Third Week of Easter

“I am the Bread of Life” Jn. 6:44-51

There is nothing more necessary and urgent for the person than food. Without it there is no life. Without it there is no future. The bread spoken of in the Gospel, in the world of Jesus and in many other cultures and times, has been and is the staple food. Bread thus becomes the symbol, not only of food, but of life itself. Without bread there is no life – in other cultures we would have to talk about rice, for example.

When Jesus says “I am the bread of life” and repeats that “I am the living bread that came down from heaven, whoever eats of this bread will live forever” he is putting bread, food, in relation to life. But it is a different bread, because just as normal bread must be eaten every day, the bread of which Jesus speaks gives life forever.