The multiplication of the loaves!

Our Gospel story this Sunday is about the Multiplication of the Loaves, one of the greatest miracles of our Lord Jesus Christ where some five thousands of his followers (the women and children were not counted in this number so there were actually more people there) were part of this miracle. You can read this story in your Bible on John 6: 1:15.

“1 Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee [of Tiberias]. 2 A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. 3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4 The Jewish feast of Passover was near. 5 When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” 6 He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do.

7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little [bit].” 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, 9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. 11 Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted.

12 When they had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing is wasted.” 13 So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. 14 When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” 15 Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone.”

As this story goes, the biggest Jewish feast of the Passover was near and it was a time for Jesus to give his followers a taste of things to come. He was in effect giving them a preview of the Holy Mass, where he said a prayer, gave thanks to God, broke the bread and gave them to his followers all of whom were just awestruck at the miracle unfolding right before their eyes. All of the people knew that there were no store nearby, nor were there people selling food, except for the boy who had five barley loaves and two fish.

Thus upon experiencing this miracle, the Jews declared about Jesus “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” It just makes you wonder where the five thousand Jews went when Jesus was arrested and tried by the Sanhedrin then crucified by Pontius Pilate’s soldiers. Of course, I’m sure that some of them became the first Christians in Judea.

If you ask, why did the Jews think of Jesus as a Prophet? Well if you read your Bible especially in the Old Testament, you will note that Jesus wasn’t the first to do this miracle. Please turn to 2 Kings 4: 42-44 and allow me to reprint that part, which is titled, “Multiplication of the Loaves.”

“ A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing the man of God twenty barley loaves made from the first-fruits, and fresh grain in the ear. ‘Give it to the people to eat, ‘ Elisha said. But his servant objected. How can I set this before a hundred men? “Give it to the people to eat.” Elisha insisted. “For thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and there shall be some left over.’” And when they had eaten, there was some left over, as the Lord said.” Indeed, Elisha pre-figured our Lord Jesus.

The food that our Lord Jesus used where barley loaves, which is the bread of the poor and the fish. All this is a reminder for the Jews and eventually to all Christians of his Bread of Life Discourse. In John 6:48-68 our Lord said, “I am the bread of life, your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” By now you should know that he was talking in spiritual terms… and not eating his human flesh!

The fish also symbolized early Christianity, after all, when the Lord Jesus recruited Simon Peter to be his Apostle, he told Simon, “From now on, you shall be Fishers of Men.” Early Christians used the Greek letters IXOYE to describe Jesus Christ, God’s son, savior and early Bishops already used the fish as the symbol of Christianity (many fish drawings were found inside the catacombs of Rome) long before the crucifix became a more popular symbol. In 1968, there was a blockbuster movie entitled “The Shoes of the Fisherman” starring Anthony Quinn. Obviously the title of that epic film was more than appropriate in referring to Christ, whose apostles truly became “fishers of men.” As Catholics, we are in a sense “Fishers of Men!”

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