This
homily was given at my Catholic high school reunion Mass (to my fellow alumni)
18th Sunday in Ordinary Time,
Year A
July 31st, 2011
Matthew 14:13-21
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.
I’m sure that we
have all heard it said that this event of the multiplications of
the loaves is not really a miracle; or, rather, that the true miracle was that
Jesus got the people to share. The idea would be that Jesus’ example of sharing
(or the example of the child) would have inspired others to share as well, such
that all ate and were satisfied.
Now, we could show that this idea of “sharing”
is not at all faithful to the plain meaning of the Biblical text, how it is simply ridiculous to think
that 5,000 men (not counting women and children) could be fed on the “sack
lunches” of a few, and how Jesus himself latter expressly states that he fed
five thousand with only five loaves – we could do all of this, and it would be
good, but instead it will be better to
consider what the deeper meaning of the miraculous event really was, and
how this meaning would change if the miracle were only about sharing.
The
multiplication of the loaves, a true historical event, also contains a mystical
meaning which touches on the present day. When
Christ fed the five thousand, he tells us that he will always provide for his
faithful people. No matter how difficult life gets (either individually, or
for the Church as a whole), the Savior will be with us to guide and strengthen us.
Even when we seem to be in a deserted
place and on the verge of exhaustion, the Lord will support his Church with
the true bread of Faith and the Sacraments.
Now, let’s think
about what it would mean for us today, if Jesus didn’t really feed the five
thousand through miraculously multiplying the loaves.
First, the
Apostles say to our Savior, “We can’t feed them, let’s tell them to go and get food from the towns and villages!”
This would mean that our Lord would send the faithful away, as though he would
say, “I can’t feed you, I can’t sustain
you, I can’t console you; go to the towns, that is, go into the world and seek
whatever comforts you can find there!”
Jesus would
never say this! No, rather, the good Lord tells us, “There is no true joy in
the world, there is no consolation there for you; only I can save you, only I
can strengthen you. Come to me and find peace and refreshment! For I alone am
your God!”
And so, we might
examine our own lives: Where do we seek
our comfort and our joy? Where do we find meaning for our lives? Is my joy
more in Christ or more in my job, in my success, in riches, and in all the vain
pleasures of this life?
Do I seek my fill on the bread of the
world, or do I receive the true bread from Christ Jesus? There is no consolation in the world,
riches are here today and gone tomorrow; all things pass away, only God
remains.
Secondly, we
might consider what it would have meant if
the people simply shared amongst themselves, as if Jesus had not multiplied
the loaves miraculously. I ask you, Who
was feeding whom? If the people simply shared their own bread amongst
themselves, Who was feeding whom?
Would anyone have been fed by Jesus? No! This would mean that our Savior was
nothing more than a moral example that led the crowd to take care of themselves.
Why, this would mean that, for us today, the good Lord would be nothing more than
a memory from the past, a good example who inspires us, but not a Savior who
actually redeems us!
Christ did not
say, “Well, let them feed themselves;
there’s nothing I can do.” Rather, he said, “Bring me the five loaves, I
will feed the crowd.” It was Jesus who fed the people 2000 years ago; and it
is Jesus who feeds the Church today.
But, far too
often, we try to simply “share” our little morsels amongst ourselves, rather
than to receive the true bread from Christ and through his Church. We “share” and feed ourselves whenever we
look to popular opinion rather than to the teaching of Christ and his Church.
To where do I
look when I want to know how to raise a family? Do I look to the Gospel, or do
I only share in the vain falsehoods of the world.
Or, even more,
when I form my beliefs about the Church – Do I look to the Church herself and
let her teach me who she is and what she believes, or do I rather “share” in
all the false notions and errant opinions of the media.
No! We cannot
feed ourselves! Only Jesus is the Savior, we cannot simply “share”, but we need
him to give us the true bread, the true Faith.
And now, there
is one last detail which we ought to point out: Christ does not give the bread directly to the people, but rather he
gives it to the Apostles and tells them to distribute it. This also has a
mystical meaning – for the bread is a figure also for the Eucharist.
The Lord is
teaching us that the Eucharist is not
something which he gives directly and immediately to individuals, but it is a sacrament
which he has entrusted to his Church. The Eucharist is the great treasure
of the Church and is meant only for those who are united to the Church.
Now, I know that
this can seem to be a bit controversial – but, it is good to recognize why the
Church teaches that only Catholics who are practicing their faith are to
receive communion. It’s not about being
exclusive or rejecting others, but we have to admit that Christ gave the Eucharist
to the disciples rather than to the crowds in general. Just so, the Eucharist is
not to be shared among all people generally, nor even among all Christians, but
only among those who are united to the successors of the Apostles, those who
are practicing Catholics.
If we are not Catholic or if we are no
longer practicing our Catholic faith, we simply cannot receive Holy Communion – it would be a falsehood to receive the
sacrament of unity when we are not truly united.
My friends, it has been 10 years since we
graduated from high school – it is time to make a little examination of
conscience. Where have
we gone and where are we now? Are we finding our joy and consolation in the
Lord, or have we begun to seek after all the shallow pleasures of the world?
Does our own self-worth rely on our relationship with our Savior, or are we
more concerned about our job, our house, our social standing?
Now is probably a good time to get back
to confession. We have
reached a mile-marker, and all of us could probably use confession more often
anyway. It is time to return in earnest to our life of faith.
