“Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life.”  In last Sunday’s Gospel, we heard about Jesus feed a crowd of more than five thousand, and how the people, in their amazement, exclaimed, “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.”  The prophet they were speaking about may have been Elisha who, as we heard in last week’s first reading, fed a crowd of 100 people with just 20 barley loaves and some fresh grain in the […]

“There was a famine in the land.”  That’s how the section just before the passage we hear in today’s first reading begins and it’s important for us to know this as we listen to today’s first reading.  At a time when travel was difficult and transcontinental transport was extremely expensive – you couldn’t go to your local ACME to pick up lamb chops from New Zealand or blueberries from Chile, or anything else you wanted for your next meal – everyone was dependent on the local rains to survive.  So, […]

“In him we were chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the praise of his glory, we who first hoped in Christ.”  I’m sure you’re all familiar with a form of prayer called “lectio divina.”  It’s a very simple and effective way to deep prayer and it involves selecting a passage in the Bible for reflection, meditation, prayer, resting in God and finally, action according to God’s plan.  I use […]