St. John Vianney, priest

“  When the heart is pure and simple it cannot help loving,

because it has discovered the source of love which God. “

 

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊

Numbers 11:4b-15

Now the rabble that was among them

Had greedy desires and even the Israelites wept and said, "Who will give us meat to eat?

We remember the fish we ate without cost in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions and garlic.

Now our appetite is gone; there's nothing to look at, nothing but manna."

Now the manna was like coriander seed and had the appearance of bedellium. The people went about gathering it up and then ground it 

between millstones or pounded it in a mortar. They boiled it in a pot and made cakes with it which tasted like cakes made with oil.

As soon as dew fell at night in the camp, the manna came with it.

Moses heard the people crying, family by family at the entrance to their tent and the Lord became very angry.

 

This displeased Moses. Then Moses said to the Lord, "Why have you treated your servant so badly?

Is it because you do not love me that you burdened me with this people? Did I conceive all these people and did I give them birth?

And now you want me to carry them in my bosom as a nurse carries an infant, to the land you promised on oath to their fathers?

Where would I get meat for all these people, when they cry to me saying: 'Give us meat that we may eat?'

I cannot, myself alone, carry all these people; the burden is too heavy for me. Kill me rather than treat me like this,

I beg of you, if you look kindly on me, and let me not see your anger."

 

Ps 81:12-13, 14-15, 16-17

Sing with joy to God our help.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊      

Matthew 14:13-21

When Jesus heard of it, he set out by boat for a secluded place, to be alone. But the people heard of it,

and they followed him on foot from their towns. When Jesus went ashore,

he saw the crowd gathered there, and he had compassion on them. And he healed their sick.

 

Late in the afternoon, his disciples came to him and said, "We are in a lonely place and it is now late. You should send these people away,

so that they can go to the villages and buy something for themselves to eat."

But Jesus replied, "They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat."

They answered, "We have nothing here but five loaves and two fishes." Jesus said to them, "Bring them here to me.

 

Then he made everyone sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves and the two fishes,

raised his eyes to heaven, pronounced the blessing, broke the loaves, and handed them to the disciples to distribute to the people.

And they all ate, and everyone had enough; then the disciples gathered up the leftovers, filling twelve baskets.

About five thousand men had eaten there, besides women and children.

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"Bring them here to me.

The task of the priest is to bring Christ to others and to bring others to Christ.

It is a sacramental ministry which breaks open the Word of God and nourishes and sustains God's people with his grace.

It is a leadership of service, in imitation of Christ. But the priest also needs to be sustained and nourished by the Lord for this service.

Without that, he will find the demands of ministry a serious challenge, a bit like Moses' frustration in the first reading.

Moses is weighed down by the complaints of the people. He starts to see his task as a burden and begins to doubt God's love:

 

"Is it because you do not love me that you burdened me with this people?" In times of challenge, we recognize our inadequacy and our frailty.

Then Jesus says, "Bring them here to me." He takes our limitations and works many wonders through them.

Saint John Vianney was considered foolish by his fellow clergy, and yet he offered his simplicity to Christ like the meagre offering of loaves and fish,

and Jesus worked marvels through him, drawing many back to the Lord through the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharistic devotion.