Lectionary: 112
Reading 1
Isaiah 55:1-3
Thus says the LORD:
All you who are thirsty,
come to the water!
You who have no money,
come, receive grain and eat;
Come, without paying and without cost,
drink wine and milk!
Why spend your money for what is not bread;
your wages for what fails to satisfy?
Heed me, and you shall eat well,
you shall delight in rich fare.
Come to me heedfully,
listen, that you may have life.
I will renew with you the everlasting covenant,
the benefits assured to David.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 145:8-9, 15-16, 17-18
R/ (cf. 16) The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R/ The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
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 hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
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/ The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
Reading 2
Romans 8:35, 37-39
Brothers and sisters:
What will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine,
or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?
No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly
through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities,
nor present things, nor future things,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
nor any other creature will be able to separate us
from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Gospel
Matthew 14:13-21
When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist,
he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself.
The crowds heard of this and followed him on foot from their towns.
When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick.
When it was evening, the disciples approached him and said,
“This is a deserted place and it is already late;
dismiss the crowds so that they can go to the villages
and buy food for themselves.”
Jesus said to them, “There is no need for them to go away;
give them some food yourselves.”
But they said to him,
“Five loaves and two fish are all we have here.”
Then he said, “Bring them here to me, ”
and he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass.
Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven,
he said the blessing, broke the loaves,
and gave them to the disciples,
who in turn gave them to the crowds.
They all ate and were satisfied,
and they picked up the fragments left over—
twelve wicker baskets full.
Those who ate were about five thousand men,
not counting women and children.
REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
THEME: CLOSING THE DEAL
"Give them something to eat yourselves." –Matthew 14:16
Jesus has placed His disciples in a fantastic position. On one side there is the human race, which continually grows hungry and has a daily need for food. On the other side is the Lord, Who has a continual desire to feed, nourish, and even satisfy hungry humanity (see Ps 81:11, 17; Mt 14:20). God has placed us, as His disciples, between Him and the rest of mankind, and charges us with feeding His people (Mt 14:16; Jn 21:15ff). We are God's middlemen, His ambassadors (2 Cor 5:20), charged with bringing the two parties together.
This is an ambassador's dream: one party with an unceasing demand, and the other Party with an unlimited ability and unceasing desire to supply that demand (see Lk 22:15). In the business world, candidates would compete for this kind of job opportunity and would flock en masse to interview for it, even if there were tough conditions involved. Most salespeople would eagerly tackle this challenge, aggressively and creatively finding ways to get the parties together. In the religious world, we don't seem to respond as eagerly at this prospect of being ambassadors.
Let's ask the Lord to give us His heart, a heart moved with compassion for all people (Mt 14:14). He constantly desires to fill the mouths of hungry humanity with His Word and Eucharist (Ps 81:11), whether or not they appreciate Him. He will give us His heart for His people in such a way that we will find rest (Mt 11:29) rather than distress (Nm 11:15) in feeding them. "Go out now and take your place" (Acts 5:20) as God's ambassadors.
PRAYER: Sacred Heart of Jesus, make my heart like unto Thine. Give me Your desire to feed Your loved ones (Jn 21:15).
PROMISE: "All those present ate their fill." –Mt 14:20
PRAISE: Praise the risen Jesus, Who is the Word-Made-Flesh, now and forever! (Jn 1:14)
Be an inspiration, kindly Share.
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