Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Bảy Tuần thứ 5 Thường Niên. (Mk 8:1-10)

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Bảy Tuần thứ 5 Thường Niên. (Mk 8:1-10)

Những phép lạ đáng kể nhất mà Chúa Giêsu đã làm là phép lạ mà Chúa đã làm cho kẻ chết được sống lại. Và có lẽ một phép lạ ngoạn mục nhất đó là phép lạ Chúa đã làm cho ông Lazarus sống lại sau khi đã chết và chôn trong mồ bốn ngày.

Những phép lạ về sự hoá bánh ra nhiều mặt khác đã được làm vì chạnh lòng Thiên Chúa tối cao trong cương vị bản chất con người của Chúa Kitô. Chúa Giêsu, người mà có thể an chay, nhịn đói trong bốn mười (40) ngày và không nghĩ đến cái đói, thế mà lòng từ bi, Ngài thương hại đến những người đi theo Ngài trong ba ngày liền mà không có gì để ăn. Không thể tìm được thứ gì có thể ăn được trong vùng sa mặc chỉ có cát, đá, gai và cái nắng cháy người giữa ban ngày và cái lạnh về đêm.

Đi ngược lại những hành động vô lo của các môn đệ, Chúa Giêsu đã ngước mắt lên Chúa Cha trên trời và Ngài đã làm một phép lạ. Lúc này phép lạ Chúa Giêsu phải làm là để duy trì sự sống của con người, Ngài đã nuôi sống bốn ngàn (4.000) người đàn ông bằng bảy ổ bánh mì và một vài con cá nhỏ.

Nếu Chúa Giêsu có thể làm cho người chết được sống lại, có thể làm cho bánh và cá hoá ra nhiều để nuôi sống hơn bốn ngàn (4.000) nggười, có thể chữa lành vô số người đau bệnh cả tinh thần lẫn thể xác, Thì những gì khác mà Ngài có thể làm để cho chúng ta tin vào Ngài? Thế thì những gì có thể thuyết phục chúng ta rằng là cầu xin với Ngài thì Ngài sẽ mang lại những phép lạ lớn nhỏ đến với cuộc sống của chúng ta? Hãy lắng nghe những gì Chúa hứa: ".: tất cả những gì anh em cầu xin, anh em cứ tin là mình đã được rồi, thì sẽ được như ý" (Mk 11:24)

REFLECTION

The most dramatic miracles performed by Jesus are those where he raises the dead to life. And perhaps the most awesome of all is the miracle of Lazarus. Arriving at the site when Lazarus was four days in his tomb, Jesus calls "Lazarus come out." Lazarus emerges from the darkness into the light, tottering with all his grave clothes wound about him. And Jesus orders the mourners, "Unwrap him and let him go!" The miracle of the multiplication of the loaves on the other hand touches on the supreme humanity of Christ. Jesus, who could fast for as long as 40 days and not mind hunger, has compassion for those without food for three days. There was nowhere in the desert to find food and the shades of night where the beginning to fall.

Against the scoffing of his disciples, He raises His eyes to His Father and makes a miracle happen. This time, the miracle is to sustain life, feeding 4,000 people with seven loaves of bread and a few small fish.

If Jesus can raise the dead to life, can multiply bread and fish to feed 4,000, can heal countless afflictions, what else can touch us to believe in him? What can convince us that praying to him will bring small and big miracles into our lives? Listen to what the Lord promises: "Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it. And it will be yours."

Opening Prayer:

Lord, I am feeling particularly blessed today and ask that you accept my joy as I prepare to read and reflect on your word. You are so good, and I am confident that you will shower your graces upon me as we spend this time together.

Encountering Christ:

Hungry for What? In this second story of the multiplication of loaves and fishes (the first was recorded in Mark 6:31-44), we see again that the people following Jesus were so enthralled that they had forgotten to eat or to otherwise provide for themselves for three days! How compelling must Christ have been! They had chosen the company of Christ over meeting their most basic needs. We have the privilege of consuming the Bread of Life every day if we choose to. May our hearts, so often dulled by routine, be set aflame anew as we listen to Christ’s preaching and are fed at his table in every Mass.

Close to Christ: To an outside observer, the behavior of these four thousand people would have seemed absurd. Despite their discomfort, they had chosen to remain close to Christ. As a result, his heart was “moved with pity” and he sought a remedy for their hunger. When we persevere during trials or temptations and “remain in him” (John 15:4), Christ himself sees to our needs. He knows our exact circumstances (how far we’ve come and how hungry we are) and has proven in word and deed that he cannot be outdone in generosity. We can trust him.

Complete: Our Lord’s heart was moved with pity for the crowd and, as the Son of God, he had infinite power to fix the problem. But he didn’t fix it himself. He chose then, as he does today, to invite people to be missionaries to feed the hungry. “How many loaves do you have?” he asked his disciples. He asks us as well. We answer by dedicating our time, talents, and treasures to Christ in works of apostolate. In the name of Christ, Pope Francis exhorts us: “Please, do not leave it to others to be protagonists of change. You are the ones who hold the future! Jesus was not a bystander. He got involved. Don’t stand aloof, but immerse yourselves in the reality of life, as Jesus did. Above all, in one way or another, fight for the common good, serve the poor, be protagonists of the revolution of charity and service, capable of resisting the pathologies of consumerism and superficial individualism.” Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Christus Vivit 174.

Conversing with Christ: Lord, thank you for your willingness to feed me constantly with grace through the sacraments. I sometimes greedily seek your blessings, forgetting that everything is meant to be shared. Strengthen me, Lord, and purify my intentions so that I become a willing and effective apostle for you.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will look at the needs of the people in my life and assess what I can do to help.

For Further Reflection: I would remind you of the most important question of all. “So often in life, we waste time asking ourselves: ‘Who am I?’ You can keep asking ‘Who am I?’ for the rest of your lives. But the real question is: ‘For whom am I?’” Of course, you are for God. But he has decided that you should also be for others, and he has given you many qualities, inclinations, gifts, and charisms that are not for you, but to share with those around you. Christus Vivit 286.

Sat 10th Feb 2018 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

What do you need most in life right now? For what do you hunger the most? Peace, strength, wisdom, healing…something else?

When Jesus sees the crowd, he has an emotional response. He has compassion for them. “If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way-and some of them have come from a great distance” (Mk. 8:3). He sees life from their eyes. Jesus is God, yet he empathizes with people who are suffering. He feels their hunger.

Today the Church celebrates St. Scholastica. Born in 480 in Italy, she was the twin sister of St. Benedict. Scholastica desired to give herself to the Lord, so while still a youth, she dedicated her life to Christ. She lived in community with other holy women. Scholastica’s prayer was powerful and known to have immediate effects. Pope St. Gregory the Great once explained: God heard Scholastica’s prayer because her prayer was filled with love. Do you believe that the Lord hears you when you pray?

The Gospel invites us to trust that Jesus has deep compassion for us. Jesus sees our hunger…and wants to satisfy us. We can imitate Scholastica today. With love in your heart, ask the Lord for what you need most. Lord, You are the compassionate shepherd. I trust in You.