19th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today's Gospel Reading continues from Chapter 6 of the Gospel of John which scholars call the bread of life discourse. In this lengthy oration, Jesus is professing that he is the bread of life sent down from heaven by the Father so that whoever eats this bread will live forever. It is a pivotal section in Jesus’ ministry because this is the time when many who follow him will find his words too difficult to hear and will leave him. Their departure comes after the passage we heard today. Jesus is the bread that came down from heaven and in partaking of this bread which has become his Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, we are transformed. We become united with God and his work. We are then sent forward to make God's Kingdom present on earth through our own efforts, in response to God’s command.

The Father who sent the Son, has always fed his people for a greater purpose. The Lord provided manna in the desert to Moses and the Israelites, and they continued on their journey to the Promised Land. In today's First Reading from the First Book of Kings, Elijah is despondent and prays for death, but the Lord provides for him by sending an Angel to rouse him and feed him, that he might continue his 40 day and 40 nights journey to Mount Horeb (also known as Mount Sinai). There he will encounter the Lord directly and be commissioned to return to his prophetic mission.

That the Lord feeds and nourishes his people is no surprise. Scripture is full of such stories. What is different about today's declaration, however, is how that food transforms us. What Jesus offers outshines the simple hearth cake Elijah receives or even the manna given to Moses and the Israelites. Jesus goes beyond just giving food. He is more than a messenger of God or even a prophet like Moses. Jesus is the very Son of God. In giving the Eucharist, he gives us much more than simply bread. Jesus tells us that he is the “bread of life.” Eating this bread not only sustains us for our labors but it fundamentally changes us. Receiving and consuming the Holy Eucharist gives eternal life. It gives us a new relationship with God. We are united to God the Father through his Son and we are sent to be helped by the Holy Spirit to proclaim the good news of our salvation in Christ.