After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a multitude followed him, because they saw the signs which he did on those who were diseased. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a multitude was coming to him, Jesus said to Philip, "How are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?" This he said to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, "Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little." One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are they among so many?" Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place; so the men sat down, in number about five thousand. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, "Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost." So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign which he had done, they said, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!" Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
- St. John 6:1-15
This Gospel tells us of the well-known miracle of the feeding of the five thousand with the five loaves and two fish. There are, of course, many miracles recorded in the Gospels. And it’s interesting to see how people have approached these accounts.
When it comes to Christ’s parables, there seems to be (for the most part) no issue, because they’re taken as the stories that they are. But when it comes to the miracles – actual historical events which took place – there are those who try to explain them in exclusively natural ways. When Jesus walked on the water, for instance, there are those who want to say that there was a sand bar right beneath the surface. When Christ stilled the storm, there are those who try to say that it was coincidental with the storm having run its course.
When it comes to today’s miracle, as we look at various biblical commentaries, some have tried to say it was a kind of collective illusion – that the people there only thought they had eaten their fill. Others have said that it wasn’t really a miracle, but that the people simply shared their food with one another, and that was the real miracle. I’ve always been astonished at those kinds of faithless theories. Either God is God, or He’s not. If He could create all things, if He could take human flesh upon Himself and come to us – if He is indeed the God of the universe – then taking elements of His creation, bread and fish, and multiplying them, is simply in keeping with who He is.
And in fact, when we look at the event, the details are so specific: Jesus asks how they could feed this crowd. Andrew is clear in saying that there are five loaves and two fish. Our Lord instructed the disciples to have the people sit down, after which He gave thanks to His Father, and then distributed the food to the crowds. And further details are given to us: there were twelve baskets full of bread left over. Everything about it tells us this was an actual event. The details are spelled out; it was an act done by Jesus Christ to make a particular point, and to teach us something. So what was it all about?
We should start out by noticing that the people had come there with no forethought of preparation, and this is clear from the Gospel account. This crowd had been following Jesus for some time, listening to him, having their hopes raised higher and higher as He taught them the things of God. They weren’t thinking about anything else other than the fact that they wanted to stick close to Him. They wanted to see Him and hear Him. So there they are, gathered at the place to which He had gone.
Time passes. Jesus had been speaking quietly with his apostles, but the people were still there, waiting. It’s obvious they have no thought of leaving him. As that becomes evident, the apostles show their concern. The people had come out there completely unprepared; it was getting late; they were far from any town. Even though He knew what He was going to do, Jesus asks Philip, “How are we to buy bread, that these people may eat?” His question is certainly an indication to us yet again that the people hadn’t come with their own food. Andrew mentions the little boy who happened to have some bread and fish with him, but it seemed pretty obvious to the apostles that five loaves and two fish weren’t going to feed this crowd. Nonetheless, Jesus takes the available food, He blesses it and distributes it, and the surplus is so great that they fill twelve baskets with the leftovers.
In hearing this account, notice the central place of our Lord Jesus Christ in all of this. The people had come to Him, without anything specific in mind – they just wanted to hear Him. The apostles are there simply to assist Jesus in whatever way He asks; and the crowd is there to accept whatever Jesus provides to them – but it’s the Lord Jesus Christ who holds center stage. And it’s His pure and complete love for each and every person which is demonstrated in this miracle. Through the loaves and the fish Christ made the Father’s love a reality to the people.
In the midst of the literal reality of what’s taking place in this miracle, there’s the important spiritual message, too. There are aspects of this story that, when we look closely, communicate something to us. We weren’t there, so we didn’t receive the immediate benefit of the food itself, but God preserved this account for us so that when we look at it, we get the message He wants us to get. And a central message is that God’s love is abundant, and it’s available to us through our Lord Jesus Christ.
All this looks forward to the fact that God’s love comes through the Living Bread which we receive at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. If we miss this spiritual point, and look only at the aspect of the physical abundance of bread and fish, we begin to ask the wrong question. We fall into the trap of asking, “If He multiplied the loaves for these people, how can He let so many people die of hunger today all over the world?” But that’s missing the point. Isaiah asks the question, “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy?” In other words, we can get so caught up in the things of this world, that we miss what God has determined to be more important. Yes, we need to be concerned for those who are hungry and homeless and in need, just as the apostles were concerned for the people who had gone that day out into the wilderness; but Jesus wanted His apostles to go further than that. He wanted to show the people there that day what the power and love of God is like.
The world is hungry, but not just hungry for food. The world is hungry for the truth; it’s hungry for spiritual fulfillment; it’s hungry for God. Certainly, we’re to minister in Christ’s name to those who are poor and hungry, but we must remember that, more important than bread, is the Bread of Life.
In many ways, the world has become a twisted and sour place; but Christ holds out to the world what is true and eternal. He holds out forgiveness; He holds out everlasting life. And He asks us to assist Him in distributing what he’s holding out to the world. So we’ve got to be careful that we don’t try to hand out a false gospel that doesn’t see past the things of this world.
Notice at the end of today’s Gospel passage, Jesus withdraws. Why? Because the people were missing the point, and they were trying to make Him an earthly king. We need to make sure we get the point here that God wants us to get; namely that it’s the deep and abiding love of God which transforms us, and because of that, there is nothing that can ever conquer us. When we stand with Christ and with His truth, we can stand firm in the face of anything that threatens us, because God in Christ loves us and supports us, so we need to fear nothing.
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