Reflections on Scripture | Friday of the Second Week of Easter

Join Msgr. Don Fischer as he reads and delivers a short reflection on today’s gospel, followed by 3 1/2 minutes of contemplative music and a closing prayer. Msgr. Don hopes that today’s reflection on the gospel will empower you to carry the Word in your heart throughout the day.

Choose either the video or audio below.

Gospel
John 6:1-15

Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee.
A large crowd followed him,
because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick.
Jesus went up on the mountain,
and there he sat down with his disciples.
The Jewish feast of Passover was near.
When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him,
he said to Philip, "Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?"
He said this to test him,
because he himself knew what he was going to do.
Philip answered him,
"Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough
for each of them to have a little."
One of his disciples,
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him,
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish;
but what good are these for so many?"
Jesus said, "Have the people recline."
Now there was a great deal of grass in that place.
So the men reclined, about five thousand in number.
Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks,
and distributed them to those who were reclining,
and also as much of the fish as they wanted.
When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples,
"Gather the fragments left over,
so that nothing will be wasted."
So they collected them,
and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments
from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat.
When the people saw the sign he had done, they said,
"This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world."
Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off
to make him king,
he withdrew again to the mountain alone.

Reflection

The Gospel of the Lord. Something happens to us when we have an obligation and we feel that we need to take care of it. One of the feelings is often that I'm not enough. I won't be able to do this. And what I believe this miracle is trying to say to us is that when God is in us, working with us, He allows us to feel inadequate and not enough.

And yet he mysteriously takes the little that we give and makes it so much more fruitful. That's the secret. Trusting in our intention and not in our performance.

The Closing prayer

Father, you showed wonders and signs of your power. And we often want to do the same, to be spectacular. But you know that the thing we need more than anything else is to continue to rely upon you as part of everything we do to enable it to be all that it’s meant to be and needs to be. Thank you for your presence. Amen.

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Kyle Cross