Catechism Links[1]
CCC 1341-1344: “Do this in memory of me”
CCC 1384-1390: Take and eat: Communion
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| “Elijah Fed by an Angel” by Ferdinand Bol, 1660-63. |
Commentary:
Reading 1: 1 Kings 19:4-8
Commentary on 1 Kgs 19:4-8
This episode from the tale of Elijah finds the prophet fleeing from Jezebel, who was the ruler of Beer-sheba. Elijah, in order to demonstrate the superiority of God over the false god Baal, had defeated and slain the priests of Baal, and was under sentence of death (see 1 Kings 19:2). He flees into the desert believing he had failed God, and, in frustration, gives up, asking God to take his life.
Exhausted he falls asleep under the broom tree (really more of a desert shrub than a tree but often used by Bedouins for protection from the wind). The Lord sends a messenger to him and commands him to eat the bread he offered and drink the water he provided. The messenger then leads Elijah to “the mountain of God, Horeb.” There is great symbolism in leading Elijah to that place. It is considered to be the same mountain upon which Moses received the Law (referred to by a different name as Mount Sinai). His forty days and forty nights journey represents a spiritual journey as well as distance.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (9a) Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Commentary on Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
Psalm 34 is a song of thanksgiving and a favorite for celebrating the heroic virtue of the saints. The psalmist, fresh from the experience of being rescued (Psalm 34:5, 7), can teach the "poor," those who are defenseless, to trust in God alone. This psalm, in the words of one being unjustly persecuted, echoes hope for deliverance and freedom. The Lord in his faithful love always hears those who call to him for help and salvation.
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Reading II: Ephesians 4:30—5:2
Commentary on Eph 4:30—5:2
St. Paul continues to exhort the church at Ephesus to live as imitators of God in Christ. He lists the virtues of Christ’s love and excludes a litany of behaviors inappropriate for those who wish to be part of the community, insisting that such people have no share in the inheritance of the Kingdom of God (of Christ). In Ephesians 5:2 there is a strong Eucharistic reference as the apostle refers to Christ’s sacrifice as “a sacrificial offering to God for a fragrant aroma.”
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Gospel: John 6:41-51
Commentary on Jn 6:41-51
St. John’s “Bread of Life” discourse continues in response to the protest of the crowd. We hear Jesus telling the crowd that no one comes to God unless it is willed by the Father (who sent me). Then Jesus says the remarkable: “and I will raise him on the last day.” This is a clear statement that the Lord has been given the authority to judge the living and the dead in the Eschaton (the last day).
The Lord makes reference to Isaiah 54:13 (“They shall all be taught by God”), interpreting that passage as it relates to him as the “teacher” sent by God. He next launches into an answer to the earlier request: "Sir, give us this bread always," (John 6:34) saying “I am the bread of life.” He follows this reiteration of his identity by recalling God’s salvation of the Hebrew people who were fleeing Egypt and starving in the desert, but were rescued by God’s gift of manna (Exodus 16:1ff). Then, going further, he tells the crowd that they must eat (John uses the graphic word gnaw) the bread of life to have eternal life, and that the bread he gives them is his life for the salvation of all mankind.
CCC: Jn 6 1338; Jn 6 1338; Jn 6:44 259, 591, 1001, 1428; Jn 6:46 151; Jn 6:51 728, 1355, 1406, 2837
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Reflection:
As Sacred Scripture stacks up the various records of God’s attempt to save us, we are given a unique glimpse into God’s perception of space/time. God, who existed from before time, must have, in his omnipresent sense, a vision of salvation history that brings his plan to realization in ways we cannot even understand. (Slightly cliché, we can quote St. Paul: “What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9) as he in turn may be quoting the prophet Isaiah 64:3 or possibly 65:16. There is no modern text that has his exact words although he claims to be quoting scripture.)
The rather convoluted reference just used to describe our understanding of God’s view of space/time serves to emphasize the point. God’s view of time and space is different from our own. Where we see Elijah under the broom tree and think: “Oh, an angel comes and brings Elijah bread for the journey.” God may see the Eucharist, the sacrifice of his own son, to one of his servants who needed food for the journey upon which he sends him. Even as the messenger leads Elijah to Mount Horeb, God sees Moses standing on that mountain receiving the tablets. He sees Elijah and Moses together, and sees Jesus with Peter James and John on Mount Tabor, there revealing the essence of his Son to mankind. We see all these scenes coming together, a series of montages or a flickering image like an old film that animates still life.
At the heart of God’s will is the “Bread of Life.” He gives it to Elijah, defeating death and sin. The song of David plays in our ears “Taste and see how good the Lord is.” It is a song written five hundred years before the First Book of Kings, a thousand years before Christ walked the earth as man, and offered his body as a sacrifice of atonement for the world.
The Lord offers himself to us and in return we must accept. Acceptance means that we must conform ourselves to the journey upon which God calls us. Acceptance means that we recognize the gift being offered, and the reason the gift was necessary. Amen, we say as the Body of Christ, the Bread of Life is offered, we believe that God is made present in the Eucharist we are offered.
All of the images God has stacked up for us in scripture come pouring out on us today, and we can almost see his will for us. Like the artist’s picture that can only be appreciated with our eyes slightly out of focus, his will forms a new image and we see the path once more, hidden in our logical selves, and concealed by our natural need for clarity. Today we pray for the grace that comes with acceptance, acceptance of the gift of the Eucharist, acceptance of the journey that beacons.
Pax
In Other Years On This Date: [In the Dioceses of the United States] Optional Memorial for Saint Jane Frances De Chantal, Religious
[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture is “Elijah Fed by an Angel” by Ferdinand Bol, 1660-63.
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