Wednesday of the First Week of Advent
Today’s Reflection
Gospel: Mt 15: 29-37
December 6, 2023 | Wednesday
From there, Jesus went to the shore of Lake Galilee and then went up into the hills, where he sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing the dumb, the blind, the lame, the crippled, and many with other infirmities. People carried them to the feet of Jesus, and he healed them. All were astonished when they saw the dumb speaking, the lame walking, the crippled healed, and the blind able to see; and they glorified the God of Israel.
Jesus called his disciples and said to them, “I am filled with compassion for these people; they have already followed me for three days and now have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away fasting, or they may faint on the way.” His disciples said to him, “And where shall we find enough bread in this wilderness to feed such a crowd?” Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They answered, “Seven, and a few small fish.” Jesus ordered the people to sit on the ground. Then, he took the seven loaves and the small fish and gave thanks to God. He broke them and gave them to his disciples, who distributed them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the leftover pieces filled seven wicker baskets
Today’s Reflection:
In today’s gospel, we hear the apostles ask Jesus, “And where shall we find enough bread in this wilderness to feed such a crowd?” Sometimes we act like the apostles in today’s gospel. We are concerned with practicality and how we cannot provide enough for ourselves, so we don’t expect ourselves to provide for the needs of others. We’d rather keep things to ourselves rather than go the extra mile in reaching out to help other people. But Jesus’ words in the gospel episode today assure us of the abundance of God’s love, care, and compassion for us: “I am filled with compassion for these people; they have already followed me for three days and now have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away fasting, or they may nfaint on the way”. The seven wicker baskets that were filled after all were satisfied further suggest this theme of the superabundance of God’s care for us. God’s love for us is “siksik, liglig at umaapaw” as we say in Filipino. / Vulnerasti, 2023
