The Feeding of 5000 - A Relection

The Feeding of the 5000 – A Reflection

Cl. Mario D’Couto SDB

            The miracle of the feeding of the 5000 is one miracle that is found in all the four Gospels and perhaps this is what gives us the importance of this miracle. It is but obvious that this miracle was not just included in all the four Gospels for nothing and thus it would indeed be good to study and find out the significance of this miracle in our lives.

            There are indeed many reflections that we could draw out from this incident in the life of our Lord. In the first place, the very fact that Jesus multiplies the 5 barley loaves and 2 fish itself speak a lot. According to some theologians, it is said that the multiplication of the bread and fish is a prefiguration of Christ giving Himself up for humankind. While this is there, there are also many other things on which we can reflect. Let us reflect on the boy who had the 5 loaves and 2 fish.

            With regard to the reason as to why he brought those 5 loaves and 2 fish is uncertain. Was it a picnic meal? Was it for someone else? We do not know. But rather than breaking our heads over this, it is more important to reflect on the character and nature of the boy.

            At first, it would seem that the boy is very quiet and all by himself until finally, one of the apostles finds him and asks him if he is ready to share what he has, to which the boy readily accepts. What strikes us about this is the quality of openness. This quality is an important pre – requisite on the path of attaining sanctity, for pride is the mother of all vices.

            Having spoken about the aspect of ‘openness’ as an important pre – requisite for learning, another message that comes out strongly through this incident in the life of our Lord is that in all the miracles that He worked, He made use of human intervention. There are enough and more examples to substantiate this fact like the Wedding at Cana, the multiplication of the 5 loaves and 2 fish, the healing of the man born blind. Perhaps, the only places where Jesus did not use any human intervention was in the healing of the Centurion’s servant, the raising of the widow’s son, the healing of Jairus’ daughter, the raising of Lazarus from the dead and others. It is true that there are indeed many places where Jesus did not ‘physically’ use any human intervention as He would have probably used in some of the miracles that He worked. But even then, there is one thing that Jesus needed if He had to work a miracle and that is our faith in Him. If we read the Gospels, we would find that there is more than one instance where Jesus asks, “Do you believe that the Son of Man ……..?”

            Yes, dear friends, it is our faith in the risen Lord that makes the difference. Nothing else matters! But what is faith? Faith, for many people, is belief. While it is true that faith is belief, it is not any ordinary kind of belief. Faith is usually used in the context when we cannot see something. It is in this sense that hope is very much connected with faith. For who can hope for something that he or she has already seen?
           

            There is a statement that I once came across which was made by Osho which goes thus, “Life does not listen to your logic; it goes on its way, undisturbed. You have to listen to life; life will not listen to your logic, it does not bother about your logic.” Yes dear friends, our lives are to a large extent a big mystery. We do not know what the future holds in store for us but one thing we can be certain is about Who (God) holds our future. Thus, all we need to do is to grow through life with an open mind. He (God) knows what is best for us!

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