In today's Gospel, Mark 6:30-44, we saw Christ miraculously multiply loaves and fish to feed 5000, a physical feast which points to a heavenly one. The elements of the miracle are telling.
5 loaves for the 5 books of the Law given by God to Moses on Sinai, the law of righteousness and love spoken to by the Prophets. And so there are two fish, for the twofold summary of the divine commandments, to love God and neighbor, as enunciated by Moses and Elijah, the Law and the Prophets.
This Law is fulfilled in Christ, he is the love of God incarnate, righteousness itself, so the bread and fish ultimately represent him. Jesus, the bread of life, will miraculously feed the people of the new covenant with himself, he does so in the Eucharist. I found this helpful, from Benedict XVI:
The dual commandment to love God and neighbor encloses the two aspects of a sole dynamism of the heart and of life. Jesus thus achieves the ancient revelation, not in adding an unedited commandment, but by realizing in himself and in his own salvific action the living synthesis of the two great words of the old covenant: “You will love your God the Lord with all your heart …” and “you will love your neighbor as yourself” (cf. Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18).
In the Eucharist, we contemplate the sacrament of this living synthesis of the law: Christ gives us, with himself, the full realization of the love for God and the love for our brothers. And this love of his, he communicates to us when we are nourished by his Body and his Blood. This is when what St. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians in today’s reading is achieved: “You broke with the worship of false gods and became the servants of the living and true God” (1 Thessalonians 1:9). This conversion is the beginning of the path of holiness that the Christian is called to achieve in his own existence.
You broke with the worship of false gods and became servants of the living and true God. This conversion is the beginning of the path of holiness that the Christian is called to achieve in his own existence. Yes indeed.
God bless,
LSP
8 comments:
Amen.
Those analogies so many miss... sigh
I am sufficiently enlightened with this bit of Scriptural detail, thanks for this.
Ed, people think Christianity two dimensional, if they think about it at all. Not the case.
Amen indeed.
I hesitate to draw them, NFO, because I want to call the simple truth of the Word and, of course, live by it. Saying that, a number of Evangelical/Bible church people who were visiting, came up and congratulated me on the message. Apparently it added depth to their appreciation of the Word.
Well, I won't bang on.
Glad to oblige, Paul. Next, consider the meaning of 12 and 5000. As in: the fivefold people of the law amplified to 1000 = the New Israel/New Covenant fed by the miraculous gift of heavenly manna, which is Christ himself.
LSP, the depth and breadth of Scripture…never ending, and as you say above, not 2-dimensional…because neither is The Triune God. The further one delves, the deeper the understanding. Now, imagine being in His presence.
Paul, to your point, we're made to enjoy and be perfected in the beatific vision of God's infinite glory.
Such a blessing that we have a glimpse of that here and now, imagine the fullness. That in mind, purgatory makes sense. How else could we take the vision? Serious question.
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