An active presence
When in a cafeteria you sit at the same table with someone who is just sitting there without a word or a sign of recognition, it is as if he or she is not present. People are present to one another when they interact. We believe in the real presence in the Eucharist. The Lord is there for us, speaking to us, loving us, giving himself to us, and I hope that we respond to him. He makes us capable of becoming present to others the way he is there for us. Let us ask him for this living real presence.
Jesus welcomes all that go to him, speaks his liberating word to them, and gives them food when they are hungry. In the Eucharist Christ gives himself and renews the covenant.
First Reading: Genesis 14:18-20
Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine—he was priest of The High God—and blessed him:
Blessed be Abram by The High God,
Creator of Heaven and Earth.
And blessed be The High God,
who handed your enemies over to you.
Abram gave him a tenth of all the recovered plunder.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Let me go over with you again exactly what goes on in the Lord’s Supper and why it is so centrally important. I received my instructions from the Master himself and passed them on to you. The Master, Jesus, on the night of his betrayal, took bread. Having given thanks, he broke it and said,
This is my body, broken for you.
Do this to remember me.
After supper, he did the same thing with the cup:
This cup is my blood, my new covenant with you.
Each time you drink this cup, remember me.
What you must solemnly realize is that every time you eat this bread and every time you drink this cup, you reenact in your words and actions the death of the Master. You will be drawn back to this meal again and again until the Master returns.
Gospel: Luke 9:11b-17
Those who needed healing, he healed.
As the day declined, the Twelve said, “Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the farms or villages around here and get a room for the night and a bite to eat. We’re out in the middle of nowhere.”
“You feed them,” Jesus said.
They said, “We couldn’t scrape up more than five loaves of bread and a couple of fish—unless, of course, you want us to go to town ourselves and buy food for everybody.” (There were more than five thousand people in the crowd.)
But he went ahead and directed his disciples, “Sit them down in groups of about fifty.” They did what he said, and soon had everyone seated. He took the five loaves and two fish, lifted his face to heaven in prayer, blessed, broke, and gave the bread and fish to the disciples to hand out to the crowd. After the people had all eaten their fill, twelve baskets of leftovers were gathered up.
Prayer
God our Father,
you fill the hungry with the food they need
and you do not let the poor go away
with empty hands.
Keep speaking to us the Word of your Son
as the inspiration and guide of our life.
Let Jesus sustain and restore us with his body
and refresh us with his drink of joy,
that we may share ourselves with each other
and become each other’s delight.
Let his bread of life be the pledge
of your unending bliss and happiness.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Video available at: bibleclaret.org
