by Rev. Augusto Menichelli, CPPS, Atlantic Province
Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty
The bread given by Moses to the people, in reality, was never given by Moses. It is a gift desired and decided by God because of a persistent murmuring against Aaron and Moses himself by the people of Israel. This bread served only for the body.
Being a daily prodigy, however, it should have strengthened faith in God the Savior and Liberator of his people, but soon it became a habit, and when something becomes a habit people can have two different reactions, get used to it and make it into a tradition or be bored of it and wanting to change it as soon as possible.
These are the two reactions that we, as Catholics, have to face in today’s church. We are never happy, no matter what we have and this is our greatest sin.
Jesus came to free us from sin shedding his blood on the cross. The same blood that we drink every time we celebrate the Eucharist in order to have true life.
Today Jesus announces himself as the living bread descended from Heaven. But he is also the living blood that comes from Heaven to give life to everybody. This means that whoever wants life must welcome him, receive him, eat and drink him, feed on him. If we do not feed on him, we fill our stomachs but not our souls. We can not compromise on these words of Jesus. They are of an absolute and universal truth. Who wants life, who wants not to be hungry and thirsty, must believe in him, welcome him, be satisfied with him. He is the only blood of life for the whole world.
