19th Sunday of the
Year B 12-08-12
Theme: Spiritual hunger.
1st Reading
2nd Reading
Ephesians 4:30, 5:2 gentle in speech.
Gospel John 6:41-51 Jesus the
bread of life.
Every one living in this world
aspires to live.
To live we have to eat proper
food.
All these few weeks we have
been considering about the food we eat.
To provide natural food we
have many ways.
One industry that is thriving
in the secular world is food industry.
Though we may not have much
money but without food we cannot live.
So when we consider the idea
of natural food we have to see also about the spiritual food.
God shows the way to the
prophet in the first reading.
God was preparing Elijah for a
particular mission.
In talking to the people of
Ephesus Paul is using a language which asks them to be gentle in their speech.
Our speech is far from the way
Paul desires us to be.
I will narrate my own
experience.
I had a close contact with
some dalit people close to my ashram in Gujarat .
I could hear them talking to
each other.
When a child used very abusive
bad word language, the parents felt very proud.
They would loudly exclaim,
“vah ladka/ ladki javan hagaya” (the boy/girl has become mature)
For them use of abusive
language is a credit in the life of a child..
We are taught to respect the
elders, not to use abusive foul language. Whenever.
We live in multi cultural
society.
We have to be careful in
instructing our children, in the values of the faith.
We have to know what type of
influence our children may be having from all sides they are surrounded.
Paul in instructing the people
of Ephaesus was influenced by all the cultures which were effecting them.
What about us how do we live
our religious values?
Let today’s Paul’s warning to
his believers fore warn us.
When our children are
surrounded by so many non values we have to be aware of the influences that
effects them.
We are surrounded by non
Christian religions.
For them when their children learn to abuse , or to use foul
language they feel their children have become grown up.
Corruption has become a
dysfunctional value.
Our society is beset by such
evil.
We even resort to it when we
have to get some favor in our lives.
Like booking a ticket,
obtaining a job in a government institution. Getting a seat in a college, where
we do not feel any sense of guilt in paying the bribe which we feel is ok.
Today when we hear all three
readings God is specially choosing us to be ready for a particular mission. We
know how Elijah has been discouraged at the end of the day.
With all discouragement God
still wants Elijah to continue to be strengthened by eating the food God
provides him to eat.
In the Gospel Jesus talks
about feeding us with his own body.
He tells us that he is the
bread of life.
Jesus came down from Heaven to
be our food.
John the apostle was a very
intimate companion of Jesus who could understand the feelings of Jesus..
What was the reaction of the
Jews, Murmuring???
Jews did not understand the
meaning of Jesus being the bread of life.
We too like the Jews often are
insensitive to God’s inspiration in our lives.
How often do we take Jesus
words at their face value????
Today Jesus invites us in this
Eucharist to be able to unlearn all that we have learned which might prevent us
from entering the kingdom.
Do we have the courage???
Let us listen to the voice of
the Lord earnestly during the Eucharist and pay attention to the promptings of
the Lord.
Wish you all the best on the
19th Sunday.
Yours ever in the Divine word,
Fr. Juze vaz svd
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