DAILY- HOMILY

January 8, 2019 – TUESDAY, Christmas Weekday

White.

1 Jn 4: 7 – 10 / Mk 6: 34 – 44

From the 1st Reading:    Jn 4: 9 – 10

   How did the love of God appear among us? God sent his only Son into this world that we might have life through him. This is love: not that we loved God but that he first loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Gospel Reading:               Mk 6: 34 – 44

    As Jesus went ashore, he saw a large crowd, and he had compassion  on them for they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began a long teaching session with them.

    It was now getting late, so his disciples came to him and said, "This is     a lonely place and it is now late. You should send the people away, and let them go to the farms and villages around here, to buy themselves something to eat." Jesus replied, "You yourselves give them something to eat." They answered, "If we are to feed them, we need two hundred silver coins to go and buy enough bread." But Jesus said, "You have some loaves; how many? Go and see." The disciples found out and said, "There are five loaves and two fish."

   Then he told them to have the people sit down together in groups on the green grass. This they did in groups of hundreds and fifties. And Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish and, raising his eyes to heaven, he pronounced a blessing, broke the loaves, and handed them to his disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them. They all ate and everyone had enough.

   The disciples gathered up what was left, and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces of bread and fish. Five thousand men had eaten there.

REFLECTION

    One of the difficulties of our Christian journey is to have to understand the teachings of Jesus, given our limited human capability to understand. How can we never be hungry and never be thirsty? Even with the scientific advancements of the 21st century, there hasn't been a discovery of a certain food or drink that can sustain us forever.

   But what Jesus tells us is not about the sustenance of the body but rather, food for the soul. What seems to be universal is the hunger that is felt from within. We reach a time in our lives when we search for something more.

   If we allow ourselves to listen to our souls, we embark on a journey to find that which can fill that hunger within. And we do not have to go far. Jesus showed us the way. He said, "Whoever comes to me shall never be hungry and whoever believes in me shall never be thirsty."

    St. Augustine expressed this hunger hauntingly with these words: "Thou hast created us for Thyself, and our heart is not quiet until it rests in Thee."

    Let us pray that we may accept Jesus Christ, the Bread of life, and that we accept him not just in our minds but rather have the courage to live as he commanded us.

FINALLY, WE PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE ASKED OUR PRAYERS AND FOR THOSE WHO NEED OUR PRAYERS THE MOST. 

Have a good day!

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   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

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