St. Mary's Church Elizabeth, IL

7/26

Read John, Chapter 6 Verses 46 to 71

"I am the living bread that came down from heaven." John 6:51

Going inside the mystery

At Mass, we often use the following memorial acclamation: "Let us problaim the mystery of faith:  Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again."  We proclaim the "centrality" and the significance-for today and for the future- of the death and resurrection of Jesus.  John certainly agrees on such "centrality."  He also envisions the death and resurrection of Jesus as the "hour" for him "to depart from this world and go to the Father" (John 13:1) and as the accomplishment of his love for "his own" (John 13:1).  But John reminds us that the Eucharist is memorial not only of Jesus' last days, however important and significant, but of his whole life: "I am the living bread that came down from heaven" (John 6:51).  This applies to everything Jesus had done and said from the very  beginning of his "dwelling among us."

One should not forget that John writes for Christians at the end of the first centry, that is, for second and perhaps third generations of Christians.  Since the Eucharist had become more of a common practice amoung Christians, John felt the need to have Christians refocusing on its true meaning.  The Eucharist is indeed the memorial of Jesus' passion, death, and ressurection.  But, says John, the Eucharist is the memorial of the Incarnation: "for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink" (John 6:55).  This teaching might seem difficul to accept (John 6:60), but with it Christian faith stands for fall.

How is my Sunday Eucharist leading me to remember and live Jesus' life death and resurrection?

Prayer Starter:  Lord you are the bread of life, true food for our deepest hungers.  Help us to rediscover thru nourishment in our celebrations of the Eucharist.

Hear O Israel

     In the Book of Deuteronomy, after reviwing the history of Israel, Moses describes the Ten Commandments and other laws given by God to the Israelites on Mount Sinai, and urges the Israelites to obey them.  He also reminds his people fo the consequences of disobeying God's laws.  For a nation that had wandered 40 years in a parched wilderness, the promised land, "flowing with milk and honey: sounded like a paradise.  But, it was not only a physical land God promised but it was the spiritual existence, the spiritual well-being of Israel that wa at stake:

"Hear, O Israel The LORD is our God, the Lord alone.  And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.  And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commandments I am giving your today.  Repeat them again and again to  your children.  Talk about them when you are at home and when you are away on a journey, when you are lying down and when you are getting up again.  Tie them to your hands as a reminder, and wear them on  your forehead.  Write them on the doorposs of your house and on your gates" (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)

God, through the lips of Moses, urges the Israelites to make religion an integral part of life.  "Shema Yisraeil" (Hear O Israel), refers to the most important prayer in Judaism that spans all spheres of life.  The prayer makes religion a part of everyday experience, a part of daily routine.  We can say that we are invited to see God in all aspects of life, not just in those that are church related.  We can greatly enrich our society when, as the people of God, we are gathered by the love of the Lord, around him at the celebration of the Euchartist, united in "the fellowship of the Holy Spirit" (1Cor.2:13-14).

Fr. Joachim