SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR - B

SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR – B (2 Kings 4:42-44; Eph 4:1-6; John 6:1-15) Theme: We are capable of multiplying the charitable works towards and for others Reflection: The Shepherd who provides the nutriment for the sheep - Last Sunday we have meditated that Jesus is the Good Shepherd and he himself calls and sends each Christian to be a “pastor” or a “shepherd” in the world and for the world. In this way, each Christian has the identity of “being chosen” with Baptism and of “being sent” with the mission of the Eucharist. The final words that the Mass offers to each participant are these: “Mass is ended, let us go in peace” or “In the name of the Lord, let us go in peace” or “Let us glorify the Lord with our life, let us go in peace” and so on. These words are not the simple words of ‘accomplishing’ the mass but they are the “invitation” of Jesus to go and spread the seeds of peace in the everyday situation of proper life. - We are nourished with the “Word” in the proclamation and with the “Bread” in the breaking. That means we are “refilled” with the loving grace of Jesus and with his own life. This “refilling” should not go without any fruit. We are “full” of the Lord since He himself has entered into us and he makes his throne in our heart. This entrance and the presence of the Lord in us, with the Eucharist, has its effect. It has its consequence. The consequence and effect is this: We have to share what we have received and we have to fill others with what we have and with what they need. This is the mission with which we are sent “from and by the Eucharistic celebration”. - That’s why we are both “called” in Baptism and “sent” with Eucharist. In other words, we are called “to participate” in the Lord through the Sacraments and we are sent “to share” the same Lord with others. This is the authentic meaning of being a shepherd in and for the world. This is the identity with which we are endowed: a shepherd is not for himself but for others and we are “not” and “never” for ourselves but for others. We follow Jesus who affirmed himself to be the Good Shepherd who gives his life for his sheep and who confirmed it by offering his “body and blood” on the cross for the nourishment of his sheep. If we truly follow such a Shepherd we have “to do just as he has done” because he said: “For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you” (John 13:15). - Each Christian has this mission of being a shepherd. Though some are elected with the special consecration for the purpose of being a shepherd, each one, by the virtue of baptismal call and consecration, has this mission. We are “filled” by the Great Shepherd and so we have to fill others as the shepherds. We are “nourished” by the Good Shepherd and so we have to nourish others as the pastors leading other to the green pastures of faith and charity. In this way, we have the responsibility of “carrying forward” the Christian vocation of ‘feeding the world’ through the same power and grace that the Good Shepherd himself fills us with. - In reality, it is Jesus himself who gathers his sheep, guides it to the ever green pastures and feeds them with the finest nutrition. He does this through the mediation: with the mediation of his chosen ‘shepherd-flock’. We are that shepherd-flock. Therefore, we have double directed mission: first of all, we are his faithful flock who listen to him and follow him and secondly, we are the shepherds appointed by him “by call and mission” to lead the “far away flock” and the “flock without the shepherd” to the greenery of faith and love. That’s why, Good Shepherd provides the nourishment for us and in turn, as the consequence of the mission received, as the shepherds, we have to provide the food for others. This is very clearly explained in the miracle of the multiplication of the five loaves of bread and two fish. Let us analyze this event to enter into the deeper meaning of it for us today. Miracle of multiplication: “Giving” praise to God and “giving” bread to the people - “Praise of God” will make the miracle possible: How can the five loaves of bread and two fish be more than sufficient for the five thousand men alone? This is the question which needs to be answered. We all believe that it is one of the great miracles that Jesus has done. At the beginning itself we may affirm the phrase that “nothing is impossible to God” and positively, “everything is possible to God”. But it is only a general profession of faith. The deeper faith on the providence of God is needed: God provides the right thing in the right time to the right person. The miracle is made possible because it started “with the thanksgiving to God”. Every miracle that Jesus has done, is the event that he has done only in the name and with the glory of His Father. Jesus gave praise and glory to the Father before raising the Lazar from the death. Even in this particular instance of the multiplication of the bread the same thing happened. Jesus believed that it is the Father who does everything in him and through him and for his own glory. That’s why Jesus without holding anything to himself, offers to God the prayers and the praise. Once the whole confidence and trust is place in the name of God even the most difficult condition becomes easier: the impossible becomes possible. - Such kind of total faith in God is already prefigured in the Old Testament which we have read in the first reading. Elisha does the miracle but not in his own name but in the name of God, for he says: “Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘they shall eat and have some left’” (2 Kings 4:43). This is the answer that Elisha gives to the perplexed servant. The perplexity of the servant has the reason because he knows that the twenty loaves of bread are not enough for the hundred people. He also knows that if the bread is sufficient to all, there will be murmuring and grumbling. But Elisha has always placed his trust not in himself, nor in the servant and not even in the quantity of the bread that they have. He placed his total trust in God whom he has believed. He is confident that God will provide what is required. He is confident that God can feed the plenty with the minimum. This faith and confidence is manifested in his words. If we observe well the words we understand this: he affirms that “thus says the Lord, ‘they shall eat and have some left’.” How many loaves and how many people are not the important element. The small portion of bread has become enough and more to the good number of people: the very minimum is made sufficient to the maximum number of people and what was seem to be impossible has become possible. All this is the work of the Lord for the “faith and trust” that Elisha has placed in Him. Miracle is possible because of the faith and confidence in God. - What Jesus has done is the same and more. What was prefigured in the miraculous action of Elisha is accomplished and given the complete fulfillment in the miraculous action of Jesus. The first thing that Jesus does after taking the bread is “to give thanks to the Lord” (John 6:11). He is not worried about the small number of bread and fish. He is not perplexed to see the huge number of people. He is not tensed whether it would be sufficient or not. When he asked his disciples “to give them something to eat” (Mk 6:37), he already knows the kind providence of His Father. He knows that the only thing he has to do is to offer the action into the hands of His Father. Exactly this is manifested in his “thanksgiving” to God: “Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people”. Jesus did not even wait for the miracle of multiplication. He has done what he has to do: giving glory to the Father. And he has left everything to Him. He gave only five loaves of bread and two fish to the disciples to distribute. But he gave them only after the thanksgiving and glorifying the Father. Even the disciples must have wondered what is happening. The miracle of multiplication took place only when the disciples believed in the words of Jesus and started distributing without doubting his word. Jesus believed in His Father and the disciples believed in Jesus’ word. In the first reading, the servant started giving the bread to the hundred people believing in the word of the prophet. In the Gospel, the disciples started distributing the bread to the huge crowd believing the word of Jesus. The similarity is seen well: it is faith that made everything possible and it is faith that made the miracle possible. Even in the case of catching the miraculous fish, Peter has expressed the similar faith: “Lord, on your word I will throw my net”. On the word of Jesus the disciples started distributing and the miracle took place. Therefore, the miracle is only the effect of the faith professed and manifested. The profession and manifestation of faith is seen in “offering” to God that action that has to be done with “giving praise and glory” to him. True Eucharist: A thanking in the breaking and sharing of the bread - Giving to God “the praise” and giving to others “the bread”: the “act of giving” is itself a miracle. Miracle happens when we are ready to give what is to be given without holding anything for ourselves: giving glory to God and giving goods to others. Jesus is the greatest model for this miracle and he opens for us the possibility to make this miracle. The only thing that is required is “an attitude of giving and giving-away”. We have to learn to give without holding back ‘our glory’ and ‘our desires’. We do not look for our own glory and well being but we have to open the space for others to be highlighted and to create the possible for their growth. - Eucharist – a giving of ‘thanks’ and a giving of ‘bread’: the Greek significance for the Eucharist is “to give thanks”. Jesus multiplies the bread and feeds the sheep that is hungry. He feeds them of their both physical hunger and spiritual hunger. They are physically hungry because they are with him without food for three days. They are spiritually hungry because they are “without a shepherd”. He gives them bread and the bread that nourishes all the possible hunger. He fills both hunger stomach and hunger spirit by giving them not just the bread made of wheat but by giving himself. He will affirm it little further in his discourse of the bread saying: “I am the living bread descended from heaven”. This is the actual meaning of Eucharist: he becomes the food for our life. He himself becomes the bread that is broken and shared. - Miracle of multiplication – miracle of the Eucharist: there are more similarities between the miracle of the multiplication of bread and the institution of the Eucharist. There are few gestures common to them which make the miracle possible: taking the bread, giving thanks to the Father, giving them to the disciples and a command to do the same in his memory. Each gesture has a meaning and each gesture compliments and completes the other and finally all the gestures together make the miracle. “Taking the bread” signifies that we cannot do anything with what we own but depend on the providence that comes either from God or from others: we take from other. “Giving thanks to God” means that we acknowledge the great wonder that God has done in our life and we accept the providence of God: we glorify God. “Giving them to others” means that what we have received from the providence of God is not only for ourselves but it has to be shared: we give what we are to others. Only in this “giving and sharing” the miracle of multiplication takes place and it leads to the overflow of the grace. Our task: Multiplying of our charitable works - Sharing what we have: the first Christian community is the best example for this (Acts 2:43-47). We can observe well the attitude of the believers in Christ: they sell what they have and distribute them to all, they spend the time in the temple, they give praise to God and they break the bread. They actually LIVED the Eucharist literally. They shared everything they have and whatever they have is common to all. In sharing they are united. The single individuals have become a single community because of their sharing. They are not divided but united. By giving away what they have they have become thickly related and spiritually rich. This is the Eucharistic miracle: the bread is broken to be shared by all and by sharing all become the same bread. We have to learn this kind of giving and sharing. This is possible only when we truly and authentically believe in Jesus: the faith in Jesus makes the miracle possible. - We have the capacity to multiply our good action and thus intensify our love: we are invited by Jesus to build a kingdom of love and sharing. That is the reason why, when the people want to make him a king after the multiplication of the bread, Jesus has escaped from their emotional mentality and their mean understanding and has gone to a lonely place. They looked for the king who provides the bread for them every day. Instead, Jesus wanted a kingdom in which all share their love and their life: he wills for the kingdom of love, justice and equality where the hunger and thirst is satisfied not just by “arms giving” but BY SHARING. The difference is more important between “arms giving” and “sharing”: the former is an attitude of giving out of abundance and latter is an attitude of giving out of love and justice. Today, we have the task of multiplying our charitable actions. It is true that we give arms and we make charitable deeds. It is not enough because there is still a great valley between the rich and the poor. We need to do something more. It is not just giving what is required but it is sharing. The demand is very challenging. It asks for our total foregoing at times. It looks impossible for us. But as Christians we can do miracles and we can multiply our good actions. - Faith is the basis and Love is the pillar: In the terms and language of the world it may look impossible to establish a just and equal society. But in the terms and language of Christian love it is always possible. And it is possible only with the profession of true faith and with the acts of love. True love leads us to such an extent of “giving” everything of what we are for the betterment of others. Jesus today calls us to be the shepherds who feed their flock. He invites us to nourish our brothers and sisters around us with the “ingredients of love”. Eucharist in which we partake is the “fountain of life”. We take life from it and share that life with others. Only in this way we can become authentic builders of the world of love and only in this way we become wonder workers and miracle performers. Jesus “fills” our life with this bread of love and “sends” us to provide this bread to all by multiplying our loving sharing.