him. He knew that just as God provided manna to those following Moses in the desert, so He would miraculously provide food to the crowd following him. Hence, Jesus very calmly asked the people to sit down. He then simply thanked God for the loaves and fish and began to hand them out to the hungry crowd. We do not know any further how it all happened except that when the whole crowd had eaten as much as they wanted and were satisfied, the disciples collected the leftovers in twelve baskets.

Impressed by the miracle the crowd began to recognize him as "the true prophet" that Moses had promised God would send. Moses, having fed their ancestors in the desert with manna from heaven, had said to them, "The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers; it is to him you shall listen," Deuteronomy (18:15). The miracle was one of the signs of the Messiah. But instead of grasping the true significance of the miracle, they responded completely in the wrong way. They wanted to make him their king by force, so that Jesus could continue to provide them with physical food to satisfy their physical hunger. But knowing their thoughts, Jesus went back up the mountainside alone.

What is the message for us? This miracle teaches us several lessons:

God our Father cares for us, knows our needs and supplies those needs, even if we don't ask Him. He knows what we need before we even ask. He especially responds to our physical hunger by providing food. He does not give us what we want, but gives us what we need for a healthy and happy life. However, Jesus exhorts us to pray for the food we need for the day, Matthew (6:11). So, when we find ourselves in a desperate situation and unable to see the way out let us ask God, trusting that He will provide what we need, particularly our daily food. At the same time, let us always hold what we receive with gratitude and an open hand so that we can be generous in sharing it with others who lack them. In doing so, we become good receivers and responders of God's provision in our life.
Jesus went out with his disciples to a mountainside to pray and to rest. Yet in his compassionate heart, he put aside his own personal needs in order to care for the people. Jesus recognized their physical hunger and at the same time understood God's desire for him to feed them himself. As a result, something that seemed impossible for the disciples was made possible by Jesus. Like Christ, we too must have eyes that see, ears that hear, and hearts that know and feel so that we may be able to recognize those who are physically hungry and respond with tangible acts of compassion and justice. Physical hunger is not something happening far away. It may be among our estranged family members, relatives, friends, and neighbours. So, we should always be on the lookout for opportunities to feed those in our path. Sometimes we may have to even sacrifice our own needs for the needs of others. We can also choose to forego a meal, if we don't feel hungry or even if we are hungry, so as to show solidarity with the poor and hungry and to feed them.
Feeding the hungry is very important and something God wants us to do. Jesus showed this by giving food to so many hungry people with just five loaves of bread and two fish. After two thousand years, we still see hundreds of millions of people around the world facing hunger although there is enough food for everyone. At the same time, such situations are also testing grounds of our faith in God. The Lord knows us all. He knows who we are, what we have, and how we can be used. So, let us not be daunted by the enormity of the need and feel inadequate to meet that need or throw up our hands in despair. Instead, when we do see those needs, let us begin where we are, and begin with what we have. We just never know what God wants to accomplish through us "because His ways are higher than our ways," Isaiah (55:9). Therefore, let us share what we have with gladness and generosity with those who are in need. As we open our hands and our hearts to share the little food we have with the hungry and to provide the poor in Christlike love, God will surely multiply and make miracles.
Jesus performed the impossible through an unknown young poor boy. The boy selflessly and generously gave all that was in his possession but it was Jesus who received the recognition and honour. The same is true for us. God wants us to trust Him with our possessions and work to advance His kingdom. But ultimately, it is Jesus who will work wonders in our lives in ways we can never imagine. Hence, we attribute all glory and honour to Him alone.
Jesus ordered his disciples to clean up the place and collect all the leftovers so that nothing would be wasted. John does not tell us what they did with the leftovers, but we can assume that Jesus' intention was to feed more hungry people somewhere as well as to teach his disciples of stewardship and responsibility.

This is a wonderful reminder for us not to waste any resources, especially food, that God has given us. Everything we have belongs to God. So, as stewards of God's resources, let us manage and make use of them wisely and responsibly. Let us take only what we need for ourselves and our families, and share the abundance or the leftovers with the needy.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

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