Thursday of the
Third Week of Easter
(Acts 8:26-40; John 6:44-51)
It is said that bread is the staff of life. Supplying most of the calories in a western
person’s diet, bread was once the staple of half the world. Today a range of foods provides the calories
for subsistence. More peculiar is the
fact that many people have recently been diagnosed with an intolerance of gluten,
a composite of wheat proteins. They
cannot digest most bread well and should not eat any product containing more
than a trace of gluten. How does this
development affect today’s gospel claim that Jesus is “the bread of life”?
Just as the life that Jesus offers is greater than physical
life, the bread he gives is more than regular bread. It is his “Eucharistic” bread which provides the
superior life. Eucharistic bread enables
a life of gratitude. It recognizes God
as its source, its sustenance, and its end.
Assured of such a benefactor, the person who consumes Eucharistic bread should
give thanks always.
We have daily access to Eucharistic bread at mass. It transforms us inwardly to become more grateful
for everything. Consuming Eucharistic
bread, we lovingly recognize those who help us.
We can even accept the difficulties that burden our lives with a sense
of appreciation. Shouldered without
rancor, they make us stronger and wiser.
Becoming more Eucharistic, which means becoming more like Jesus himself,
should bring us to mass more often.
