Sunday, July 26, 2009

SIGNS AND INSTRUMENTS OF GOD'S GENEROSITY

"THIS IS TRULY THE PROPHET, THE ONE
WHO IS TO COME INTO THE WORLD."

Today is Fil-Mission Sunday – a day devoted to remember our brothers and sisters who work in the foreign missions. In response to God’s call, they have left our
beautiful land and their families to serve the Gospel in the many nations where Christianity is still a tiny minority, or where the local Church still needs the help of new evangelizers.

It is our duty to remember with admiration, sincere love, and practical solidarity all our missionaries – priests, nuns, religious brothers, and lay volunteers. They are expected to be the best showcase of what the Church is all about. Let us pray for them and be generous toward them, for much of the good they can do depends on the generosity with which we reach out to them.



Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near.

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?” He said this to test him, because Jesus himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.”


One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, “There is a
boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” 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. 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.

When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left
over, so that nothing will be wasted.” So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat.

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.” Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone.