"FIRST IMPRESSIONS"

by Jude Siciliano, OP

Dear Preachers:

Today’s Gospel recounts the multiplication of the loaves and fishes for five thousand men – Lord knows how many women and children were there too! At first glance, this miracle might not seem to directly connect with the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. Wouldn’t a reading from the Last Supper, where Jesus institutes the Eucharist, seem more fitting?

The Gospel opens by describing Jesus’ ministry: "Jesus spoke to the crowds about the kingdom of God, and he healed those who needed to be cured." By his words and deeds, Jesus proclaims the kingdom of God – God’s active, present love breaking into the world. From him we learn that the kingdom happens whenever people love one another, respond to each other’s needs, care for the poor and sick, and, as in today’s Gospel, feed the hungry.

The crowds have come, drawn by Jesus’ reputation. They even venture out to a "deserted place" to hear him – some hoping for healing. A "deserted place"… filled with hungry, needy people. Sounds like our world today, doesn’t it?

Meals are a recurring theme throughout the Gospels. At these meals, Jesus made visible the reign of God. He also told parables about banquets, pointing toward the ultimate meal – the Eucharist – where he offers himself to us. Of special note is the fact that the story of the feeding of the crowds appears six times in the four Gospels. In today’s version, Jesus challenges his disciples: "Give them food yourselves." He is teaching them, and us, to feed the hungers of others. That’s what he did, and that’s what he expects us to do.

In Jesus’ time, the phrase "body and blood" referred to the whole person. So, when he gives us his body and blood, he gives his entire self. In today’s Gospel, he calls the Twelve to feed the hungry with what little they have. He asks the same of us – to give our whole selves in imitation of him. Feeding the hungry wasn’t just about filling stomachs, was it?

Notice also: the crowd isn’t told to form a line and receive a ration of bread and fish. Instead, Jesus has them sit down "in groups of fifty." He seems intent on forming small communities, encouraging people to share, to talk, to get to know each other. Sounds like church to me. God’s saving presence continues in the world through us, as we gather and share this meal. Together, we are the Body of Christ.

The mystery of Christ’s presence begins with his real, human body – flesh and blood, feelings and emotions, just like ours. His body is a sign of God’s intimate involvement in our world. When, at the Last Supper, Jesus says, "This is my body," he gives his full human reality to us. In the Eucharist, through communion, we share that life with him and with one another.

Earlier in his First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul criticizes the community for receiving the Body of Christ, but failing to be the Body of Christ. The wealthy were not sharing with the poor; the comfortable ignored the weak. Paul reminds them – and us – that at the meal, Jesus took bread, broke it, and said, "This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." To remember him is not merely to think of him, but to live as he did – to give ourselves for others.

That’s what today’s Gospel teaches: even with limited resources, the disciples are told to share what they have. And they do. On this feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, we celebrate Christ’s complete self-gift to us – one that empowers us to give ourselves, just as he did.

As a boy, I remember the tradition of visiting multiple churches on this feast day for the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. People went from church to church to "visit the Blessed Sacrament." In light of today’s feast, we might reflect: in what ways am I being called to see others as the Body of Christ? How might I think less of myself and more of others?

We also had Eucharistic processions through the neighborhood. Looking back, those events remind me that Christ does not remain confined within the four walls of the church. He moves into our neighborhoods and our daily lives. Which means our everyday activities are united in one sacred movement – with Christ in our midst.

Today’s Scriptures remind us: we who eat the Body and Blood of Christ become the living, visible, breathing Body of Christ in the world. We return to the Eucharist not because we are special, nor because we’ve earned it by living flawless lives. No, we come to this meal to receive Christ, who remains with us in our eating and in our feeding of others.

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062225.cfm

"To love God and neighbor is not something abstract, but profoundly concrete: it means seeing in every person the face of the Lord to be served, to serve him concretely."

Pope Francis, Homily at Mass for the Poor, St. Peter’s Basilica, Nov 10, 2013.