JESUS THE GIVER OF ETERNAL LIFE
First Reading: Proverbs 9: 1-6
Second Reading: Ephesians 5: 15-20
Gospel Reading: John 6: 51-58
*First reading is from the book of Proverbs. Wisdom is personified as a great Lady who has built herself a great mansion. Wisdom invites everyone who is open-minded to take part in the banquet given by her. Wisdom teaches people to walk in the way of insight. It exhorts us to turn aside from the ways of foolishness and turn to the ways of wisdom.
*Second reading is from the letter of St. Paul to Ephesians. Paul urges the Christian community at Ephesus to live according to the Christian wisdom they received. He asks them not to be foolish and live unworthy ways but rather be filled with the Holy Spirit and to live always with hearts grateful to the Lord. A wise Christian will make the most of the present time, being always alert to the will of God and shaping life accordingly.
Jesus the Living Bread: A promise of eternal life Today's Gospel is from St. John, Chapter 6. Jesus gives an elaborate teaching on the living bread, the Holy Eucharist. This teaching of Jesus is rather extraordinary and not so easily understood by people at large. For a Jew to eat the body and drink the blood of a person is unthinkable and totally repugnant. Hence, when Jesus tells them that: "The bread which I shall give for the life of the world, is my flesh", many of them protest saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" This teaching of the real presence of the Lord in the Eucharist is culminated at the Last Supper, where Jesus says to the disciples, "This is my body... this is my blood given for you." It is extremely difficult to accept this teaching for an ordinary person except with deep faith in the Lord. But for a true follower of the Lord, there is no option but to accept that Jesus is really and truly present in the Eucharistic bread. Jesus clarifies by saying: "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you." (John 6: 53) Hence, by partaking in the Eucharistic meal, a true believer is in communion with the Lord. The early Christian community understood the depth of this teaching of Jesus. Hence, St. John specifically elaborates this teaching in the sixth chapter of his Gospel. Let us try to appreciate this self-gift of the Lord Jesus and accept that He is truly present in the Eucharistic bread. What Jesus gives in the Eucharist is not an illusion. It is real food and real drink. What Jesus gives is not something superficial. It is His own body and His own blood. What Jesus gives is not a temporary gratification. It is a life that will last for ever. St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta says about the Eucharist: "In the Eucharist I receive the spiritual food which sustains me in all my labours. Without it I could not get through one single day or hour of my life." May the Lord Jesus, who gives His body and blood to us through the bread and wine we share, bless you all abundantly and give you eternal life as the Lord promised. Amen.
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