17th Sun of OT Year B Homily

1st Reading: 2 Kgs 4:42-44

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

2nd Reading: Eph 4:1-6

Gospel: Jn 6:1-15

A magician is able to make miraculous things happen before the eyes of people. They are able to take everyday objects such as coins and make them disappear and reappear in the blink of an eye. They are able to place a person in a box and cut them in half; only to put them back together in a matter of moments. We must admit that these people are able to do some extraordinary stuff from some very ordinary objects. If they were unable to do anything out of the ordinary we would be forced to admit that they would make a pretty poor magician. In our lives we are constantly being surrounded by ordinary things that have great potential that lie beyond themselves. The issue for us is how we can allow ourselves to look beyond these ordinary objects and to see the realities that lie beyond. A magician is able to do this through their act because they are able to look into the ordinary and see all the possibilities that exist and then are able to make them come into play.

Today we take a five week break from the Gospel of Saint Mark to place our focus upon chapter 6 of the Gospel of Saint John. This chapter is placing its focus upon the bread of life that has come down to us from Heaven. This chapter from John comes properly placed when we look at it in conjunction with the Gospel text that was proclaimed last week at the Mass. Last week we heard from the Gospel of Saint Mark where it was said that Christ has concern for each us in the midst of our greatest needs and wants us to place those needs in His hands. From these scripture passages we come to realize the importance of the extraordinary things that enter into our lives. Sometimes when we place our focus upon what is ordinary we lose sight of the true reality that exists behind what is taking place. In our journey of faith we are surrounded by many ordinary examples that contain a much richer reality behind them. One of these rich realities is that of the Mass where we come to be nourished by the Body and Blood of Christ.

At the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass we come together as a community of faith to be nourished by the Body and Blood of Christ. If you would take a glance at the bread and the wine you would think that what is going on here is very ordinary. Bread and wine of course are very ordinary objects which we encounter often in our daily lives. In all reality what is going at the Mass is far from ordinary. We may have ordinary objects such as the bread and wine, but something far greater is going on before our eyes. Through the words of the priest these ordinary objects are becoming far from ordinary. Yes, these objects may look like bread and wine, but they have become the extraordinary because they are truly the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ who entered into the world to bring nourishment to all believers. Before our eyes dwells the presence of Christ in these ordinary elements, so that in our greatest spiritual needs we will be provided for as those in the Gospel of John were provided for during their time of need.

The gospel passage is a reminder for us of the great hope that Christ places into each of our lives. In this passage we have a multitude of people who find themselves drawn close to Christ. Christ in return gives them the spiritual assistance that they were in search of and then goes on to realize the importance of nourishment within their lives. He then took ordinary objects such as bread and fish and had the apostles take these ordinary objects to distribute to the people. These first priests of the Church did as they were instructed and thus went to the people to distribute what seemed to be much of nothing to a HUGE amount of people. From these ordinary objects something extraordinary took place because they did not run out of food and by the end of the day something was left over. This had to of been a most profound moment in the life of the apostles because of the extraordinary event that took place before their eyes. This extraordinary event continues to take place before our eyes at each Mass that takes place around the world.

At the Mass this notion that was begun with the Gospel of Saint John is continued. Christ continues to this day to have the priests of the Church take the ordinary element of bread and through the words given by Christ something extraordinary takes place. We the people of God who come to this Church to find spiritual nourishment are able to open ourselves up to the gifts that come within this Mass. Through the words of the priest, the hymns that we sing, the readings, and prayers of the Mass our hearts and souls are opened up to receive the nourishment that comes to us from God. In these ordinary gestures something extraordinary takes place because we are brought before Christ in a most profound manner. We who enter into this extraordinary realm are bringing all of our worries, struggles, and fears along and are joining them together with the cross of Christ. It is here at this place that the ordinary objects of bread and wine are brought forth and truly become the Body and Blood of Christ.

No matter where we find ourselves today we can trust with all our hearts and souls that the Body and Blood of Christ truly dwells here with us. We can trust that we can bring all of our needs and desires to this Mass and receive the nourishment that we are in search of. What takes place here with the ordinary elements of bread and wine is not a act of magic, but is truly Christ present with us at work in our lives through these ordinary elements. Through these gifts we are invited to join with Saint Paul as a people of one faith, one Lord, and one baptism who are invited to come together as one community. May we no longer allow our minds to be at ease with accepting the ordinary into our lives without allowing our hearts and souls to be taken to the extraordinary that lies beyond what we see. When we allow the extraordinary to truly work within our lives we are allowing the Lord to come and feed us in all of our needs. May our eyes look hopefully to the Lord as we receive this nourishment within our lives.