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Gospel:
Jesus summoned his disciples and said,
“My heart is moved with pity for the crowd,
for they have been with me now for three days
and have nothing to eat.
I do not want to send them away hungry,
for fear they may collapse on the way.”
The disciples said to him,
“Where could we ever get enough bread in this deserted place
to satisfy such a crowd?”
Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?”
“Seven,” they replied, “and a few fish.”
He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground.
Then he took the seven loaves and the fish,
gave thanks, broke the loaves,
and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds.
They all ate and were satisfied.
They picked up the fragments left over–seven baskets full.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Many have wondered, how could Jesus feed thousands of people with only seven loaves and a few fish?
The easy answer is, “Because he’s God! He can do anything.”
While true, there may be another possible explanation.
***
As the Gospel tells us, the crowds have been following Jesus for three days. Many within the crowd are sick and poor. But not all of them.
If you and I had the opportunity to follow Jesus for a few days, we’d pack some food before going.
Could it be, that Jesus knows enough people within that crowd have bread stuffed inside their pockets?
If he can convince them to share their bread with others, then a crowd of thousands can be fed in a matter of minutes.
This would be, perhaps, an even greater miracle – a moral miracle – transforming thousands of human hearts from selfishness into selflessness.
In so doing, Jesus teaches the crowds an important lesson in discipleship – when problems arise, we should see ourselves as part of the solution.
Jesus will do his part. But we must do ours, as well.
***
Think about some of the problems we face in our world.
There are staggering levels of poverty, violence, and hunger. Just as crowds sought to be fed by Jesus, so millions seek to be fed and clothed by us.
We cannot fill every stomach and quench every thirst, but we can offer our “seven loaves and a few fish.” We can make a difference.
Locally, we can also bring Christmas cheer to a person who feels alone – make a call, send a letter, pay a personal visit. Isolation is one of the invisible side effects of COVID.
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Much like today’s Gospel, it’s easy to identify problems in our world. So why not see ourselves as part of the solution?
***
Thank you. Very true! We must learn to turn our focus from the problem to seek and be part of the solution.
More importantly we must learn to keep our eyes on Jesus instead of our problems.
Amen. We can endure all things with Christ.