THE WORD BECAME FLESH

Wednesday in the First week of Advent, 2021

Isa 25:6-10a

Ps 23

Matt 15:29-37

How many loaves…

Dear friends in Christ, the grace of God is the only thing that turns what is in short supply to an abundance. Life is full of disappointments based on our inability to provide enough needed to satisfy our needs. God however, time after time, breaks into human situations to assure us of his divine presence and providence.

In the first reading of today (Isaiah 25:6-10a) we have Isaiah’s vision of a banquet or feeding provided by God on his holy mountain for the people which will lead to the destruction of death. “The Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of fat things, a feast of choice wines—of fat things full of marrow of choice wines well refined.” This feast of sumptuous meal and choice wines is a sign of God’s commitment to his people to deliver them in times of trouble and to restore them to a life of plenty. This prophesy is seen in line with the coming Messianic era. It is a victory that will lead the people into a song in praise of God, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

The gospel passage (Matthew 15:29-37) presents us with one of the miracles of the multiplication of loaves in the Messianic era ushered in by Christ. It is a very real situation with Jesus practically responding to human needs in a hopeless situation. After a time of miracles in which “great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet and he healed them…” as the crowd wondered. He also showed compassion for the hungry, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days, and have nothing to eat; and I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” All they had with them were seven loaves and a few small fish but Jesus prayed over it in a language that resembles that of the Eucharist and when the crowd had eaten, they had left another seven baskets full of broken pieces. The writer says, “And they all ate and were satisfied.” Does it fulfil the first reading? We might look to the Book of Wisdom which talks of Manna’s taste saying, “But to your people you gave the food of angels, and from heaven sent bread already prepared, suiting all tastes and having every flavour. In this way you revealed your loving kindness to your children; satisfying all needs, this bread provided what each one wanted.”(Wis. 16:20-21) With God, all things are possible. Never be too stingy to share the little you have, give thanks over it and allow God do the rest.

Let us pray: O Lord, you fed a crowd from just a few loaves and had so much left over, give us the grace to feed one and when possible all who need our help. Amen. 

+Remain blessed