Reflection for Sunday August 4, Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time: John 6:24-35

Gospel: John 6:24-35

When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into boats and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus. And when they found him across the sea they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?" 

Jesus answered them and said, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled. Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. 

For on him the Father, God, has set his seal." So they said to him, "What can we do to accomplish the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent." So they said to him, "What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? 

What can you do? Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat. So Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."

So they said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst."

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Reflection:

During the latter part of Saint Catherine of Siena's life, she was unable to eat or drink water. What sustained her during that crucial period was her daily reception of Jesus through Holy Communion. She was sustained for a number of years by the Bread of Life until she eventually died.

In this Sunday's Gospel, Jesus boldly tells us that He is the true Bread of Life, the one we must seek and always hunger for. Why? Because once we find Jesus, we will never hunger or thirst for the material things of this world, which are fleeting and can be taken away from us at any time.

There are people who treat material possessions, money, power, and influence as their own "bread of life." However, this is not the true Bread of Life but merely the temporary bread of the world. There is no satisfaction with this worldly bread because the more we possess, the more we crave it. We will continuously hunger and thirst for this bread of the world until it completely possesses and destroys us.

But what if we seek the true Bread of Life, which is Jesus? We would find satisfaction with whatever we have. We would no longer crave material possessions, wealth, or power, and we would experience less pressure. Instead, we would be serene and peaceful because Jesus, the true Bread of Life, is with us.

Let us always hold close to our hearts this powerful statement of Jesus: "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst" (John 6:35). – Marino J. Dasmarinas