He ordered the people to sit on the grass.    Mt. 14:13-21

It is never too much to repeat: Jesus is a human being. He needs to mourn John’s death, more than his cousin, his mentor; the one who, with his Baptism, won him the grace to be confirmed in his mission. How long did He manage to be alone? We don’t know.  What the Gospel says is that He was compelled by compassion for the people who sought him out, and He began to attend to them, teach them, listen to them… And as time passes, the disciples warn him that the people are hungry. The miracle that followed was not only to satisfy hunger and restore the body’s strength. It was a meal sitting in groups on the lawn; plenty of food for all humanity. That was just like all Jesus’ meals, shared meals. And that is the meaning of the Eucharist. The bread of the Eucharist that brings brothers and sisters together at the same table must lead us to grow in warm, human relationships, attentive to the need for commitment to the quality of life of those around us. Do we “go to Mass”, as a religious act… or “do we celebrate the Eucharist” and then prolong it “in Eucharistic relationships”? Let us consider this in our prayer.