Tag: bread

“Do you see anything?” | Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

From the Gospel acclamation: “May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts, that we may know what is the hope that belongs to his call.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (8:22-26, today’s readings)

Putting spittle on his eyes he laid his hands on the man and asked, “Do you see anything?” Looking up the man replied, “I see people looking like trees and walking.” Then he laid hands on the man’s eyes a second time and he saw clearly; his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly.

Today’s Gospel acclamation points to what Mark tells us about Jesus as he restores sight to the blind man. The eyes of our hearts need enlightenment in order to see the hope that Jesus is as he stands before us. When Jesus first lays hands on the blind man, anointing him with spittle, he sees indistinctly with distorted vision. When Jesus lays hands on him a second time, his sight is restored perfectly. The interaction between Jesus and the blind man demonstrates the need for relationship with Jesus, to hear and respond to him as he teaches us to see distinctly with the eyes of our hearts.

God, just as the blind man’s vision was clouded and obscured, so is mine in many ways. You alone, Lord, are the just judge who knows the truth of my dependence on you to see you and this present reality with eyes made to behold what is true and good and beautiful. Through your grace, do the continual work necessary to restore my sight as I respond to the love you give in your word and in the sacraments of your Church on earth. You know me and you probe me. In the psalms, what do I have to offer if not gratitude for all your good gifts? “To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“Do you still not understand?” | Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “The voice of the LORD is over the waters, the LORD, over vast waters. The voice of the LORD is mighty; the voice of the LORD is majestic.  The Lord will bless his people with peace.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (8:14-21, today’s readings)

And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?” They answered him, “Twelve.” “When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?” They answered him, “Seven.” He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”

On a boat with the disciples, they tell Jesus they have only one loaf of bread with them. Jesus says to them, “Watch out, guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” Jesus observes that they don’t understand him and asks them whether they comprehend what he means. “Are your hearts hardened?” he asks them. “Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear?” Because they don’t yet understand the identity of Jesus as the Son of God and his mission, he goes on to remind them of his feeding of the crowds and asks again if they still don’t understand, spoken not out of questioning their ability to comprehend him but out of love. In this way, he brings us not to a place of self-doubt but one of greater trust in his divinity and goodness as he invites the disciples and all of us to understand him more deeply.

God, help me remember today what Jesus calls me to in questioning my understanding of him. This is not to cast a shadow on your gift of intellect but to draw me closer to him. Let me welcome the question “Do you not yet understand or comprehend?” In a million years, I would not yet understand. Yet, Jesus condescends to make a place for me nearer and nearer to him as I grow to greater understanding through childlike faith. Give me the grace, Lord, to trust in your providence for everything and to stay in the boat with you in the midst of adversity. Give to the LORD the glory due his name!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Monday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Remove from me the way of falsehood, and favor me with your law. Lord, teach me your statutes.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 14:13-21)

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.” He 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.

Moved by compassion for the crowd even after hearing of the death of John the Baptist, Jesus cures the sick and then feeds them by multiplying the loaves and fish. What Jesus does as he multiplies the loaves is recalled during the Last Supper and during the consecration of every Mass. At his command, we bring our gifts of bread and wine—and our very selves—as the Lord takes the gifts, blesses them and becomes present in the consecrated host. As the Communion Rite from the Roman Missal states: “As the ministers prepare the altar, representatives of the people bring forward the bread and wine that will become the Body and Blood of Christ. The celebrant blesses and praises God for these gifts and places them on the altar, the place of the Eucharistic sacrifice.”

God, every good gift comes from you. Take from me today the simple gifts I give you so that they become through your blessing the spiritual nourishment that strengthens and sustains me. Jesus tells us that he was sent by you and that to do your work is to believe in him. “This is the work of God,” he says to the crowd, “that you believe in the one he sent.” Strengthen my faith, Lord, in your abiding presence. Give me greater understanding and appreciation of the Eucharist as I see the gifts brought to the altar and recognize Jesus’ presence in the breaking of the bread. Mary, Mother of God, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“I am the bread of life.” | Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “He commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven; he rained manna upon them for food and gave them heavenly bread. The Lord gave them bread from heaven.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 6:24-35)

So [the crowd] said to him, “What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do? Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” So Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

After Jesus had fed the 5,000, the same crowd approaches, still looking to be fed. Jesus knows their hearts and tells them that they are looking for him not because of signs but because they ate the bread and fishes and were filled. He tells them: “Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” They question Jesus about doing the works of God, asking him for a sign. Jesus tells them: “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.” Finally, he makes clear that the one sent by the Father is who they are to believe in, that in Jesus the Father sends the true bread from heaven. “I am the bread of life,” Jesus says, “whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

Father in heaven, you sent your Son as true food and true drink. Manna was sent as a sign and pointed to you, but Jesus is not the sign but the bread sent from heaven, the Word made flesh—the real presence in the Eucharist. The food that Jesus fed the 5,000 left them hungry for more food, so they followed Jesus. “One does not live on bread alone,” Jesus says, “but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” Lord, help me hear the echo of the crowd as I move throughout the day; they asked the right question: “What can we do to accomplish the works of God?” And Jesus gave them the perfect answer: believe in the one he sent. Give me the faith, Lord, to hear your every word through Jesus Christ your Son.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“Not as man sees does God see.” | Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 2:23-28)

He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry? How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat, and shared it with his companions?” Then he said to them, “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

The Pharisees see the disciples of Jesus making a path through a field of grain as they pluck the heads of grain, eating them. The Pharisees say to Jesus: “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?” In replying to them, Jesus mentions bread, the daily bread that sustains and nourishes the human body. But in relating the story about David sharing the consecrated bread of offering with his companions, he alludes to bread broken and shared, to bread that prepares us for eternal life, to the Eucharistic banquet he would institute at the Last Supper. In addressing the rigidity of unlawful actions done on the sabbath, Jesus reclaims its purpose through his divine authority as the Son of God: “That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

God, help me see as you see, beyond appearances and superficial understanding. The things of this world provide limited access to what is really true. In your words spoken to Samuel: “Not as man sees does God see, because he sees the appearance but the LORD looks into the heart.” You do not judge by appearances, Lord, but know me because you know my heart. For the sake of your people, you made the sabbath not as a means to restrict needs but to provide for spiritual and physical well-being. In work and relaxation, help me recall the words of Jesus throughout the day: “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.” Give us this day our daily bread.

From the Gospel acclamation: “May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts, that we may know what is the hope that belongs to our call.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

In today’s Gospel, Jesus continues preaching the Sermon on the Mount. In the Gospel passage, he refers to the Ten Commandments in speaking to them about the law and its fulfillment. For each of the laws that he teaches about, such as You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment, he follows with the words and introduces his teaching by saying “But I say to you.” Jesus says to the disciples at the beginning of the passage: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” He goes on to address anger, lust, adultery, and falsehood. For each of these, Jesus does not offer his opinion but Truth and Wisdom itself, the Son of God, speaking of right relationships with the Father.

God, help me grasp the meaning of today’s Gospel as it applies to the choices I make today. The evil one excels at subtle deception. In his compassion, your Son looks deep into the human heart to teach the disciples—to teach all of us—where sin occurs. From within our hearts, choices lie before us, says Sirach, of fire and water, life and death, good and evil. As Jesus says about false oaths, “Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.” By this, your Son guides us to depend on you through the Holy Spirit in discerning the mysteries of your kingdom and keeping your words.

From the Responsorial Psalm: “Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes, that I may exactly observe them. Give me discernment, that I may observe your law and keep it with all my heart.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY

Readings

Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread to satisfy them here in this deserted place?”

These words of the disciples from today’s Gospel are in response to Jesus’ compassion for the crowd that had been following him for three days. He is afraid that on their long journey home the people will collapse along the way. Jesus replies to the disciples question: “How many loaves do you have?” They told him seven. Mark tells us that Jesus ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then, taking the seven loaves and some fish, he gives thanks, breaks the bread, and gives the food to his disciples to distribute. After the four thousand people ate and were satisfied, the leftover fragments filled seven baskets. Jesus satisfies and fills the crowd physically and spiritually. In response to the disciples’ question, “enough bread to satisfy,” Jesus goes far beyond expectation in his extravagant love and compassion for the crowd.

God, open my eyes and my mind to understand today’s Gospel. After Jesus fed the crowd, he dismissed them and went by boat with his disciples to the region of Dalmanutha. I can’t help seeing in Jesus’ dismissal of the crowd the same dismissal at the end of every celebration of Mass when the priest or deacon says, “Go, you are dismissed,” which translated from Latin is “Ite, missa est.” Thank you, God, for the Eucharist, for the supersubstantial bread to sustain me in this life as I strive to live in the light of your glory in the life to come. Let me be dismissed to know and do your will.

In restlessness, Lord, nothing is enough, nothing satisfies. Take the little I have, as you did the seven loaves, and do with it what you will. I ask for the grace today to know your will, to know you are present, placing me far beyond my own idea of what is enough.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY

Readings