Saturday, April 9, 2016

Acts 6: 1-7, Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19, John 6:1-15



DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Acts 6: 1-7, Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19, John 6:1-15

Acts 6: 1-7


My Beloved, here we are reminded that we ought not to get so caught up with service that we neglect prayer. There has to be a healthy balance between the two. Also one ought not to be afraid to delegate and hand over responsibilities to those who are capable. No one is more important than the other and to all God has given gifts and talents to be used for His glory and in service to each other. If the Apostles had not chosen these good men, prayed over them and laid hands on them the ministry of the priesthood would have died out with the Apostles.

Truly Beloved we can trust the Holy Spirit to continue Your work on earth. The mission given to each of us in Baptism to go out into the world and spread the Good News to all nations continues as Christians migrate and carry with them the faith of their fathers that was handed down to them from generation to generation. Grant Beloved that we too may do our part so that the Light of the Word continues to spread and all may hear and believe the Good News of salvation.

Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19

My Beloved, every morning we are granted a brand new day in which to rejoice in Your goodness, mercy and love. It is good to praise You from the rising of the sun to its setting for it raises our spirit from the earth and enables us to dwell in heaven as we go about our daily work and carry out our responsibilities. There must be a song in our hearts because You dwell in us and the joy of the Holy Spirit must be allowed full rein so even when our bodies are tired are soul will encourage us to go on.

You are the Word of Truth, the Eternal Word of God that we can trust and abide by for it is our sure guide in difficult situations. The work of salvation which You have entrusted to us has power to save people of every race, language and nation. We ask for the grace to do our part and accomplish all that the Father desires us to. In the end we know that God whose gaze is upon us will continue to encourage us with loving kindness and in the end You who saved us conquered death will take us home to God there to live with You, the Father and the Holy Spirit in the company of the angels and saints forever.

John 6:1-15

My Beloved, here we read about the miracles of the multiplication of five loaves and two fish. You are in Tiberias and large crowds who have witnessed miracles of healing are flocking to You. They climb up the hill which is significant for they are like pilgrims who are climbing up Mt. Zion the city of God. They sat down and prepared to hear the Eternal Word of God break the Word of God to them at the end of the preaching and teaching which satisfied their spiritual hunger You now turn Your attention to their physical hunger. Turning to Philip You said, “Where shall we buy bread so that these people may eat?” Not Philip was not part of the crowd, he belonged to the inner circle who lived with You, knew You and was a witness to all the miracles. He knew You so much better than the crowd and his immediate response should have been You are the Lord, You have the power to feed them. Unfortunately his mind was still earth bound and he calculated the price to feed the multitude. Andrew who heard the exchange between You and Philip volunteered this bit of information. A boy had five loaves and two fish, he should have continue to say, “Lord I shall bring them to You and You who are God can satisfy the crowds with the.” Unfortunately he too looked at the practicality of the situation rather than seeing that God could do anything and his response was no better than Philips when he said, “But what good are these for so many.”

You then demonstrated to the Apostles and the crowd once again that You were indeed God. You asked the Apostles to get the crowds to be seated. We are told that there was plenty of grass there and this reminds us of Psalm 23. You took what was available although meager, gave thanks to Your Father as You did again at the Last Supper when You instituted the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and the loaves and the fish was distributed to those seated. This little detail is interesting Lord, those who are seated belong, the family of the Baptized, Catholics who come together on the Lord’s Day to share the Eucharistic Meal in Holy Communion.

They were fed as much as they wanted, there was no restriction to God’s bounty for God’s blessings are inexhaustible and we are always satisfied with all that You have to give for You give with largess. You then instructed the Apostles to gather the left over pieces so that nothing was lost. We too have the same care for the Eucharist – it is not treated carelessly but with reverence for it Sacred. It is Your precious Body. Of the five loaves and the two fish, after all had eaten the Apostles collected the left overs filling twelve baskets with loaves and fish. Those who witnessed this sign believed. The Apostles on the road to Emmaus recognized You at the Breaking of the Bread. At every Eucharistic celebration we must come away with this truth that we have truly met You our Lord and our God in the Breaking of Bread. The crowds wanted to make You King because You satisfied their physical needs – we recognize You as King of Kings because You are indeed Lord of the Universe and all in the heavens on earth and in the underworld. You will not flee from those who come to You to satisfy the deep hunger of the soul.

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