Readings: Isaiah 55:1-3; Romans 8:35.37-39; Matthew 14:13-21
Theme: Feeding the Hungry
By Michael McCabe, SMA
Today’s gospel recounts the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. It was one of the bible stories that impressed me when I was in primary school, but for the wrong reasons. I pictured Jesus as a great magician who, instead of making things disappear or pulling rabbits out of a hat, could take something small and increase it many times over. To a ten year old school boy this seemed hugely impressive. However, although the story made a lasting impression on me, I had missed its meaning. The multiplication of the loaves and fishes is not the act of a master magician, but a miracle of divine compassion and generosity that manifests what God’s reign on earth is all about.
Among the blessings associated with God’s reign in the First (Old) Testament is the end of want and misery, and the availability of food in abundance for God’s people. Our first reading today from the Prophet Isaiah, writing to the impoverished and dispirited Israelites living in exile, reminds them that God has not deserted them. He will bring an end to their suffering and provide for their needs: ‘Oh, come to the water all you who are thirsty; though you have no money, come! Buy corn without money and eat, and, at no cost, wine and milk’ (Is 55:1).The prophet Joel doubles down on this promise of Isaiah: ‘You will have plenty to eat until you are full, and you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you’ (Joel 2:26).
In the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, Jesus fulfils the prophecies of Isaiah and Joel. He also manifests, in a very tangible way, the mystery of abundant life symbolised by the parables we heard on recent Sundays: the parable of the seed producing a hundredfold; the mustard seed and its extraordinary growth, and the leavening of three measures of flour. The Lord of the harvest has showered us with an abundance of his gifts, more than we would ever ask for, or need. It is our hearts that need to be touched and transformed by the elixir of divine compassion and generosity so that we share what we have received with those in need, and everyone has more than enough.
Sadly, in our world today, 1 out of every 10 persons (almost 700 million) go to bed hungry, despite the fact that enough food is produced to feed far more than the population of the world. In 2015 many world leaders pledged themselves to end world hunger by 2030 – just four years away and we are far from achieving this admirable goal. Indeed, the chronic crisis of food insecurity in many countries seems to be on the increase because of global warming, wars and conflicts, and a lack of political will to address these issues.
One of the few world leaders who have alerted us to the scandal of this situation is Pope Leo XIV. On the 22nd June, he visited the headquarters of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) – one of the largest humanitarian organisations in the world – in Rome, and laid a wreath at a memorial to the members of this programme who lost their lives attempting to bring food to starving people living in situations of conflict. In his address Pope Leo stated that, in today’s world, ‘conflicts are fed more readily than people are nourished’, reflecting ‘a fundamental imbalance in our political and moral priorities’. A few facts illustrate the truth of Pope Leo’s statement. Global military expenditure is roughly $2.88 trillion a year. The United Nations estimates that eliminating world hunger by 2030 would cost approximately $93 billion annually, or about 3.4% of the yearly global military budget. At present 30 times more is spent fighting wars than feeding people. What a shame! Have we lost our humanity, our compassion?
At the end of Mass, St Augustine was accustomed to challenge the assembly to enact the meaning of what they had just celebrated by telling them: ‘See what you are and become what you see. What you see is the Body of Christ and that is what you must become for others.’ So let us pray: Lord, as we receive the Eucharist today may we be your loving and caring presence in our world today. May we be motivated by a joyful gratitude for what we already have and by a constant concern for the needs and concerns of others. May we attend not only to our own hungers but to the hungers of those in our world who suffer with empty stomachs, aching hearts and lonely spirits, constantly crying out for help. I end with a reflection on today gospel from the pen of Flor McCarthy SDB. It is appropriately entitled ‘Feeding the Hungry’:
The multiplication of the loaves happens in our fields
every year between sowing and harvest time.
Like the miracle of Jesus, this miracle too
is brought about by the power of God.
And just as Jesus needed the hands of the apostles
to distribute the bread to the people,
so God also needs human hands to make
this abundance available to the hungry.
In some countries today the problem is over-eating.
In other countries the problem is getting anything to eat at all.
Today we don’t need anyone to multiply the loaves for us.
The food is there.
What is not always there is the will to share it.
Listen to an alternative audio Homily by Tom Casey, SMA: