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“Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven,
he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. They all ate and were satisfied.” (Mark 6:42-44)
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The multiplication of the loaves is the only miracle recorded in all four Gospels.
Why was it so memorable?
Jesus did many other things worthy of being told. He raised Lazarus from the dead; he healed the blind, the deaf, the sick, and the lame.
John even concludes his Gospel with the words:
“There are many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written” (John 21:25).
Why, then, is the multiplication of the loaves so important?
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It isn’t because Jesus multiplies bread.
Rather, this miracle points towards the greatest miracle of all.
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At the Last Supper, Jesus becomes the bread.
In his words, “Take this, all of you, and eat of it. For this is my body which will be given up for you. Do this in memory of me.”
Then Jesus takes the bread, breaks it, and feeds his disciples with it.
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In a sense, that’s what marriage, priesthood, and friendship are all about– learning how to become like broken bread – nourishing, available to all.
Whenever we give ourselves away for the sake of another, we repeat those words of Christ: “This is my body… given up for you.”
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Imagine if all five thousand people fed by Jesus that day asked themselves that question:
How might I offer myself for the good of another, like broken bread?
And imagine if we did the same.