Corpus Christi: Jesus Feeds Us
Msgr. Charles Pope Sunday Guide
Sunday, June 22, is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. Mass readings: Genesis 14:18-20; Psalm 110:1, 2, 3, 4; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Luke 9:11b-17.
On the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, we do well to meditate on the desire of the Lord to feed his people and the shocking indifference many have to this fact. We should recognize the passionate concern the Lord has for his flock. Let’s consider today’s Gospel in three ways.
Jesus has been teaching the crowds all day by the lake. The text says that the Twelve expressed concern to Jesus that the crowd needed food. The diagnosis is that the crowd is hungry. And this is a diagnosis of the human condition in general: We are hungry. We are a veritable sea of desires. Somehow, amidst all this hunger, God is calling us. But the apostles advise Jesus to send the people away, to the world, to get food and satisfy their desires there.
Note the Lord’s deep desire to feed these people.
He said to them, “Give them some food yourselves.”
The apostles, of course, can only protest the impracticality of such a thing. They are looking at Jesus Christ yet think it impossible to feed this crowd. They see only five loaves and two fish. Do you see their lack of faith? What about yours? Yes, this is also a picture of many in the Church today, who forget that we have Jesus, who is still in the business of working miracles.
The Lord insists,
“Have them sit down in groups of about fifty.” They did so and made them all sit down.
In effect, the Lord says, “Enough of all this negativity! I’m in charge here. Let’s get to work now.”
“Then taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing over them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied. And when the leftover fragments were picked up, they filled twelve wicker baskets.”
Note well: The Lord is determined to feed these people and insists that his disciples help him to do so.
They collect the five loaves and two fishes; Jesus blesses and multiplies the food. He gives the food to the apostles and instructs that they set it before the crowd.
And this is the Church: The Lord feeds his people, but he does so through others. On the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, we acknowledge that the Lord feeds us through his Body and Blood but does so through the ministry of his priests and through his Church.
Do we see giving the Eucharist as central to our mission? Is the liturgy really at the heart of our parish life, or are liturgies hurried? What is our highest priority? Is it the same priority of Jesus, rooted in the deep desire he has to feed his people?
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