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I am the bread of life...
Everybody has a favorite bread. Sometimes, especially when it is fresh, bread can be the highlight of a meal. We toast, grill, and cover it with butter, peanut butter, cream cheese, and my grandchildren’s favorite, Nutella. We also fill it with meat, cheese, chicken, fish, and vegetables.
Bread is often referred to as the staff of life. Look at what happened with bread baking during the pandemic. It seemed like everyone was baking bread. We were isolated from each other but found ways to connect and bread baking was one of those ways. Recipes and techniques were shared over the Internet around the world.
When we're not feeling well, something about toasted bread hits the spot. In the mid-1980s, when our family moved to Ireland, bread and butter was my mainstay as I adjusted to unfamiliar food.
Scripture uses things familiar to us to help us understand the mystery, presence and goodness of God. Bread, a basic nutrient, is a theme in today's readings.
In the first reading, we hear that the Israelites, tired and hungry after years of wandering in the desert, “grumbled against Moses and Aaron.” We read how God provided food, specifically bread, giving them what they needed to survive physically in hopes that they would better understand his presence among them.
In the gospel the crowds following Jesus ask him for a sign that he is sent from God. He reminds them about the loaves of bread he fed them previously and uses the idea of bread, a nutrient for physical life, to explain that he is the bread of a different kind of life, a deeper life that originates with God.
When Jesus proclaims,” I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger,” he is not talking about physical hunger. He is addressing that deep, spiritual longing that often goes unnamed but is felt to the core of our being. Just as a hearty slice of bread satisfies our physical hunger, reaching out in prayer to Jesus can bring a spiritual nourishment that is beyond words. It is a felt nourishment that often defies description.
Peace,
Anne
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