Some say that the multiplication of loaves was not done by breaking the laws of physics. Instead, they say that Jesus, when he began to share the little bread that he had, touched the hearts of all those who had brought food with them. They followed his example by sharing their food also—so much that there were twelve baskets left over. While I don’t doubt that Jesus could have multiplied the loaves he had, it reminds me of the temptation in the desert, when the devil told him to make bread out of rocks. If he rejected that temptation, why would he do almost the same thing now?

No, Jesus came to change people’s hearts, to show them God’s love and how to love one another. The miracle of the loaves shows us that Jesus can feed millions with his Body and Blood in the Eucharist. The miracle of changing bread and wine into his Body and Blood is not just so we can feel good about having Jesus so near to us. It is meant to strengthen us to do our best as his disciples. As food and drink help us to keep on working, his Body and Blood help us to keep on loving. Look around as the Communion procession goes by and think about how many are united with Jesus. Let the broken bread and poured-out wine remind you of how Jesus gave himself up to death on the cross.

When the disciples told Jesus about the hungry crowd, he told them, “Give them some food yourselves” (Luke 9:13). And one day they would. When they celebrated the Eucharist after Jesus’ resurrection, they gave that spiritual food to the new followers of Christ. We continue that today. With Jesus’ strength we can teach all people about the Father’s love for them and how they can love each other.

-Tom Schmidt, Diocesan Publications

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TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION – St. Juliana of Liege

We owe the beautiful feast of Corpus Christi to a valiant woman who suffered a great deal to establish a feast out of her love for the Eucharist. Juliana was a nun in Belgium in the thirteenth century who served in a hospital for lepers. She became convinced through her prayer that the liturgical year was incomplete because it had no feast for the Eucharist. Her efforts were not welcome, and a supervising priest sought to punish her for promoting a feast that “nobody wanted.” He even accused her of financial mismanagement and banished her from her convent.

Shortly after she was exiled, the bishop approved the feast. It quickly spread through Europe. In those days, people very seldom received Holy Communion, and so the processions through the streets with the eucharistic bread not only led to an awareness of Christ’s hunger to be with us, but prepared the way for a deeper desire to receive Christ’s Body and Blood in more frequent Communion. The feast grew rapidly, but Juliana disappeared into poverty and a hidden life. She ended her days as an “anchoress,” a woman living in seclusion in a room attached to a parish church. Imagine her delight at seeing us gathered at the table of the Lord, aware of Christ’s presence in our midst, sharing fully in Christ’s Body and Blood.

-James Field, Diocesan Publications

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The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist – June 24th

Jesus called John the greatest of all those who had preceded him: “I tell you, among those born of women, no one is greater than John….” But John would have agreed completely with what Jesus added: “[Y]et the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he” (Luke 7:28).

The greatness of John, his pivotal place in the history of salvation, is seen in the emphasis Luke gives to the announcement of his birth and the event itself—both made prominently parallel to the same occurrences in the life of Jesus.

John challenges Christians to the fundamental attitude of Christianity—total dependence on the Father, in Christ. Except for the Mother of God, no one had a higher function in the unfolding of salvation. Yet the least in the kingdom, Jesus said, is greater than he, for the pure gift that the Father gives. The attractiveness as well as the austerity of John, his fierce courage in denouncing evil—all stem from his fundamental and total placing of his life within the will of God.