Dear Saints,
This weekend's Gospel passage gives us Jesus feeding the 5,000. You know the main story - five loaves and two fish with twelve wicker baskets left over - so let's try to dig a little deeper.
If we are generous with our calculations, both on what would have been considered "Galilee" and its population density, then we might estimate that 400,000 people lived in the region 2,000 years ago. Fewer than half of those were men, the rest being women and children.
So 5,000 out of at most 200,000 (or one out of every 40) men witnessed the handiwork of God that day. To say that the multiplication of the loaves and fish put Jesus on the map and helps explain his massive popularity is an incredible understatement. This event sent shockwaves through all of Israel.
It's too cute - and totally disingenuous - to suggest that the feeding of the multitude was anything other than a miracle. Some have tried to say that the miracle was one of sharing: when everyone gave what he had, there was more than enough food for all.
There are at least two problems with that story: 1. It's not a story worth telling, especially in light of Middle Eastern hospitality, and 2. It's simply not what the Gospels record! No one retelling the dramatic account, given the sheer number of eyewitnesses and the impact of the event, would have been able to pass off any untruth. No, the Gospels retell the simple - and amazing - fact of what happened.
As with his other mighty works, there's more to Jesus' feeding the multitude than meets the eye. Think, for instance, of the reality that nothing Jesus does is for show. He's never gunning for power or pursuing a political advantage.
And that's the point of real interest at the end of the account. We hear "Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off (take him by force) to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone." Yes, Jesus is God's anointed king. No, he won't be the kind of king people are clamoring for.
Jesus' kingship brings to life God's plan to raise up his fallen world. Life in God's kingdom means trusting and following Jesus to live - in the pattern of Jesus' own life, and like the multiplied bread - as a thanksgiving offering to God, given away in love to meet the world's most pressing needs.
I love you, my friends. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Christ’s Peace,
Father Daniel
δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ
This Pastor's Note originates from Father Daniel's weekly email series, Blast from the Pastor. To join the mailing list and receive updates from the parish, please send an email to pastor@olmcboonton.org.