Reading 1
Acts 8:1b-8
There broke out a severe persecution of the Church in Jerusalem,
and all were scattered
throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria,
except the Apostles.
Devout men buried Stephen and made a loud lament over him.
Saul, meanwhile, was trying to destroy the Church;
entering house after house and dragging out men and women,
he handed them over for imprisonment.
Now those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.
Thus Philip went down to the city of Samaria
and proclaimed the Christ to them.
With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Philip
when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing.
For unclean spirits, crying out in a loud voice,
came out of many possessed people,
and many paralyzed and crippled people were cured.
There was great joy in that city.
Gospel
John 6:35-40
Jesus said to the crowds,
“I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst.
But I told you that although you have seen me,
you do not believe.
Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and I will not reject anyone who comes to me,
because I came down from heaven not to do my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.
And this is the will of the one who sent me,
that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it on the last day.
For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him on the last day.”
Meditation: John 6:35-40
Meditation: John 6:35-40
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Whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. (John 6:35)
These are amazing words! Essentially, Jesus is promising that his gift of the Eucharist can satisfy us so deeply that we no longer hunger for earthly rewards. But is this a promise we can really experience? Or was Jesus just exaggerating to make a point? Perhaps some words from St. Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) can help us:
“If you have a light, and the whole world should come to you in order to take some light from it, the light itself does not diminish,” she wrote. “Suppose that there are many who bring their candles, one weighing an ounce, others two or six ounces, or a pound, or even more, and light them in the flame. The whole light is in each candle, whether large or small—the same heat, the same color, and the same flame.
“Nevertheless, you would judge that the one whose candle weighs an ounce has less of the light than the one whose candle weighs a pound. Now the same thing happens to those who receive this Sacrament. Each one carries his own candle.”
Catherine saw that even though we all have the same “wick”—the faith that we received at baptism—“the soul becomes more or less bright according to the material which it brings to the fire.”
So while the whole of Jesus’ life and love is available to us at every Mass, it’s not always the case that we receive it all. That part is up to us. It’s a matter of recognizing the darkness of need within us and trusting that Jesus’ light can overcome it. It’s a matter of dwelling on the goodness of the Lord throughout the Mass so that we become confident that he wants to fill us up to overflowing.
Jesus is the light of the world, and his light continues to shine in the darkness, setting us free from sin, giving us his words of inspiration and hope, and telling us how much he delights in us. So how big of a “candle” will you bring to him?
“Lord, help me to sense your presence more deeply in the Eucharist. May the light of my faith grow brighter in the fire of your love!”
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