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.
Ps 66:1-3a, 4-5, 6-7a
Responsorial Psalm R. (1)
Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth,
sing praise to the glory of his name;
proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God, “How tremendous are your deeds!”
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
“Let all on earth worship and sing praise to you,
sing praise to your name!”
Come and see the works of God,
his tremendous deeds among the children of Adam.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has changed the sea into dry land;
through the river they passed on foot;
therefore let us rejoice in him.
He rules by his might forever.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Gospel
Jn 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
“I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35)
Have you ever wondered what Jesus meant by this? How is he the bread of life for us, and what kind of “life” does he give? Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher to the papal household, has this to say:
“The Fathers of the Church took the example of physical nourishment to explain this mystery. It is the stronger form of life, they said, that assimilates the weaker and not vice versa. The vegetable world assimilates minerals, and animals assimilate vegetables, and the spiritual assimilates the material. To those who receive him, Jesus says: ‘You shall not change me into your own substance. Instead you shall be changed into me.’
“Food is not a living thing and therefore cannot give us life. It is a source of life only in that it sustains the life we have. The bread of life is a living bread, and those who receive it live by it. So while the food that nourishes the body … is assimilated by the body and forms human blood, the complete opposite takes place with the bread of life. This bread gives life to those that receive it, ‘assimilates’ them,
and transforms them into itself. …
“Christ calls himself the ‘bread of life’ precisely to make us understand that he doesn’t nourish us as ordinary food does, but that, as he possesses life, he gives it to us…. To say that Jesus ‘assimilates’ us in communion signifies, in fact, that he makes us similar to him in our sentiments, desires, and our way of thinking; in a word he creates in us ‘the mind that was in Christ Jesus’ (Philippians 2:5).”
Keep these points in mind the next time you receive communion. Make it a point to offer yourself to the Lord. Give him your challenges and your sins as well as your gifts and treasures. Let him assimilate you and transform you into himself. You won’t lose your freedom or your identity. On the contrary, as you lose yourself in him, you will find even greater freedom and dignity. You’ll find the life that he wants to give you!
“Lord, come and live your life through me. The world needs to receive your mercy, wisdom, and power, and I may be just the person you are asking to give it!”
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