Sunday Inbox Inspirations
Third Sunday of Easter
Cycle C
May 1, 2022
Why Food?
This past week, I went onto my Internet browser and typed in the question: Why do we need food?
Immediately, a number of entries appeared. From what I read, I have picked out four main reasons why we need food, and they may seem pretty obvious.
First, we need food for life. We can go without food for a while.
Sometimes we fast from food and eat little or nothing for a day or so. But sooner or later, we need food just to live.
Second, we need food for energy. When I have the 8:30am Sunday Mass, I have to make sure I eat something before I come here.
I usually have an orange and a bowl of cereal and some peanut butter. And that gives me the energy I need for at least the first part of Sunday morning.
Then, third, we need food to grow. If children, like our second graders who are receiving First Communion this weekend, if they are going to grow, they need food.
If they are going to grow from 4 feet tall to 5 or 6 feet tall and grow from weighing 60 pounds to weighing 160 or whatever, they need proteins and carbs and fats and vitamins and minerals and all of that. Good food is necessary for each of us to grow.
And a fourth reason I found for why we need food is for social interaction. I was at first surprised to see this listed, but then I understood.
A meal brings us together as a family or friends or co-workers. It serves an important purpose in creating bondedness or community.
Jesus as Food
I am focused on food today because of the gospel passage.
Jesus has some food for his disciples – bread and fish. This is one of a number of times when Jesus has a meal with his friends.
And some of the wording in this passage, Scripture specialists tell us, is almost identical to the wording at the Last Supper. Jesus “took the bread and gave it to them.”
The idea is that this incident is a way for Jesus to remind the disciples of the food he gave them at the Last Supper. There, the bread and wine become Jesus – his body and blood.
So, this leads me today to think about the Eucharist. I ask the same question that I typed into my Internet browser.
Why do we need this food – the Eucharist? And I think the answer is the same four reasons for why we need regular food.
Why Eucharistic Food?
First, we need the Eucharist to live in Christ. We are given the life of Christ at Baptism, but that life can become weak.
The Eucharist nourishes the life of Christ within us. It brings us alive in the way that God wants for each of us.
Second, we need the Eucharist for energy. It helps us to do what is good and right even when others around us are doing something else.
It helps us to keep on going when we feel lonely or down. It gives us energy to do whatever it is that God is calling us to do.
Third, we need the Eucharist to grow. We all need to keep growing spiritually.
Very different from our physical growth, spiritual growth never ends. The Eucharist helps us to keep on growing to become the best possible person we can be.
And fourth, we need the Eucharist for community. It brings us together as God’s people here on earth.
It keeps us from being isolated and alone in our search for understanding who God is and what God expects of us. And with the Eucharist, we can do so many things together that we cannot do alone just by ourselves.
Conclusion
So, there is nothing like the Eucharist, the sacrament of Jesus’ body and blood, Holy Communion.
We need this. We need to be here and to receive this sacred food regularly.
That is why Sunday Mass and Communion has been a trademark of Catholicism. Let’s resolve today to continue making this central to our life and faith.
Fr. Michael Schleupner
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