WEDNESDAY OF THE 1ST WEEK OF ADVENT GOSPEL REFLECTION. SIGNS OF THE ARRIVAL OF THE MESSIAH (Mt 15:29–37)
At that time: Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain, and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others. They placed them at his feet, and he cured them. The crowds were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the deformed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind able to see, and they glorified the God of Israel.
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.
COMMENTARY FROM THE NAVARRE BIBLE, GOSPEL OF ST. MATTHEW (with permission)
- 29-31 Here St Matthew summarizes Jesus’ activity in this border area where Jews and pagans were living side by side. As usual he teaches and heals the sick; the Gospel account clearly echoes the prophecy of Isaiah which Christ himself used to prove that he was the Messiah (Lk 7:22): “the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped …“ (Is 35:5).
- “They glorified the God of Israel”: this clearly refers to the Gentiles, who thought that God could give the power to work miracles to Jews only. Once again the Gentiles are seen to have more faith than the Jews.
- Second miracle of the loaves
- 32 The Gospels speak of our Lord’s mercy and compassion towards people’s needs: here he is concerned about the crowds who are following him and who have no food. He always has a word of consolation, encouragement and forgiveness: he is never indifferent. However, what hurts him most are sinners who go through life without experiencing light and truth: he waits for them in the sacraments of Baptism and Penance.
- 33-38 As in the case of the first multiplication (14:13-20), the Apostles provide our Lord with the loaves and the fish. It was all they had. He also avails of the Apostles to distribute the food — the result of the miracle — to the people.
- In distributing the graces of salvation God chooses to rely on the faithfulness and generosity of men. “Many great things depend — don’t forget it — on whether you and I live our lives as God wants” (J. Escrivá, The Way, 755).
- It is interesting to note that in both miracles of multiplication of loaves and fish Jesus provides food in abundance but does not allow anything to go to waste.
- All Jesus’ miracles, in addition to being concrete historical events, are also symbols of supernatural realities.
- Here abundance of material food also signifies abundance of divine gifts on the level of grace and glory: it refers to spiritual resources and eternal rewards; God gives people more graces than are strictly necessary.
- This is borne out by Christian experience throughout history. St Paul tells us that “where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Rom 5:20); he speaks of “the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us” (Eph 1:8) and tells his disciple Timothy that “the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 1:14).
- All Jesus’ miracles, in addition to being concrete historical events, are also symbols of supernatural realities.
VIDEO COMMENTARY
Topic: AFTER EIGHT MONTHS OF THIS PANDEMIC, DO YOU STILL HAVE HOPE IN YOUR HEART?
Today’s first reading (Isaiah 25:6-10) shows the Lord holding a banquet on His holy mountain. The banquet is the Lord’s way to reward those who trust Him to bring them out of their tribulations. In the gospel reading (Matthew 15:29-37), people came in droves to be healed. Jesus performs his miracle of multiplying the seven loaves and a few fish to feed the multitude. Seven is a perfect number to symbolize the Lord’s will of perfection for anyone who trusts Him.
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