First Reading

A reading from the Book of Joshua (24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b)

Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, summoning their elders, their leaders, their judges and their officers. When they stood in ranks before God, Joshua addressed all the people: "If it does not please you to serve the Lord, decide today whom you will serve, the gods your fathers served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are dwelling. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."

But the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the Lord for the service of other gods. For it was the Lord, our God, who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, out of a state of slavery. He performed those great miracles before our very eyes and protected us along our entire journey and among the peoples through whom we passed. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God."

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

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (34:2-3, 16-17, 18-19, 20-21)

(R) Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall be ever in my mouth. Let my soul glory in the Lord; the lowly will hear me and be glad. (R)

The Lord has eyes for the just, and ears for their cry. The Lord confronts the evildoers, to destroy remembrance of them from the earth. (R)

When the just cry out, the Lord hears them, and from all their distress he rescues them. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; and those who are crushed in spirit he saves. (R)

Many are the troubles of the just one, but out of them all the Lord delivers him; he watches over all his bones; not one of them shall be broken. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Ephesians (5:21-32)

Brothers and sisters: Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of the church, he himself the savior of the body. As the church is subordinate to Christ, so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, that he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

So also husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery, but I speak in reference to Christ and the church.

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

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (6:60-69)

Many of Jesus' disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, "Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe." Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. And he said, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father."

As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. Jesus then said to the Twelve. "Do you also want to leave?" Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God."

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

Homily

For the past few weeks, we have been reading and reflecting on one of the famous discourses of Jesus, known as the "Bread of life". It started with a miracle, the feeding of a large crowd. When the crowd continued to seek him out, Jesus rebuked them for ignoring miraculous signs and only following Him for free food. He then urged them to strive to work for the food that would sustain their life forever and offered Himself to them as the free and true food that came down from heaven. And also, He told them that all they had to do was to believe in Him as the bread that God had sent from heaven not only for them, but also for the whole of humanity. But the crowd murmured saying that Jesus couldn't possibly be the "bread of life" from heaven for they reckoned him just an ordinary human being, the son of Mary and Joseph. They could not accept Him as a divine being, a mediator between humans and God. Nevertheless, Jesus further said that the bread from heaven that would give eternal life to all who believe was, in fact, His own flesh, prefiguring the Eucharistic sacrifice of His body and Blood at the Last Supper, and which would prefigure the sacrifice of His body and Blood on the cross.

Upon hearing these words, the people began to quarrel among themselves because they felt Jesus' offering of His own flesh to be eaten was repulsive, disgusting and unlawful. Under the Old Testament Law, the Jews were forbidden to eat of flesh from which the blood had not been separated, Leviticus (7:26; 17:17). If they did, it would make them ritually unclean. Despite their grumbling, Jesus went on to speak not only of eating His flesh but also of drinking His blood. Moreover, He said four times that they were not only to eat his flesh but also to drink His blood so that they could live forever, in contrast with all who had died, John (6:53-58).

Today's gospel tells us that the thought of having to eat Jesus' flesh and drink his blood, let alone accepting Him as the true bread from heaven, was so strange and offensive that even his disciples began to grumble saying that it was hard for them to accept, John (6:60). Here the term "disciples" is used in a broad sense, not the twelve, but others who had been following Jesus. But knowing the hesitation in the minds of many of His disciples, Jesus compared their reaction with their possible response to seeing Him ascending to heaven after resurrection. In other words, Jesus asked them if they took offense at both His claim to the "Bread of Life" from heaven and His insistence to eat His flesh and drink His blood for eternal life, what would their response be when they witness His ascension into heaven, John (6:61-62).

Jesus further said, "It is the Spirit who gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe", John (6:63). This verse is singled out by non-Catholics to counter the Catholic faith in transubstantiation. They are of the view that Jesus Himself asserted that true life, in its fullest and most meaningful way, comes from the Spirit rather than the flesh and therefore, Jesus' command to eat His flesh and drink His blood, must be understood symbolically and spiritually, not literally. They believe that Jesus did not give us His literal, physical flesh and blood for He Himself said, "the flesh is of no avail". But we Catholics and all other ancient Christian sects for that matter hold the belief that Jesus didn't say, "my flesh" is of no avail but "the flesh", and therefore, "the flesh" does not refer to His flesh, as in His body and blood but rather our human nature, the sin-prone condition of human beings. In the New Testament the term "the flesh" is often used to describe our sinful human nature apart from God's grace. Furthermore, we believe that Jesus could not have meant His flesh because He mentioned six times, John (6:54-58), that "eating His flesh" would bring eternal life. Jesus wouldn't contradict Himself. So, by saying "the Spirit gives life, while the flesh is of no avail", Jesus made the point that human beings cannot understand and accept spiritual realities on their own. They need God's grace and the power of the Spirit.

He then briefly explained that the disciples' lack of comprehension and their inability to accept His words were caused by their unbelief. He said that some of them did not believe in Him. At this juncture, John, the writer of the gospel, sheds more light on Jesus' divine knowledge and understanding of the hearts and intentions of those around Him. He writes, "Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray Him", John (6:64). By inserting his own understanding of Jesus, John wants every generation of Christians to know that from the beginning Jesus was both in control of the situation and fully aware of what the people were saying and thinking, including the one who would betray Him, referring to Judas Iscariot, and He was not surprised by their lack of belief.

John then continues with Jesus' repetition of His earlier statement, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father", John (6:65). In other words, Jesus said that the ability to come to Him would not be solely a matter of human will or effort, but a divine gift. God the Father alone would enable and draw human beings to believe in Him, His teachings and sacrificial death on the cross. Shocked by His words, many, who till then had followed Him, and professed to be His disciples, turned away in disappointment, John (6:66).

After those disciples had left, Jesus looked at His twelve close disciples and asked them with deepest sorrow and concern if they also wanted to leave Him, John (6:67). Jesus essentially asked them if they were going to abandon their faith in Him like others had done. Immediately speaking up for the group, Peter answered, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God". Peter probably realized that walking away from Jesus was simply not an option for him and the other disciples. Having heard Jesus' teachings and seen the many healings and wonders, he was convinced that Jesus was essential to their lives. So, despite their difficulties to understand and accept Jesus' claims, he and the other disciples made the choice to remain steadfast and walk with Jesus wherever He would lead them.

What is the message for us?

In the two thousand years since the time of Jesus, millions of people who had come to believe in Him, have fallen away from their faith and ceased believing in Him just as some of the early disciples did. We all know people in our own families and friends who loved Jesus when everything was going well, but when difficulty came their way or when His teachings on repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation, selfless service, suffering or other things were hard, they walked away both from Him and the Church. But we are still in the faith. The fact that we are here today for Mass means that we accept and believe in the teachings of Jesus. However, from time to time, just as St Paul says "we need to examine ourselves to see whether we are still in the faith and are people in whom Jesus Christ lives", 2 Corinthians (13:5).

Probably at some point, we too feel like walking away from Him and rejecting God because many of Jesus' teachings are very hard. For instance, "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who persecute you", Matthew (5:43-44). Or "Do not resist an evildoer; if he strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other to him as well", Matthew (5:39). Or, If you do not take up your cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciples", Luke (14:27). Therefore, Jesus would constantly ask us the same question he asked His disciples, "Do you also want to leave?" The question serves as a reminder that Jesus does not compel us to remain with Him against our will. He gives us a choice. We can turn away, like those disciples who could no longer follow Jesus. Or we can agree with Peter that He is the Lord who has the words of eternal life, and choose to stay with Him.
In today's first reading, Joshua (24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b), Joshua presented the Israelites a specific choice: to serve the Lord God who had brought them out of Egypt and leading them into their new land or to serve the gods of the surrounding, defeated nations. After giving the people their options, Joshua immediately made known his choice. He pledged that he and his household would remain faithful to the Lord God. In response, the people said enthusiastically that they also would serve the Lord. This was indeed a great moment in the history of the Israelites, one of those few times when they made the right choice. So too, in our following of Jesus, each of us must make our own judgment about who Jesus is and in doing so choose the way of life that we will follow. Being a disciple of Jesus requires steadfast faith and unwavering commitment, even when confronted with difficult and challenging teachings.

Finally, although Peter had responded on behalf of all true believers in every generation, each of us individually must respond to the grace of God and confess as our own the belief that Jesus is the Holy One of God with the words of eternal life.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

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