The land around the Sea of Galilee where Jesus spoke told the crowds “I am the bread of life” was good farmland then, and it’s good farmland now. In Jesus’ day, Herod the Great and his son Herod Antipas, Galilee’s rulers then, appreciated this fertile land and created a network of roads and cities – Tiberius, Sepphoris and Caesarea Maritima on the sea– to export goods from Galilee to the rest of the world.
“I am the bread of life”, Jesus says.. I am the source of your blessings and everything that is. God the creator works through me. Moses asked for bread for his people journeying from Egypt. “I am the bread of life” for all creation as it makes its journey in time, Jesus says.
Jesus makes a divine claim as he feeds a multitude. The crowd wants to make him king, (John 6, 15) but the kingship they see doesn’t approach the kingship that’s his. It’s much too small; Jesus rejects their plan.
In a commentary on Jesus as the bread of life, the early theologian Origen says that Jesus calls himself bread because he is “nourishment of every kind,” not just nourishment of our bodies, but of our minds and souls and, beyond that, creation itself.
“Give us this day our daily bread.” We pray, not just for ourselves, but for creation.
In the year 2011 I attended a women’s retreat at the Passionist Retreat House (Bishop Molloy Retreat House) in Jamaica, NY. It was my very first retreat ever! I didn’t know what to expect and how it was going to help me continue my path to our Lord Jesus Christ , you see, in 2011 I met Jesus. It took me over 40 some years to meet Him and fall in love, and I truly believe that I was led by Him to this retreat experience. The retreat was led by a luminescent being (actually that is the way I saw her). Her name was Sister Maria Regina. She was a sight for my sore eyes and an enlightening to my soul.On the first night we had Evening Prayer in the upstairs chapel of the retreat house and she introduced to us this intercessory prayer that changed the way I pray for others. I’d like to share this with all of you now. It is perfect for this time that we are going through in 2020. An Intercessory Prayer Method: There are different ways of making intercession for others. Here is a way that uses no words. Sometimes we don’t even know what to ask for, and this way of interceding leaves it up to God. God knows exactly what is needed. What God wants and is waiting for is our own love and concern to provide an opening for God’s transforming energies to enter into the situation. Close your eyes lightly, and spend some time becoming aware of the presence of Christ and of getting in touch with Him. Throughout this time of prayer, maintain this strong sense of connection with Christ. Without this, the intercession is in danger of becoming not prayer , but a mere exercise in remembering people. Keep in focus both the people you will be praying for and the presence of Christ. Imagine Jesus flooding you with His life and light and power…. See the whole of your being, in imagination, lit up by this light that comes from Him. Now conjure upon in imagination, one by one, the persons you wish to pray for… Lay your hands on each one, communicating to him or her all the life and power that you have just received from Christ… Take your time over each individual… Call down Christ’s love on him or her wordlessly… See the person light up with Christ’s life and love… See the person transformed… Then move on to the next person… and the next. When you finish come to rest for a few moments in Christ’s presence, drinking in His light and His life, allowing yourself to be filled again with His Spirit, His love and especially His peace. End it with a brief prayer of thanksgiving for the privilege of collaborating in extending God’s reign. The beauty of this intercessory prayer is that it can be done for others as well. You can pray for those who are committed to your care… pastors for their people… teachers for their pupils…health care workers for their patients. Isn’t this perfect for our situation now? What about praying for your “enemies”? Didn’t Jesus ask us to do that? You can pray for each one of the persons whom you dislike and have difficulty with… or people who dislike you… or those who have caused you any kind of hurt… Think of the healing and forgiveness that would take place in you and through you to the other person. You can move on to pray for our Church… for whole nations… The treasures of Christ are infinite and you need not fear that you will exhaust them by lavishing them on His people. At this moment I would like to thank our Lord God for putting people like Sister Maria Regina in my path to Him. She brought His light, His love and His peace into my life that weekend and I am eternally grateful to her. I love you Sister Maria Regina, please pray for us! And to my Beautiful and Loyal Redeemer and Savior I would like to say thank You for all You have done for me here in the present and throughout my life. I love You my God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! I praise and adore You! Glory to You! Berta Hernández
This Holy Saturday, in the morning, I would have been in a presentation at Bishop Molloy Retreat House in Jamaica,NY. The presentation was a role play. We were to imagine that we were in the Upper Room the day after Jesus’ death on the cross. There were several of us participating. Some of the disciples would have been there, all in despair and feeling guilty and confused. One person would have been sitting there, quietly looking around the room and thinking of what she could do to help the situation in the room. She decided to speak up after hearing so much lamentation coming from around the room. She spoke up with words of love and compassion. She was taking the place of her Son at that moment. She was also becoming the Mother that the Lord Jesus asked her to be!
I was supposed to play that person, Mary. Wow, how dare I even think that I could be her and act like her? But you know, for many years I have been thinking about where the disciples learned about Mary’s life and what happened to her. I believe that her story was told that day. Sometimes when you’re grieving and confused the best thing to do is to remember! I don’t know if this really happened or not, but all of you that love Mary understand her need to show love, compassion and understanding! This was the perfect time. Although she was grieving she realized how important it was to bring back the good times, the special times, the holy times that everyone in the room spent with her Son, Jesus.
So Mary told her story: She started at the beginning: her being betrothed to Joseph, the carpenter; her visit from the Angel and her realization of being chosen by God to bear His Son and saying “Yes”; her visit to Elizabeth; John jumping from joy in Elizabeth’s womb and the proclamation that Elizabeth made; her visit with Joseph in presenting the baby Jesus, in the synagogue, and what she heard from Simeon; their escape to Egypt and later returning to Nazareth; their life raising the Son of God! All of these things she told the disciples, I believed, quietly, and with a gleam of love and hope in her voice. She told them how she knew that He had to leave home one day and decided that she was going to follow Him and be part of all that happened. Yes, I truly believe that she was there the whole time!
We know that Mary was a strong woman just by the fact that she had said “Yes” to God. Why would she stay behind? Joseph seemed to have died by the time Jesus started His ministry, so what was going to keep her at home in Nazareth? She followed Him everywhere. She must have seen the Holy Spirit come down after Jesus was baptized at the Jordan and the Father declared that He was very proud of His Son: “Listen to Him”, He said! We know that she was there at the wedding in Cana, so why not continue? It must have been wonderful for her to see her son so loved and admired. But I’m sure she also realized the fear and hatred that were also shown by some. She, I think, would have been elated by all she saw and in fear all the time for her son’s safety. Did she sometimes forget that her son was the Son of God and not hers alone? From what He taught and did , did she realize that He had a job to do and that He had His Father’s blessing in order to do it? Did she realize that everything He did He did in the name of His Father and His Father’s Glory? How much did she understand? She was human after all.
Maybe in my imagination I have been influenced by many of the movies I have seen on the topic of Jesus, but I truly believe Mary was there during the Last Supper, at the Garden (probably the only one awake and praying), outside the Sanhedrin waiting. She witnessed the accusation in front of Pilate and later the horrors of our Lord’s walk to His death with a cross, and we know she was there when He was taken down from the cross! Where would she go after His burial? What would she do except be with His disciples, her new sons and daughters. She would do what any mother would do!
This time of the year is the time to reflect on our own lives ! It’s a time to think of how close we are to our Lord Jesus and how much we’ve learned from Him . We can do that by ourselves or we can get some help. Let our Blessed Mother Mary guide you through her experiences with Him. See what she saw. Let her speak to you too! Right now under the threat of the pandemic we are going through very hard times. We are carrying a heavy cross. We know that our Lord God hasn’t abandoned us. He has given us His Son, His Holy Spirit, and Mary to look after us! Lord, I am a sinner that loves you more than anything. Thank you for your love and forgiveness. Thank you for the mother you have given us. We praise and adore you Lord Jesus! Thank you for your sacrifice! Thank you for being the Truth, the Love and the Life!
The Victor's Place 