Deacon Tom Anthony

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 110

Reading 1 2 Kgs 4:42-44

A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing to Elisha, the man of God,
twenty barley loaves made from the firstfruits,
and fresh grain in the ear.
Elisha said, "Give it to the people to eat."
But his servant objected,
"How can I set this before a hundred people?"
Elisha insisted, "Give it to the people to eat."
"For thus says the LORD,
'They shall eat and there shall be some left over.'"
And when they had eaten, there was some left over,
as the LORD had said.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 145:10-11, 15-16, 17-18

R. (cf. 16) The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
The eyes of all look hopefully to you,
and you give them their food in due season;
you open your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
The LORD is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

Reading 2 Eph 4:1-6

Brothers and sisters:
I, a prisoner for the Lord,
urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received,
with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another through love,
striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace:
one body and one Spirit,
as you were also called to the one hope of your call;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all.

Alleluia Lk 7:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
A great prophet has risen in our midst.
God has visited his people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Jn 6:1-15

Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee.
A large crowd followed him,
because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick.
Jesus went up on the mountain,
and there he sat down with his disciples.
The Jewish feast of Passover was near.
When Jesus raised his eyes
and saw that a large crowd was coming to him,
he said to Philip,
"Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?"
He said this to test him,
because he himself knew what he was going to do.
Philip answered him,
"Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough
for each of them to have a little."
One of his disciples,
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him,
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish;
but what good are these for so many?"
Jesus said, "Have the people recline."
Now there was a great deal of grass in that place.
So the men reclined, about five thousand in number.
Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks,
and distributed them to those who were reclining,
and also as much of the fish as they wanted.
When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples,
"Gather the fragments left over,
so that nothing will be wasted."
So they collected them,
and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments
from the five barley loaves
that had been more than they could eat.
When the people saw the sign he had done, they said,
"This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world."
Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off
to make him king,
he withdrew again to the mountain alone.

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 At different times during our lives, we will find ourselves hungry. This hunger can come in just as many forms as there are parts of us that make up the whole: physical, mental, and spiritual. Based upon our desires and our focus, one will become much more important than another. The physical desires are centered in the urges of the flesh and the needs of the body. There are ones that are healthy and there are ones that are unhealthy. We are urged to eat when we are hungry, drink when thirsty, sleep when tired, and engage in sex when aroused. These can be viewed as being healthy but, at the same time, overindulgence can lead to abuse where what was perceived as being good then turns to an unhealthy condition. In much the same way, the mind desires wisdom, knowledge, and understanding while the spirit wants a relationship with God. How we perceive these and act upon them will ultimately determine if they are healthy or unhealthy. The condition that we are left in after pursuing these hungers is also a determining factor.

There are many more examples of the hungers that we all feel and act upon; too many to list for they are as many and as unique as there are people in the universe. The ones that become central to our daily activities determine who we are and develop our personalities. The way that we are perceived by other people, even those who are closest to us, will be influenced by our actions fueled by the pursuit of the ways we satiate our hungers. Our thoughts and the hungers that motivate them do in fact determine our lives. The ones that become the most important become the ones that define us.

The Gospel Reading today tells about the Feeding of the 5000 people. It is through this act that we are told that Jesus will feed us spiritually, mentally, and physically. Through our relationship with Him the spiritual side of us will come alive and be invigorated; strengthened by His presence and our focus on the divine instead of what is directly in front of us. Our minds will be filled with wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. This will enforce the bond between the spiritual and mental. A clearer picture of what He expects of us and the keys to a joyful life will develop. The importance of our needs and wants will diminish and be replaced by what Jesus wants for us.

The physical world and the temptations of society should be secondary in comparison to a life with Jesus Christ. Jesus tells us that all of our needs will be taken care of from the food we eat to security and stability in the day to day challenges we face, only if we stay focused on Him. Everything can be overcome if only we keep the focus on what is pure good which is Him. With the strengthening of the spiritual and the mental with Jesus Christ, the importance of the physical hungers will decrease and ultimately surrender to the other two; being both in unison with them and subservient. This will then lead to pure joy, for the battles between the three which often rage will subside. It is through Jesus Christ that our entire lives will come into balance. Balance is what we need the most and balance is what we will achieve with Jesus.

Deacon Tom