Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ sáu Tuần thứ 2 Phục Sinh

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ sáu Tuần thứ 2 Phục Sinh
Trong mùa Phục Sinh, những bài đọc cho chúng ta xem lại những việc mà của Chúa Giêsu đã làm và tình yêu của Thiên Chúa đối với nhân loại. Hôm nay, Chúa Giêsu muốn mời gọi chúng ta cùng chia sẻ sự thương tâm với Ngài "Ta mua ở đâu ra bánh để cho họ ăn đây?"
Có lẽ chúng ta cũng giống như thánh Philliphê đang ở trong cái sự suy nghĩ vật chất của thế gian “Có mua đến hai trăm quan tiền bánh cũng chẳng đủ cho mỗi người một chút”. Việc Chúa Giêsu đã làm phép lạ hoá bánh ra nhiều không phải là ý định của Chúa Giêsu, những là mối quan tâm của Ngài đối với những nhu cầu cần thiết tối thiếu của con người “Họ đã theo ta ba ngày rồi mà chẳng có gì để ăn”. Ngài không để ý hay quan tâm đến việc mọi người muốn tôn vinh Ngài, Ngài chỉ ra tay hành động để đáp ứng những nhu cầu cần thiết của con người bằng cả với tình thương yêu chân tình, chứ không phải là làm để lấy uy tín cá nhân.
            Chúng ta hãy suy nghĩ về  cậu bé với năm chiếc bánh và hai con cá, có bao giờ chúng ta dám từ bỏ tất cả những gì mà chúng ta đang có để chia sẽ với những người khác?.  5 chiếc bánh và hai con cá có thể giúp cậu ta và gia đình được no đủ trong mấy ngày trước khi về tới nhà, thế mà cậu không ích kỷ, cậu sẵn sàng chia sẽ những chiếc bánh này với mọi người cho dù chỉ chẳng là bao. Thế nhưng nhờ 5 chiếc bánh và hai con cá đó mà Chúa Giêsu đã nuôi sống cả ngàn người.
Có lẽ có những lúc, chúng ta cũng giống như đám người trong đám đông, chúng ta chạy theo Chúa Giêsu vì chúng ta được nuôi ăn, và hy vọng sẽ có được một cuộc sống thảnh thơi thoải mái, nhưng lại quên đi hay cố tình không để ý, hay quan tâm đến những nhu cầu tâm linh mà Ngài đang dạy cho chúng ta?  Chúng ta hãy tự hỏi chính mình là: “Tôi đã yêu mến Thiên Chúa vì những gì Ngài có thể làm cho gia đình, cho chính bản thân của chúng tôi?  hay là chỉ biết tôi yêu mến Thiên Chúa vì những sự tốt lành của Ngài đã đem đến cho người khác?
 
REFLECTION
In this Easter season, the readings revisit the total giving of our Lord Jesus for humankind. This time, the invitation is presented to us "Where shall we buy bread so that these people may eat?" Do we feel like Phillip, lost in worldly thinking? Or can we look in the direction of Jesus and see what is going to happen with a boy with five loaves and two fish, and five thousand men, not counting the women and children? Probably, the first time we heard the story we were impressed by the miracle. And probably if there is such a man today, we also would have done what the crowd had intended: take him and make him provide all that we want!
            But that was not the intention of Jesus when he multiplied the bread and fish. His concern was the needs of the people. He was not concerned about how people made of him when he acted in response to the people's needs. Now look at the boy. Are we able to give up all that we have to Jesus so that he can meet the needs of others?
 
Friday of the Second Week of Easter
“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.” John 6:12–13
John’s Gospel is filled with much symbolic meaning. The passage above concludes the story of the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. After feeding the multitude of people with only five barley loaves and two fish, they were able to fill twelve wicker baskets with what remained. What was the reason for the extra?
Saint Augustine, in commenting upon this passage, explains that Jesus provided more than the people could eat as a way of symbolically representing spiritual truths that were beyond what the vast crowds could comprehend. Thus, Jesus’ teachings spiritually nourished the crowds to the point that they were fully satisfied. But even though the general crowds were satisfied with what Jesus taught them, there was still so much more that He had to teach. These deeper spiritual truths are represented by the extra twelve baskets.
The twelve baskets represent the Twelve Disciples. They were the ones specially chosen by Jesus to receive so much more. Recall the times when Jesus taught the crowds in parables and then, later, would explain the meaning to the Twelve in private. He revealed to them certain truths that most people could not understand and accept.
It is helpful to consider three different groups of people in this miracle and apply those groupings to us today. The first group of people are those who were not even present for the miracle. Those who did not make the journey to be with Jesus in the wilderness. This is the largest group of people within society who go about their daily lives without even seeking minimal nourishment from our Lord.
The second grouping of people is this “large crowd” who followed Jesus to the remote side of the Sea of Galilee to be with Him. These represent those who diligently seek out our Lord every day. These are those who are faithful to the celebration of the Mass, the reading of Scripture, to daily prayer and study. To this grouping of people, our Lord teaches many things, and they are nourished by His holy Word and Sacraments.
The third grouping of people, the Twelve Disciples who are represented by the Twelve wicker baskets left over, are those who are exceptionally faithful to our Lord and continue to be nourished by Him in a superabundant way. These are those who seek to understand and embrace the deepest spiritual truths so as to be nourished and transformed on the deepest level.
Reflect, today, upon the fact that the spiritual food our Lord wishes to offer you is most often far more than you can immediately accept and consume. But understanding that fact is the first step to disposing yourself to receive even more. As you reflect upon this superabundance of spiritual food from our Lord, recommit yourself especially to seek out that remaining “twelve wicker baskets” of spiritual truths. If you do, you will discover that there is truly no end to the transforming depths of the gifts of grace our Lord wishes to bestow upon you.
My most generous Lord, You not only give spiritual nourishment to Your people, You give it in superabundance. As I daily seek You out and am filled with Your mercy, help me to never tire of feasting upon the superabundant gift of Your grace. Please do nourish me, dear Lord, and help me to consume Your holy Word. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Friday 2^nd week of Easter 2024
Opening Prayer: Lord God, you have provided me with much more than earthly bread. You have given me heavenly bread and the gift of eternal life. I thank you today for the wondrous gifts of your Sacraments and will strive to bring others to share in them.
Encountering the Word of God
The Fourth Sign in the Gospel of John: In the Gospel, Jesus works his fourth sign, the multiplication of the barley loaves and fish for the crowds. This miracle took place on a mountain near the Sea of Galilee and shortly before the second Passover of Jesus’ public ministry. The annual celebration of the Passover in Jerusalem commemorated Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt. The center of the feast was the seder meal, in which the Exodus story was retold, psalms were sung and a roasted lamb was eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Jesus will give new and greater meaning to the Passover, for he “is the true ‘Lamb of God’ (1:29), whose redeeming work will accomplish a new deliverance from the slavery of sin (8:31-36) in a sacramental and liturgical meal (6:53-58; 1 Cor 5:7-8)" (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, pp. 172-173). As a sign, the multiplication of the loaves anticipates the Last Supper, when Jesus will transform the feast of Passover into the memorial meal of the New Covenant. In multiplying the loaves, Jesus shows that he is greater than Moses and the prophet Elisha. Moses led the people of Israel on the exodus journey and God gave them manna to eat in the desert. Elisha multiplied twenty barley loaves for one hundred men (2 Kings 4:42-44). As the New Moses, Jesus leads the New People of God in a New Exodus and promises to give them bread from heaven. The miracle of Jesus is greater than that of Elisha, as he begins with fewer loaves and multiplies them for a larger crowd. After the miracle of the loaves, the people recognize Jesus' greatness and proclaim that he is the messianic Prophet foretold and promised by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-19). 
The Allegory of the Five Loaves and Two Fish: Saint Bede interprets the Gospel passage allegorically and sees the five loaves as the five books of the Torah and the two fish as the Prophets and Psalms. When Jesus receives these from the Jewish people, he breaks open their deeper, spiritual meanings to refresh the multitudes (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, p. 173). The Alleluia verse invites us to go deeper and look beyond the sign of the multiplication of the loaves. It proclaims: “One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” Like the early Church, we too are nourished at the two tables: the Table of the Eucharist and the Table of the Word. The Acts of the Apostles tells us that the early Church devoted itself to the breaking of the bread, to the teaching of the Apostles, and to prayer. The Apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit and fearlessly proclaimed the Gospel. They wanted to give what they received; they wanted to nourish the people of Israel and the Gentiles who longed for true, spiritual food and drink. 
 Suffering for Jesus: In the First Reading, we learn that the Apostles in Jerusalem were flogged by the Sanhedrin and ordered to stop preaching and speaking in the name of Jesus. The efforts of the Sanhedrin were futile: the Apostles rejoiced that they had been found worthy to share in Christ's suffering and continued their ministry both in the Temple and their homes. They preached and taught in the name of Jesus and proclaimed that Jesus is the Christ. Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He has delivered the people from spiritual slavery and death. He is the Prophet whom they should heed. He is the New Moses, who has given them heavenly bread. Gamaliel, who was Paul’s teacher (Acts 22:3), offered sage advice to the members of the Sanhedrin. If Jesus was a false prophet and not the Messiah, then Christianity would implode like the movements led by Theudas and Judas the Galilean. If, however, Christianity comes from God, then every action against it on their part is a fight against God and rejection of his divine will. Two thousand years later, the growth and holiness, the fruitfulness, the catholic unity and stability of the Church continue to be signs and motives of credibility (CCC, 156, 812). They are signs that point us to faith in Jesus Christ and his saving work. 
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, your heart is moved with pity and compassion for your people. You know their deepest needs and my needs. You give yourself without reserve. Help me to imitate your self-offering today and serve those around me.
Living the Word of God: As Christians, we are called each day to work for the extension of Christ’s kingdom. We are called especially to remove any hypocrisy – which undermines credibility in Jesus and in his Church – from our lives and collaborate with God’s grace, to bear fruit that lasts, to grow in communion with our brothers and sisters, and to anchor our lives more firmly in God and his promise of eternal life. Is there any hypocrisy in my life? How can I better conform my life to what I profess as a believing Christian?
 
Friday 2^nd week of Easter
Opening Prayer: 
Lord, thank you for this opportunity to sit quietly with your word. Please bless me and those I love as I pray and seek your holy will.
Encountering Christ:
·         Nobody’s Perfect: Did Philip fail Jesus's test by his response, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little”? What about Andrew? Andrew pointed out the young boy with the loaves and fishes, but added hesitatingly, “...what good are these for so many?” Neither apostle answered with the faith of Mary who said “Fiat” (Luke 1:38) and “They have no more wine.” (John 2:3); or the nobleman who “took Jesus at his word and departed” and his son was cured (John 4:50); or the man with leprosy who said, “If you will it you can make me clean,” (Mark 1:40); or the two blind men who believed Jesus could cure them (Matthew 9:28). Was Jesus put off by Philip and Andrew’s timid responses? Apparently not, because he worked the multiplication of loaves and fishes anyway, involving them in the distribution and cleanup. We can draw consolation from this story when we fail to rise to a spiritual challenge. Our Lord doesn’t demand perfection from us. As long as we stay close to him, Jesus will continually draw us into the work of the kingdom, in spite of our weaknesses. 
·         Have Them Recline: Jesus ordered Philip, Andrew, and the rest of the disciples to “Have the people recline” as he prepared to work the miracle. What anticipation there must have been among the apostles and the crowd as Jesus had the loaves and fishes brought before him! And what joy Jesus must have felt to work a miracle that would prefigure the Holy Eucharist, feed thousands of people, and edify so many more souls who would meditate on this Scripture years later. Even more important to Jesus was the fulfillment of his Father’s will and the glory he brought to his Father by this miracle. When we are out and about doing the work of the kingdom, we can appreciate the miracles, large or small, and we relish the consolations, but we must attribute all the glory to God, in imitation of Our Lord, Jesus Christ.
·         No Waste: Jesus ordered the disciples to “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” He could certainly have made exactly what was required, so why were there leftovers? When Jesus asked that the broken pieces be collected, was he thinking of the Eucharist? Was he reminding us that the bread, broken and distributed by priests at altars all over the world, should be consumed and never wasted? Was he urging us not to “waste” the superabundant graces we receive there? Let’s recommit ourselves to reverent reception of the Eucharist, prayerfully anticipating our reception of the host and celebrating afterward in silent prayer, so as not to “waste” a single grace from Jesus. 
Conversing with Christ: Lord, you fed five thousand men on that hillside. How many thousands have you fed since then with your Eucharist? Thank you for this Scriptural prefiguration of the Eucharist. Help me to receive you more reverently each time I attend Mass and worship you more ardently in Adoration.
Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will make a Eucharistic visit, receive the Eucharist at Mass, or make a spiritual communion with a heart full of gratitude.