“I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.”
The bread that comes down from heaven is not just a bread which nourishes the body, but one which gives renewed life ‑ be this in the form of energy and purpose (as we see in the story of Elijah) or in the form of a gift of eternal life. As Jesus continues his discourse on the Bread of Life, he faces the complaints and criticism of the crowd, who take a very short-sighted view of what he says, and affirms for them that true life, a life the will never end, is found in him, he is the one who has come from the Father, and so is the living bread which gives life. Jesus here makes an explicit link between “belief” and “eating the bread of life”: the two lead to each other, and they both bring about that which man most desires ‑ to live for ever. The Response to the Psalm in many ways sums this up: ‘Taste and see that the Lord is good.’
PSALM
I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise always on my lips; in the Lord my soul shall make its boast. The humble shall hear and be glad. Glorify the Lord with me. Together let us praise his name. I sought the Lord and he answered me; from all my terrors he set me free. Look towards him and be radiant; let your faces not be abashed. This poor man called; the Lord heard him and rescued him from all his distress. The angel of the Lord is encamped around those who revere him, to rescue them. Taste and see that the Lord is good. He is happy who seeks refuge in him.
First Reading: 1Kings 19: 4-8
Second Reading: Eph 4: 30-5:2
Gospel Reading: John 6: 41-51
19th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2015 Newsletter
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