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The Jewish feast of Passover was near.
The feast of Passover recalled the exodus from Egypt through the desert during which God himself fed the people with manna, which was "bread from heaven" (see Nehemiah 9:15). Now Jesus himself was faced with a hungry crowd. This was the crowd that had already moved him with compassion to heal their sick. Now that they were hungry he did not want to send them away. Because he himself was the good shepherd he desired to have "the people recline" "in green pastures" (see Psalm 23:2) so that he himself could prepare a table for them (see Psalm 23:5).
he said to Philip, "Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?"
Jesus himself prompted his disciples to consider how such a large crowd could be fed. In response to this question they were overwhelmed by what seemed to be logistical impossibilities. Money was not going to solve the problem and there were insufficient resources to consider an attempt to redistribute or share them.
Philip answered him,
"Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough
for each of them to have a little."
One of his disciples,
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him,
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish;
but what good are these for so many?"
The disciples did not know how to answer Jesus. But they did come forward with what they were able to find. What they had was not enough, but they nevertheless still had the sense to mention it to Jesus. This was important because it would be a model for their entire ministry as disciples in the future. They would never find enough in themselves or in those whom they served, but if they humbly brought what they found to Jesus he himself would make it sufficient.
Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks,
and distributed them to those who were reclining,
and also as much of the fish as they wanted.
How wonderful that the shepherd fed his sheep on this grassy plain rather than leaving them to wander away searching on their own. How touching that it was the meager offering of a mere boy that was made to be enough for all. This boy demonstrated the little way of love even before Therese of Lisieux gave it a label. This little way would always involve being a docile sheep in the flock of Jesus, and in letting him take what seems to be embarrassingly far too little to be useful, and then to himself make it useful.
"Gather the fragments left over,
so that nothing will be wasted."
This command to gather the fragments is actually a bit mysterious when we delve deeply into it. For after all, if Jesus is able to multiply loaves at will, why worry about leftovers? But it seemed that he himself had a plan for these fragments. Perhaps the twelve wicker baskets implied one for each of the Twelve disciples, one upon which they could draw even when Jesus wasn't as close at hand. They remind us of the reservation of the consecrated hosts that remain after the faithful receive communion, those safely returned to the tabernacle, and those given to the sick and homebound. The preservation of the fragments emphasizes their supernatural origin as from the hand of Jesus himself, and that nothing with an origin like that ought ever be wasted.
"This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world."
Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off
to make him king,
he withdrew again to the mountain alone.
Jesus was the true heir to King David, and therefore the rightful king of Israel. But he would not accept being made king merely because he satisfied a temporary hunger. Those who would enthrone him only to ensure that their own appetites would be satisfied would always be frustrated, and this for their own good. Jesus desired more than to give bread that would only lead inevitably again to hunger. He desired much more to give himself, the Bread of Life, which alone could truly satisfy. It was those fed by this bread whom he truly desired to inherit his Kingdom, for "the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (see Romans 14:17). Only in Jesus himself could this sweetness be found.
So they left the presence of the Sanhedrin,
rejoicing that they had been found worthy
to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name.
Only when we are sated on the bread of life that Jesus gives do we learn to prefer it to world's bread. Only by seeking first his Kingdom are we able to accept even dishonor in disgrace in the world for the sake of the name. But is this really what we experience when Jesus offers himself to us in Holy Communion? Or is instead just a matter of routine for us, during which we are not particularly open to any gift or further transformation? It is likely that we all slip into autopilot at times. But Jesus himself does not wish to send us away, not even to our distractions. He himself desires to nourish us with what we cannot get elsewhere. Let's not leave such a generous offer unanswered, ignored, or forgotten. Come Lord Jesus!
One thing I ask of the LORD
this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life
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