News - July 2021 RSS Feed

About two years ago, a Pew Research poll found that 69% of US Catholics did not believe in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. I was thinking that it might be interesting to survey how many Catholics actually believe that Jesus is true God and true man. Loss of faith in the Eucharist might well be indicative of a loss of faith in the divine nature of Jesus. As Jesus says in today’s gospel: “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.”

It has been pointed out that the Multiplication of Loaves and Fish, that is, the Feeding of the 5000, is the only miracle of Jesus (besides his own resurrection) that is recorded in all four gospels. And in addition, there is still another account of food multiplication recorded in Matthew and Mark – this time for 4000. Multiple multiplications! The Lord demonstrates his compassion and willingness to work miracles to feed his hungry followers. As the Responsorial, Psalm 145, says: “The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.”

What moves the heart of Jesus to pity? It is the sight of people seeking for him like “sheep without a shepherd.” In today’s liturgy we hear about God shepherding his people, both in the reading from Jeremiah and in the gospel. The Responsorial is the beautiful and consoling Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want.”

GO FORTH! In last week’s first reading, we heard the call of Ezekiel to be a prophet. This week there is the prophetic call of Amos. We are also told about Jesus sending out the Twelve Apostles on their first missionary journey. Today gives us a reminder that the Lord instructs us to “occupy till I come” (Luke 19:13), that is, to keep busy trying to spread the gospel and build the kingdom of God until we see the Lord.

Imagine that you were sent by the Lord to give a dire warning or a “hard word” to your family and neighbors in your own home town. Today’s readings describe the experiences of Ezekiel and the Lord Jesus doing that very thing. Prophets don’t have an easy time of it when preaching to their own!

What is the biggest problem the human race faces today? If you ask 100 different people that question, you might get 100 different answers! There are indeed some huge problems out there. If you ask me, however, I would answer in one word – DECEPTION. Granted, I could also give another one-word answer – sin. But deception is what caused the original sin of disobedience to God. Eve believed the deception of the devil. She said, “The serpent deceived me” (Gen. 3:13). Sin and death entered the world, and a host of evils followed.