Luke 9:11-17 YEAR C THE SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY BODY & BLOOD OF CHRIST 2ND JUNE 2013 BY REV FR PAUL IKECHUKWU OGUJIOFFOR

Luke 9:11-17 YEAR C THE SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY BODY & BLOOD OF CHRIST 2^ND JUNE 2013 BY REV FR PAUL IKECHUKWU OGUJIOFFOR

 

11οἱ δὲ ὄχλοι γνόντες ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀποδεξάμενος αὐτοὺς ἐλάλει αὐτοῖς περὶ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ τοὺς χρείαν ἔχοντας θεραπείας ἰᾶτο. 12ἡ δὲ ἡμέρα ἤρξατο κλίνειν: προσελθόντες δὲ οἱ δώδεκα εἶπαν αὐτῷ: ἀπόλυσον τὸν ὄχλον, ἵνα πορευθέντες εἰς τὰς κύκλῳ κώμας καὶ ἀγροὺς καταλύσωσιν καὶ εὕρωσιν ἐπισιτισμόν, ὅτι ὧδε ἐν ἐρήμῳ τόπῳ ἐσμέν. 13εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς αὐτούς: δότε αὐτοῖς ὑμεῖς φαγεῖν οἱ δὲ εἶπαν. οὐκ εἰσὶν ἡμῖν πλεῖον ἢ ἄρτοι πέντε καὶ ἰχθύες δύο, εἰ μήτι πορευθέντες ἡμεῖς ἀγοράσωμεν εἰς πάντα τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον βρώματα. 14ἦσαν γὰρ ὡσεὶ ἄνδρες πεντακισχίλιοι. εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ: κατακλίνατε αὐτοὺς κλισίας ὡσεὶ ἀνὰ πεντήκοντα. 15καὶ ἐποίησαν οὕτως καὶ κατέκλιναν ἅπαντας. 16λαβὼν δὲ τοὺς πέντε ἄρτους καὶ τοὺς δύο ἰχθύας, ἀναβλέψας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν εὐλόγησεν αὐτοὺς καὶ κατέκλασεν, καὶ ἐδίδου τοῖς μαθηταῖς παραθεῖναι τῷ ὄχλῳ. 17καὶ ἔφαγον καὶ ἐχορτάσθησαν πάντες, καὶ ἤρθη τὸ περισσεῦσαν αὐτοῖς κλασμάτων, κόφινοι δώδεκα.

11 But the multitudes heard of it, and followed him; so he gave them welcome, and spoke to them of the kingdom of God, and cured those who were in need of healing. 12 And now the day began to wear on; and the twelve came and said to him, Give the multitudes leave to go to the villages and farms round about, so that they can find lodging and food; we are in desert country here. 13 But he told them, It is for you to give them food to eat. We have no more, they said, than five loaves and two fishes, unless thou wouldst have us go ourselves and buy food for all this assembly. 14 About five thousand men were gathered there. So he said to his disciples, Make them sit down by companies of fifty; 15 and they did this, bidding all of them sit down. 16 Then he took the five loaves and the two fishes, and looked up to heaven, and blessed them, and broke, and gave them to his disciples, to set before the multitude. 17 All ate and had their fill, and when what they left over was picked up, it filled twelve baskets.

11 Quod cum cognovissent turbæ, secutæ sunt illum: et excepit eos, et loquebatur illis de regno Dei, et eos, qui cura indigebant, sanabat. 12 Dies autem cœperat declinare, et accedentes duodecim dixerunt illi: Dimitte turbas, ut euntes in castella villasque quæ circa sunt, divertant, et inveniant escas: quia hic in loco deserto sumus. 13 Ait autem ad illos: Vos date illis manducare. At illi dixerunt: Non sunt nobis plus quam quinque panes et duo pisces: nisi forte nos eamus, et emamus in omnem hanc turbam escas. 14 Erant autem fere viri quinque millia. Ait autem ad discipulos suos: Facite illos discumbere per convivia quinquagenos. 15 Et ita fecerunt: et discumbere fecerunt omnes. 16 Acceptis autem quinque panibus et duobus piscibus, respexit in cælum, et benedixit illis: et fregit, et distribuit discipulis suis, ut ponerent ante turbas. 17 Et manducaverunt omnes, et saturati sunt. Et sublatum est quod superfuit illis, fragmentorum cophini duodecim.

Reflection/Meditation

Oh Blessed Gift Most Holy, Oh Blessed Food that came down from Heaven, Oh Blessed Victim Ever Holy Sacrifice which sacrificed Himself at the Cross and continues to re-represent Himself In and Through the Holy Priesthood thereby giving to the Catholic priests the authority and privilege of offering Himself continuously because of his Mercy and Love on the Sacrifice of the Altar (Holy Mass). In this mystery we appreciate Him as in Ps.110:4 Tu es sacerdos in aeternum secundum ordinem Melchisedech, who serves In Him, With Him and For Him as He said: Hoc facite in meam commemorationem Lk.22:19; cf. 1Cor.11:25. Before these words of Institution, Christ taught the crowd through Lectio Divina and they in turn received healing and purification through the Word in their heart (cf. v.11). For their sustenance of healthy body as to portray a graceful face always, Christ never wanted to send them home tired and hungry, because being the desert place it implies that at Mass we ought to maintain the decorum which is silence and prayerful nature of the Holy Mass. (cf. v.12). Christ taught us that the priesthood is not only prophetic but as well a dora [a gift and an act of giving], hence he insisted that the Apostles should not dismiss them just that way without offering themselves represented by the bread and fish symbolically (cf. v.13). Christ’s presence among us is a fraternal unity and community of believers who when present at Mass ought always to stay quiet, calm and still because we are in the presence of Him Who  nourishes our existence spiritually and corporeally as well (cf. vv.14-15). The mystery observed through Faith by the Words of Consecration over the Bread and Wine brings into immediate effect the Real Presence Jesus Christ as the Body and Blood, symbolically mystical. This is done by the priestly elevation of eyes in prayer to heaven calling down Christ to come and make Himself simply Present in the work of human hands, after which the apostles as ministers distribute same to those who are present in the Christian assembly after the Lectio Divina with the entire Holy Eucharist Celebration (cf. v. 16). For those who were not to attend the Holy Mass because of grave reasons which are also a form of participation in the Cross of Christ, the consecrated bread are also reserved for such people in the Tabernacle in the case of emergency (Viaticum or Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick) or in the Holy Mass either (cf. v.17). Jesus Christ is truly hidden in the Body and Blood of the Most Holy Sacrament that is why He said: Μὴ δῶτε τὸ ἅγιον τοῖς κυσίν, μηδὲ βάλητε τοὺς μαργαρίτας ὑμῶν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν χοίρων, μήποτε καταπατήσουσιν αὐτοὺς ἐν τοῖς ποσὶν αὐτῶν καὶ στραφέντες ῥήξωσιν ὑμᾶς- Nolite dare sanctum canibus: neque mittatis margaritas vestras ante porcos, ne forte conculcent eas pedibus suis, et conversi dirumpant vos- You must not give that which is holy to dogs. Do not cast your pearls before swine, or the swine may trample them under foot, and then turn on you and tear you to pieces Matt.7:6. For this reason the Mother Church according to St. Thomas Aquinas in the Sequence of Corpus Christi said: Ecce panis Angelorum, factus cibus viatorum: vere panis filiorum non mittendus canibus-Lo the angel’s food is given To the pilgrim who has striven; See the children’s bred from heaven, which on dogs may not be spent. Ipso facto, Christ insisted that: ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ἄρτος ὁ ζῶν ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβάς: ἐάν τις φάγῃ ἐκ τούτου τοῦ ἄρτου, ζήσει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα: καὶ ὁ ἄρτος δὲ ὃν ἐγὼ δώσω ἡ σάρξ μού ἐστιν ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ κόσμου ζωῆς- Ego sum panis vivus, qui de cælo descendi. Si quis manducaverit ex hoc pane, vivet in æternum: et panis quem ego dabo, caro mea est pro mundi vita- I myself am the living bread that has come down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever. And now, what is this bread which I am to give? It is my flesh, given for the life of the world Jn.6:51-52.