For anyone struggling to make ends meet, these times can be stressful. During tough times, we tend to look a little closer to home and to become a little tighter ourselves with what we have to share. But the miracle of the loaves and the fishes ( John 6 ) helps to free us from the anxiety of material concerns because it celebrates the way Jesus found enough to share with everyone, even during a time of great scarcity and hardship.

Families teach us a lot about sharing, not only abundance, but whatever little they have. Have you ever noticed how a mother of a large family can multiply the family’s food, to stretch a meal so as to accommodate one or more at the table? I’ve witnessed this generosity often in large, extended Hispanic families.

Any time is a good time to learn from this gospel message in John 6 : 11-14. It is important to understand the point of this message : we must feed the hungry and share with those in need. We need faith to look outward towards those in need: the sick, those in prison, the hungry, the thirsty, the naked and the homeless (Matthew 25). We need hope from above which recognizes that enough is a good deal and that, no matter what, there will always be enough to share ( Matthew 6 : 26 ). We need the love of Christ to propel us to make this possible by loving one another the way He loves us ( John 13 : 34 ).

Jesus fed the multitude by multiplying the loaves and fishes. He took care of the physical hunger of the people, and so He wants you to follow His example. But He also took care of the spiritual hunger of the people afterwards by giving them the bread of life, Himself, in the Eucharist.

John is writing for the Christians of his day. So he intentionally set the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fishes in the context of the Eucharist, the bread of life. The Jewish feast of the Passover was near, making the message of the loaves and the fishes an integral part of the Last Supper ( the first Eucharist ) which, forever, was to be celebrated “in memory” of Him ( 1 Corinthians 11 : 24 ).

Thus you cannot separate the new commandment of Jesus to love one another the way He loves you ( and that means feeding the hungry ) from the celebration of the Eucharist. If you have anything against your brother, the Lord says, go first and be reconciled with him before you approach the altar ( Matthew 5 : 23-24 ). It is not enough then to go to mass every Sunday if you ignore your brother and sister in need. It is not enough to say, “I have fulfilled my duty” by attending mass if you do not see Christ in your neighbor, especially “the least amongst us”. Many people, sorry to say, go to mass but ignore the message of service to others which Jesus demonstrated in the miracle of feeding the multitude, in the washing of feet at the first Eucharist, and by His example throughout His entire life on earth. It would behoove those, who criticize others as unworthy to receive the Eucharist, to devote their efforts to putting into practice the example of service to others that Jesus commands.

When we receive the Eucharist, and nobody is really worthy to receive it, by trying to love others the way He loves us, we become extensions of Christ in our world, in our societies, and in our homes. The reception of the Eucharist means we take Christ into our lives, and we take Christ at his Word by feeding the hungry.

So, do not be afraid to share the blessings of the Lord. In the miracle of the loves and the fishes, He demonstrates how important it is to feed the hungry. In the celebration of the Eucharist that followed this miracle, he satisfies our spiritual hunger. Service and celebration are interconnected.

Perhaps this is a good time to read, in its entirety, the sixth chapter of John’s gospel. John is not obtuse but he is deep. The teaching of Jesus about service and celebration in this chapter is profound. It makes sense to give it time to sink in.

The miracle of feeding the multitude is an integral part of the miracle of the Eucharist wherein the living bread, come down from heaven, tabernacles Himself within us whenever we love one another the way He has loved us..

—Fr. Hugh Duffy