Again, let me congratulate those of you who will soon be receiving the Eucharist for the first time; you’ve waited a long time for this – since May! – and I’m sure you’re excited. Receiving our Lord in Holy Communion is just as important for our spiritual health as the food you eat every day keeps your bodies healthy. In fact, while the food we eat every day only satisfies us for a short time, the Eucharist prepares us for the heavenly banquet where our deepest desires will be satisfied forever. And, God has shown us, over and over again, that he will care for us here on earth and that he has a place prepared for each of us at that heavenly feast. All we need to do is to be faithful to the everlasting covenant we hear about in today’s first reading: to worship him alone and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
Both the first reading and today’s Gospel remind us of God’s care for us. In the first reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, we hear the wonderful, poetic invitation from God: “All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat. Come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk!” As God fed his people with manna and quail in the desert and gave them water to drink from a rock as they traveled to the Promised Land, so today’s first reading assures us that God will freely care for his people, down through the ages as we prepare to enter the true Promised Land – that is, heaven!
Jesus reinforces that assurance in today’s Gospel account. After spending the day with the crowd that followed him, teaching them and curing the sick in their midst, evening has come and all his disciples have is five loaves of bread and two fish; that’s what they expected to eat themselves. They know that this won’t satisfy over 5,000 hungry mouths. His disciples just want to get rid of the crowds, dismissing them to find food for themselves. But, there are no towns or villages nearby – no Wawa’s or American Pubs where they could get something to eat; remember, this is a deserted place. So, the crowd would have to make their way back home in the dark, walking through dangerous and hostile territory. Just as God did with his people in the desert, Jesus feeds the crowd in this deserted place; in fact, he is so generous that twelve wicker baskets are filled with the left overs!
You don’t want to miss an important detail in both of these readings – the link between the life-giving Word of God and the abundant food that is offered. In the first reading, after we hear God offer water and wine, bread and milk, we hear God call his people to come to him heedfully and listen to him. In fact, he cautions his people against spending money on what does not satisfy; that means, on those things that bring only momentary happiness, not true satisfaction, like his word does.
In today’s Gospel, we hear about Jesus curing the sick with his restorative word before he has them sit down to eat. Just as the word of God created the world at the beginning of time, so the word of Jesus recreates a new world for us in this Eucharistic Celebration, where we hear God’s life-giving word and are nourished by his son’s Body and Blood. In today’s first reading, we hear God call us to heed his word; then, we shall eat well and delight in rich fare. That rich fare is to be found only God’s kingdom. But, we anticipate it here in the Eucharistic banquet. That’s why there is special joy today as some among us will come to the Table of our Lord for the first time in Holy Communion; it’s so good to have you and your families here!
Yes, our God cares for us, as he has cared for his people at all times. He led them safely through the desert and he leads us safely now, even as we travel through what may seem like a desert as we continue to struggle with the coronavirus. Let us put our trust in God, be faithful to his covenant – loving God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves. And, let us come to this Eucharistic celebration often to be nourished by God’s life-giving words and his Son’s precious Body and Blood. Then, as we hear St. Paul assure us so powerfully in today’s second reading, we will conquer all things overwhelmingly through him who loves us.