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First Reading: Isaiah 55:1-3
Responsorial: Psalm 145:8-9, 15-18
Second Reading: Romans 8:35, 37-39
Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21
http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/080220.cfm
https://www.deaconrudysnotes.org/
What do you do when you’re hungry? Well, you eat! Right? If I were back in the States, I might drive through Chick-fil-A or over to Jason’s Deli or maybe even to Sonic for diet cherry limeade! Yum! The point is, when we need nourishment, we feed our bodies. The same is true with our spiritual life. We need to feed our spiritual lives.
How do we do that and with what do we feed our souls?
When we have a hunger or restlessness that we can never seem to satisfy, that might point to something unsettled in our spiritual life. Isaiah gives us some insight into that in our first reading today. “You who are thirsty, come to the water, and you who have no money, come…,” (Isaiah 55:1). He’s not talking about material food and water, because he goes on to say, “Why value it for money, and [give] your labour for no satisfaction?” (Isaiah 55:2).
Isaiah is telling us that none of the trinkets and baubles of this world can satisfy our spiritual lives. But let’s be clear – it’s not the building of the church that saves us, or the statues which we don’t worship anyway that are being violently and illegally pulled down, or crosses and crucifixes and churches being desecrated. All of these “things” can be helpful to us – can guide us in our faith. But none of them can save us.
Why do I say that? Well, we can experience hurt, disappointment and frustration – maybe even disillusionment – over the Church’s inadequacies, like the clergy sex abuse scandal. Indeed, it is a sad commentary on the world today that so many have left the Church. People might have left, but the hunger inside persists.
Perhaps we don’t recognize our feeling as spiritual hunger. We go out looking for something to make the pain, the hurt, the anger, the disappointment, the disillusionment go away. So, maybe we turn to the church of “Tarjay” – to the therapeutic release of shopping and people watching. Or maybe we go further and turn to material possessions or abuse drugs or alcohol or sex. Maybe we explore other forms of spirituality like Eastern mysticism to help us.
Is our faith so shallow? Paul asks us today, “Who shall separate us from Christ’s love? Affliction? Anguish? Persecution? Famine? Nakedness? Danger? Execution?” (Romans 8:35). Paul answers, “No!” (Romans 8:37).
My brothers and sisters, let me be clear: nothing – nothing can fill the hole in our hearts except the love of Christ Jesus! That’s the message we find in today’s Gospel. Today we hear familiar the story of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. People ate their fill and there was so much left over!
On one hand, this is a wonderful miracle that defies the laws of physics as we know them. And I accept this miracle because of my faith. On the other hand, this Gospel is all about the Eucharist, right? Jesus, looking up to the Father, gives the blessing and breaks the bread and the fish. Everyone ate their fill. In other words, everyone who received was satisfied.
Just as Jesus fed the multitude, so too is Jesus ready to feed you and me in the Eucharist despite or even in spite of the flaws of the Church, any one priest, or anything wrong in this world! The challenge before us as disciples is to share with our friends and families – especially those who’ve left the Church – the Good News we hear from our Psalmist today: “The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.”
Homework! Having been fed by the Word of God and the Eucharist, I encourage you to reflect on the following two questions this week:
- Do I allow the Eucharist to satisfy the hunger in my heart?
- How do I share the news that Jesus satisfies our roaming hearts with other people?
I think our homework today will help us as disciples bring all those who hunger to Christ Jesus. Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Now go make disciples!
One quick announcement before the blessing. This Wednesday is the first Wednesday of the month and that means another edition of All Things Catholic! In light of the recent unlawful vandalism and destruction of religious statues and even churches, we are going to tackle the question, “Wherein lies our faith?” I hope you join me on Wednesday and bring a friend!
The Lord be with you! May Almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! +Amen!
Image Credit: Eucharistic Adoration, DCYC, 2016. Deacon Rudy Villarreal. JPEG file.
References:
1. Hahn, Scott W. and Curtis Mitch. Romans. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academics, 2017. Kindle.
2. Mitch, Curtis and Edward Sri. The Gospel of Matthew. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2010. Kindle.
3. The Bible: A Study Bible freshly translated by Nicholas King. Buxhall, Suffolk UK: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
Catechism References http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm:
1. God’s saving plan, 257, 381
2. Divine providence, 313-14, 395
3. The Eucharist prefigured, 1335
4. The fruits of Holy Communion, 1391-1401
5. Hope and future glory, 1821, 2016
6. Abraham and the Father, 2572
7. Jesus as intercessor, 2634
8. Give us this day our daily bread, 2828-37
Eighteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/080220.cfm
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 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.
Alleluia
Matthew 4:4B
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
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.