From: Acts 5:34-42
Gamaliel’s Intervention
[34] But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, held
in honor by all the people, stood up and ordered the men to be put outside for
a while. [35] And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you do with
these men. [36] For before these days Theudas arose, giving himself out to be
somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him; but he was
slain and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. [37] After
him Judas the Galilean arose in the days of the census and drew away some
of the people after him; he also perished, and all who followed him were scat-
tered. [38] So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and
let them alone; for this plan or this undertaking is of men, it will fail; [39] but
if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found
opposing God!”
The Apostles Are Flogged
[40] So they took his advice, and when they had called in the Apostles, they
beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them
go. [41] Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were coun-
ted worthy to suffer dishonor for the Name. [42] And every day in the temple and
at home they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.
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Commentary:
34-39. Gamaliel had been St. Paul’s teacher (cf. 22:3). He belonged to a mode-
rate grouping among the Pharisees. He was a prudent man, impartial and reli-
giously minded. The Fathers of the Church often propose him as an example of
an upright man who is awaiting the Kingdom of God and dares to defend the
Apostles.
“Gamaliel does not say that the undertaking is of man or of God; he recom-
mends that they let time decide. [...] By speaking in the absence of the Apostles
he was better able to win over the judges. The gentleness of his word and argu-
ments, based on justice, convinced them. He was almost preaching the Gospel.
Indeed, his language is so correct that he seemed to be saying: Be convinced of
it: you cannot destroy this undertaking. How is it that you do not believe? The
Christian message is so impressive that even its adversaries bear witness to it”
(St. John Chrysostom, “Hom. on Acts”, 14).
This commentary seems to be recalling our Lord’s words, “He that is not against
us is for us” (Mark 9:40). Certainly, Gamaliel’s intervention shows that a person
with good will can discern God’s action in events or at least investigate objective-
ly without prejudging the issue.
The revolts of Theudas and Judas are referred to by Flavius Josephus (cf. “Jew-
ish Antiquities”, XVIII, 4-10; XX, 169-172), but the dates he gives are vague; ap-
parently these events occurred around the time of Jesus’ birth. Both Theudas
and Judas had considerable following; they revolted against the chosen people
having to pay tribute to foreigners such as Herod and Imperial Rome.
40-41. Most members of the Sanhedrin are unimpressed by Gamaliel’s argu-
ments; they simply decide to go as far as they safely can: they do not dare to
condemn the Apostles to death; but, in their stubborn opposition to the Gospel
message, they decree that they be put under the lash in the hope that this will
keep them quiet. However, it has just the opposite effect.
“It is true that Jeremiah was scourged for the word of God, and the Elijah and
other prophets were also threatened, but in this case the Apostles, as they did
earlier by their miracles, showed forth the power of God. He does not say that
they did not suffer, but that they rejoiced over having to suffer. This we can see
from the boldness afterwards: immediately after being beaten they went back to
preaching” (Chrysostom, “Hom. on Acts”, 14).
The Apostles must have remembered our Lord’s words, “Blessed are you when
men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely
on My account. Rejoice and be glad, for so men persecuted the prophets who
were before you” (Matthew 5:11-12).
42. The Apostles and the first disciples of Jesus were forever preaching, with the
result that very soon all Jerusalem was filled with their teaching (cf. verse 28).
These early brethren are an example to Christians in every age: zeal to attract
others to the faith is a characteristic of every true disciple of Jesus and a conse-
quence of love of God and love of others: “You have but little love if you are not
zealous for the salvation of all souls. You have but poor love if you are not eager
to inspire other apostles with your craziness” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 796).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
From: John 6:1-15
The Miracle of the Loaves and Fish
[1] After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea
of Tiberias. [2] And a multitude followed Him, because they saw the signs which
He did on those who were diseased. [3] Jesus went up into the hills, and there
sat down with His disciples. [4] Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at
hand. [5] Lifting up His eyes, then, seeing that a multitude was coming to Him,
Jesus said to Philip, “How are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?”
[6] This He said to test them, for He Himself knew what He would do. [7] Philip
answered Him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of
them to get a little.” [8] One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother,
said to Him, [9] “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but
what are they among so many?” [10] Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.”
Now there was much grass in the place; so men sat down, in number about five
thousand. [11] Jesus then took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He di-
stributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wan-
ted. [12] And when they had eaten their fill, He told His disciples, “Gather up the
fragments left over, that nothing may be lost.” [13] So they gathered them up and
filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who
had eaten. [14] When the people saw the sign which He had done, they said,
“This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!”
[15] Perceiving then that they were about to come and take Him by force to make
Him king, Jesus withdrew again to the hills by Himself.
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Commentary:
1. This is the second lake formed by the river Jordan. It is sometimes described
in the Gospels as the “Lake of Gennesaret” (Luke 5:1), because that is the name
of the area on the north-eastern bank of the lake, and sometimes as the “Sea of
Galilee” (Matthew 4:18; 15:29; Mark 1:16; 7:31), after the region in which it is lo-
cated. St. John also calls it the “Sea of Tiberias” (cf. 21:1), after the city of that
name which Herod Antipas founded and named after the Emperor Tiberius. In
Jesus’ time there were a number of towns on the shore of this lake — Tiberias,
Magdala, Capernaum, Bethsaida, etc.—and the shore was often the setting for
His preaching.
2. Although St. John refers to only seven miracles and does not mention others
which are reported in the Synoptics, in this verse and more expressly at the end
of the Gospel (20:30; 21:25) he says that the Lord worked many miracles; the
reason why the evangelist, under God’s inspiration, chose these seven must
surely be because they best suited His purpose—to highlight certain facets of
the mystery of Christ. He now goes on to recount the miracle of the multiplica-
tion of the loaves and the fish, a miracle directly connected with the discourses
at Capernaum in which Jesus presents Himself as “the bread of life” (6:35, 48).
4. St. John’s Gospel often mentions Jewish feasts when referring to events in our
Lord’s public ministry — as in the case here (cf. “The Dates of the Life of our Lord
Jesus Christ”, in the “The Navarre Bible: St. Mark”, pp. 49ff, and “Introduction to
the Gospel according to St. John”, pp. 13ff above).
Shortly before this Passover Jesus works the miracle of the multiplication of the
loaves and the fish, which prefigures the Christian Easter and the mystery of the
Blessed Eucharist, as He Himself explains in the discourse, beginning at verse
26 in which He promises Himself as nourishment for our souls.
5-9. Jesus is sensitive to people’s material and spiritual needs. Here we see Him
take the initiative to satisfy the hunger of the crowd of people who have been fol-
lowing Him.
Through these conversations and the miracle He is going to work, Jesus also tea-
ches His disciples to trust in Him whenever they meet up with difficulties in their
apostolic endeavors in the future: they should engage in them using whatever re-
sources they have—even if they are plainly inadequate, as was the case with the
five loaves and two fish. He will supply what is lacking. In the Christian life we
must put what we have at the service of our Lord, even if we do not think it
amounts to very much. He can make meager resources productive.
“We must, then, have faith and not be dispirited. We must not be stopped by any
kind of human calculation. To overcome the obstacles we have to throw ourselves
into the task so that the very effort we make will open up new paths” (St. J. Escri-
va, “Christ Is Passing By”, 160).
10. The evangelist gives us an apparently unimportant piece of information: “there
was much grass in the place.” This indicates that the miracle took place in the
height of the Palestinian spring, very near the Passover, as mentioned in verse 4.
There are very few big meadows in Palestine; even today there is one on the eas-
tern bank of the Lake of Gennesaret, called El-Batihah, where five thousand peo-
ple could fit seated: it may have been the site of this miracle.
11. The account of the miracle begins with almost the very same words as those
which the Synoptics and St. Paul use to describe the institution of the Eucharist
(cf. Matthew 26:26; Mark 14:22; Luke 22:19; 1 Corinthians 11:25). This indicates
that the miracle, in addition to being an expression of Jesus’ mercy towards the
needy, is a symbol of the Blessed Eucharist, about which our Lord will speak a
little later on (cf. John 6:26-59).
12-13. The profusion of detail shows how accurate this narrative is—the names
of the Apostles who address our Lord (verses 5,8), the fact that they were barley
loaves (verse 9), the boy who provided the wherewithal (verse 9) and, finally, Je-
sus telling them to gather up the leftovers.
This miracle shows Jesus’ divine power over matter, and His largesse recalls the
abundance of messianic benefits which the prophets had foretold (cf. Jeremiah
31:14).
Christ’s instruction to pick up the leftovers teaches us that material resources
are gifts of God and should not be wasted: they should be used in a spirit of po-
verty (cf. note on Mark 6:42). In this connection Paul VI pointed out that “after li-
berally feeding the crowds, the Lord told His disciples to gather up what was left
over, lest anything should be lost (cf. John 6:12). What an excellent lesson in
thrift — in the finest and fullest meaning of the term—for our age, given as it is to
wastefulness! It carries with it the condemnation of a whole concept of society
wherein consumption tends to become an end in itself, with contempt for the
needy, and to the detriment, ultimately, of those very people who believed them-
selves to be its beneficiaries, having become incapable of perceiving that man is
called to a higher destiny” (Paul VI, “Address to Participants at the World Food
Conference”, 9 November 1974).
14-15. The faith which the miracle causes in the hearts of these people is still
very imperfect: they recognize Him as the Messiah promised in the Old Testa-
ment (cf. Deuteronomy 18:15), but they are thinking in terms of an earthly, poli-
tical messianism; they want to make Him king because they think the Messiah’s
function is to free them from Roman domination.
Our Lord, who later on (verses 26-27) will explain the true meaning of the multi-
plication of the loaves and the fish, simply goes away, to avoid the people pro-
claiming Him for what He is not. In His dialogue with Pilate (cf. John 18:36) He
will explain that His kingship “is not of this world”: “The Gospels clearly show
that for Jesus anything that would alter His mission as the Servant of Yahweh
was a temptation (cf. Matthew 4:8: Luke 4:5). He does not accept the position
of those who mixed the things of God with merely political attitudes (cf. Matthew
22:21; Mark 12:17; John 18:36). [...] The perspective of His mission is much dee-
per. It consists in complete salvation through transforming, peacemaking, pardo-
ning, and reconciling love. There is no doubt, moreover, that all this makes ma-
ny demands on the Christian who wishes truly to serve his least brethren, the
poor, the needy, the outcast; in a word, all those who in their lives reflect the sor-
rowing face of the Lord (cf. “Lumen Gentium”, 8)” (Bl. John Paul II, “Opening Ad-
dress to the Third General Conference of Latin American Bishops”, 28 January
1979).
Christianity, therefore, must not be confused with any social or political ideology,
however excellent. “I do not approve of committed Christians in the world forming
a political-religious movement. That would be madness, even if it were motivated
by a desire to spread the spirit of Christ in all the activities of men. What we have
to do is put God in the heart of every single person, no matter who he is. Let us
try to speak then in such a way that every Christian is able to bear witness to the
faith he professes by example and word in his own circumstances, which are de-
termined alike by his place in the Church and in civil life, as well as by ongoing
events.
“By the very fact of being a man, a Christian has a full right to live in the world. If
he lets Christ live and reign in his heart, he will feel—quite noticeably—the saving
effectiveness of our Lord in everything he does” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing
By”, 183).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
1. After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias.
2. And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased.
3. And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples.
4. And the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh.
5. When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come to him, he said to Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6. And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.
7. Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.
8. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, says to him,
9. There is a lad here, which has five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
10. And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.
11. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
12. When they were filled, he said to his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.
13. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above to them that had eaten.
14. Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world.
CHRYS. As missiles rebound with great force from a hard body, and fly off in all directions, whereas a softer material retains and stops them; so violent men are only excited to greater rage by violence on the side of their opponents, whereas gentleness softens them. Christ quieted the irritation of the Jews by retiring from Jerusalem. He went into Galilee, but not to Cana again, but beyond the sea: After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias.
ALCUIN. This sea has different names, from the different places with which it is connected; the sea of Galilee, from the province; the sea of Tiberias, from the city of that name. It is called a sea, though it is not salt water, that name being applied to all large pieces of water, in Hebrew. This sea our Lord often passes over, in going to preach to the people bordering on it.
THEOPHYL. He goes from place to place to try the dispositions of people, and excite a desire to hear Him: And a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His miracles which He did on them that were diseased.
ALCUIN. viz. His giving sight to the blind, and other like miracles. And it should be understood, that all, whom He healed in body, He renewed likewise in soul.
CHRYS. Though favored with such teaching, they were influenced less by it, than by the miracles; a sign of their low state of belief: for Paul says of tongues, that they are for a sign, not to them that believe, I but to them that believe not. They were wiser of whom it is said, that they were astonished at His doctrine. The Evangelist does not say what miracles He wrought, the great object of his book being to give our Lord's discourses. It follows: And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there sat with His disciples. He went up into the mountain, on account of the miracle which was going to be done. That the disciples alone ascended with Him, implies that the people w ho stayed behind were in fault for not following. He went up to the mountain too, as a lesson to us to retire from the tumult and confusion of the world, and leave wisdom in solitude. And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. Observe, in a whole year, the Evangelist has told us of no miracles of Christ, except His healing the impotent man, and the nobleman's son. His object was to give not a regular history, but only a few of the principal acts of our Lord. But why did not our Lord go up to the feast? He was taking occasion, from the wickedness of the Jews, gradually to abolish the Law.
THEOPHYL. The persecutions of the Jews gave Him reason for retiring, and thus setting aside the Law. The truth being now revealed, types were at an end, and He was under no obligation to keep the Jewish feasts. Observe the expression, a feast of the Jews, not a feast of Christ.
BEDE. If we compare the accounts of the different Evangelists, we shall find very clearly, that there was an interval of a year between the beheading of John, and our Lord's Passion. For, since Matthew says that our Lord, on hearing of the death of John, withdrew into a desert place, where He fed the multitude; and John says that the Passover was nigh, when He fed the multitude; it is evident that John was beheaded shortly before the Passover. And at the same feast, the next year Christ suffered. It follows, When Jesus then lifted up His eyes, and saw a great company come to Him, He said to Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? When Jesus lifted up His eyes, this is to show us, that Jesus was not generally with His eyes lifted up, looking about Him, but sitting calm and attentive, surrounded by His disciples.
CHRYS. Nor did He only sit with His disciples, but conversed with them familiarly, and gained possession of their minds. Then He looked, and saw a crowd advancing. But why did He ask Philip that question? Because He knew that His disciples, and he especially, needed further teaching. For this Philip it was who said afterwards, Show us the Father, and it suffices us. And if the miracle had been performed at once, without any introduction, the greatness of it would not have been seen. The disciples were made to confess their own inability, that they might see the miracle more clearly; And this He said to prove him.
AUG. One kind of temptation leads to sin, with which God never tempts any one; and there is another kind by which faith is tried. In this sense it is said that Christ proved His disciple. This is not meant to imply that He did not know what Philip would say; but is an accommodation to men's way of speaking. For as the expression, Who searches the hearts of men, does not mean the searching of ignorance, but of absolute knowledge; so here, when it is said that our Lord proved Philip, we must understand that He knew him perfectly, but that He tried him, in order to confirm his faith. The Evangelist himself guards against the mistake which this imperfect mode of speaking might occasion, by adding, For He Himself knew what He would do.
ALCUIN. He asks him this question, not for His own information, but in order to show His yet unformed disciple his dullness of mind, which he could not perceive of himself.
THEOPHYL. Or to show others it. He was not ignorant of His disciple's heart Himself.
AUG. But if our Lord, according to John's account, on seeing the multitude, asked Philip, tempting him, whence they could buy food for them, it is difficult at first to see how it can be true, according to the other account, that the disciples first told our Lord, to send away the multitude; and that our Lord replied, They need not depart; give you them to eat. We must understand then it was after saying this, that our Lord saw the multitude, and said to Philip what John had related, which has been omitted by the rest.
CHRYS. Or they are two different occasions altogether.
THEOPHYL. Thus tried by our Lord, Philip was found to be possessed which human notions, as appears from what follows, Philip answered Him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.
ALCUIN. Wherein he shows his dullness: for, had he perfect ideas of his Creator, he would not be thus doubting His power.
AUG. The reply, which is attributed to Philip by John, Mark puts in the mouth of all the disciples, either meaning us to understand that Philip spoke for the rest, or else putting the plural number for the singular, which is often done.
THEOPHYL. Andrew is in the same perplexity that Philip is; only he has rather higher notions of our Lord: There its a lad here which has five barley loaves and two small fishes.
CHRYS. Probably He had some reason in his mind for this speech. He would know of Elijah's miracle, by which a hundred men were fed with twenty loaves. This was a great step; but here he stopped. He did not rise any higher. For his next words are, But what are these among so many? He thought that less could produce less in a miracle, and more more; a great mistake; inasmuch as it was as easy for Christ to feed the multitude from a few fishes as from many. He did not really want any material to work from, but only made use of created things for this purpose in order to show that no part of the creation was severed from His wisdom.
THEOPHYL. This passage confounds the Manicheans, who say that bread and all such things were created by an evil Deity. The Son of the good God, Jesus Christ, multiplied the loaves. Therefore they could not have been naturally evil; a good God would never have multiplied what was evil.
AUG. Andrew's suggestion about the five loaves and two fishes, is given as coming from the disciples in general, in the other Evangelists, and the plural number is used.
CHRYS. And let those of us, who are given to pleasure, observe the plain and abstemious eating of those great and wonderful men. He made the men sit down before the loaves appeared, to teach us that with Him, things teat are not are as things that are, as Paul says, Who calls those things that be not, as though they were. The passage proceeds then: And Jesus said, Make the men sit down.
ALCUIN. Sit down, i.e. lie down, as the ancient custom w as, which they could do, as there was much grass in the place.
THEOPHYL. i.e. green grass. It was the time of the Passover, which was kept the first month of the spring. So the men sat down in number about five thousand. The Evangelist only counts the men following the direction in the law. Moses numbered the people from twenty years old and upwards, making no mention of the women; to signify that the manly and juvenile character is especially honorable in God's eyes. And Jesus took the loaves; and when He had given thanks, He distributed to them that were sat down: and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
CHRYS. But why when He is going to heal the impotent, to raise the dead, to calm the sea, does He not pray, but here does give thanks? To teach us to give thanks to God, whenever we sit down to eat. And He prays more in lesser matters, in order to show that He does not pray from any motive of need. For had prayer been really necessary to supply His wants, His praying would have been in proportion to the importance of each particular work. But acting, as He does, on His own authority, it is evident, He only prays out of condescension to us. And, as a great multitude was collected, it was an opportunity of impressing on them, that His coming was in accordance with God's will. Accordingly, when a miracle was private, He did not pray; when numbers were present, He did.
HILARY. Five loaves are then set before the multitude, and broken. The broken portions pass through into the hands of those who break, that from which they are broken all the time not at all diminishing. And yet there they are, the bits taken from it, in the hands of the persons breaking. There is no catching by eye or touch the miraculous operation: that is, which was not, that is seen, which is not understood. It only remains for us to believe that God can do all things.
AUG. He multiplied in His hands the five loaves, just as He produces harvest out of a few grains. There was a power in the hands of Christ; and those five loaves were, as it were, seeds, not indeed committed to the earth, but multiplied by Him who made the earth.
CHRYS. Observe the difference between the servant and the lord. The Prophets received grace, as it were, by measure, and according to that measure performed their miracles: whereas Christ, working this by His own absolute power, produces a kind of super abundant result. When they were filled, He said to His disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments. This was not done for needless ostentation, but to prevent men from thinking the whole a delusion; which was the reason why He made use of an existing material to work from. But why did He give the fragments to His disciples to carry away, and not to the multitude? Because the disciples were to be the teachers of the world, and therefore it was most important that the truth should be impressed upon them. Wherefore I admire not only the multitude of the loaves which were made, but the definite quantity of the fragments; neither more nor less than twelve baskets full, and corresponding to the number of the twelve Apostles.
THEOPHYL. We learn too from this miracle, not to be pusillanimous in the greatest straits of poverty.
BEDE. When the multitude saw the miracle our Lord had done, they marveled; as they did not know yet that He was God. Then those men, the Evangelist adds, i.e. carnal men, whose understanding was carnal, when they had perceived the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world.
ALCUIN. Their faith being as yet weak, they only call our Lord a Prophet not knowing that He was God. But the miracle had produced considerable effect upon them, as it made them call our Lord that Prophet, singling Him out from the rest. They call Him a Prophet, because some of the Prophets had worked miracles; and properly, inasmuch as our Lord calls Himself a Prophet; It cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.
AUG. Christ is a Prophet and the Lord of Prophets; as He is an Angel, and the Lord of Angels. In that He came to announce something, He was an Angel; in that He foretold the future, He was a Prophet; in that He was the Word made flesh, He was Lord both of Angels and Prophets; for none can be a Prophet without the word of God.
CHRYS. Their expression, that should come into the world, shows that they expected the arrival of some great Prophet. And this is why they say, This is of a truth that Prophet: the article being put in the Greek, to show that He was distinct from other Prophets.
AUG. But let us reflect a little here. Forasmuch as the Divine Substance is not visible to the eye, and the miracles of the divine government of the world, and ordering of the whole creation, are overlooked in consequence of their constancy; God has reserved to Himself acts, beside the established course and order of nature, to do at suitable times; in order that those who overlooked the daily course of nature, might be roused to wonder by the sight of what was different from, though not at all greater, than what they were used to. The government of the world is a greater miracle, than the satisfying the hunger of five thousand with five loaves; and yet no one wonders at this: the former excited wonder; not from any real superiority in it, but because it was uncommon. But it would be wrong to gather no more than this from Christ's miracles: for, the Lord who is on the mount, and the Word of God which is on high, the same is no humble person to be lightly passed over, but we must look up to Him reverently.
ALCUIN. Mystically, the sea signifies this tumultuous world. In the fullness of time, when Christ had entered the sea of our mortality by His birth, trodden it by His death, passed over it by His resurrection, then followed Him crowds of believers, both from the Jews and Gentiles.
BEDE. Our Lord went up to the mountain, when He ascended to heaven, which is signified by the mountain.
ALCUIN. His leaving the multitude below, and ascending the heights with His disciples, signifies, that lesser precepts are to be given to beginners, higher to the more matured. His refreshing the people shortly before the Passover signifies our refreshment by the bread of the divine word; and the body and blood, i.e. our spiritual passover, by which we pass over from vice to virtue. And the Lord's eyes are spiritual gifts, which he mercifully bestows on His Elect. He turns His eyes upon them, i.e. has compassionate respect to them.
AUG. The five barley loaves signify the old law; either because the law was given to men not as yet spiritual, but carnal, i.e. under the dominion of the five senses, (the multitude itself consisted of five thousand:) or because the Law itself was given by Moses in five books. And the loaves being of barley is also an allusion to the Law, which concealed the soul's vital nourishment, under carnal ceremonies. For in barley the corn itself is buried under the most tenacious husk. Or, it alludes to the people who were not yet freed from the husk of carnal appetite, which cling to their heart.
BEDE. Barley is the food of cattle and slaves: and the old law was given to slaves and cattle, i.e. to carnal men.
AUG. The two fishes again, that gave the pleasant taste to the bread, seem to signify the two authorities by which the people were governed, the Royal, viz. and the Priestly; both of which prefigure our Lord, who sustained both characters.
BEDE. Or, by the two fishes are meant the saying or writings of the Prophets, and the Psalmist. And whereas the number five refers to the five senses, a thousand stands for perfection. But those who strive to obtain the perfect government of their five senses, are called men, in consequence of their superior powers: they have no womanly weaknesses; but by a sober and chaste life, earn the sweet refreshment of heavenly wisdom.
AUG. The boy who had these is perhaps the Jewish people, who, as it were, carried the loaves and fishes after a servile fashion, and did not eat them. That which they carried, while shut up, was only a burden to them; when opened became their food
BEDE. And well is it said, But what are these among so many? The Law was of little avail, till He took it into His hand, i.e. fulfilled it, and gave it a spiritual meaning. The Law made nothing perfect.
AUG. By the act of breaking He multiplied the five loaves. The five books of Moses, when expounded by breaking, i.e. unfolding them, made many books.
AUG. Our Lord by breaking, as it were, what was hard in the Law, and opening what was shut, that time when He opened the Scriptures to the disciples after the resurrection, brought the Law out in its full meaning.
AUG. Our Lord's question proved the ignorance of His disciples, i.e. the people's ignorance of the Law. They lay on the grass, i.e. were carnally minded, rested in carnal things, for all flesh is grass. Men are filled with the loaves, when what they hear with the ear, they fulfill in practice.
AUG. And what are the fragments, but the parts which the people could not eat? An intimation, that those deeper truths, which the multitude cannot take in, should be entrusted to those who are capable of receiving them, and afterwards teaching them to others; as were the Apostles. For which reason twelve baskets were filled with them.
ALCUIN. Baskets are used for servile work. The baskets here are the Apostles and their followers, who, though despised in this present life, are within filled with the riches of spiritual sacraments. The Apostles too are represented as baskets, because, that through them, the doctrine of the Trinity was to be preached in the four parts of the world. His not making new loaves, but multiplying what there were, means that He did not reject the Old Testament, but only developed and explained it.
15. When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.
BEDE. The multitude concluding, from so great a miracle, that He was merciful and powerful, wished to make Him a king. For men like having a merciful king to rule over them, and a powerful one to protect them. Our Lord knowing this, retired to the mountain: When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take Him by force to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain Himself alone. From this we gather, that our Lord went down from the mountain before, where He was sitting with His disciples, when He saw the multitude coming, and had fed them on the plain below. For how could He go up to the mountain again, unless He had come down from it.
AUG. This is not at all inconsistent with what we read, that He went up into a mountain apart to pray: the object of escape being quite compatible with that of prayer. Indeed our Lord teaches us here, that whenever escape is necessary, there is great necessity for prayer.
AUG. Yet He who feared to be made a king, was a king; not made king by men, (for He ever reigns with the Father, in that He is the Son of God,) but making men kings: which kingdom of His the Prophets had foretold. Christ by being made man, made the believers in Him Christians, i.e. members of His kingdom, incorporated and purchased by His Word. And this kingdom will be made manifest, after the judgment; when the brightness of His saints shall be revealed. The disciples however, and the multitude who believed in Him thought that He had come to reign now; and so would have taken Him by force, to make Him a king, wishing to anticipate His time, which He kept secret.
CHRYS. See what the belly can do. They care no more for the violation of the Sabbath; all their zeal for God is fled, now that their bellies are filled: Christ has become a Prophet, and they wish to enthrone Him as king. But Christ makes His escape; to teach us to despise the dignities of the world. He dismisses His disciples, and goes up into the mountain. - These, when their Master had left them went down in the evening to the sea; as we read; And when even was now come, His disciples went down to the sea. They waited till evening, thinking He would come to them; and then, as He did not come, delayed no longer searching for Him, but in the ardor of love, entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. They went to Capernaum thinking they should find Him there.
Catena Aurea John 6
The following is the longer version of the vital prayer composed by Pope Leo XIII in 1888 after his startling vision as to the future of the Church. This prayer was dedicated for the Feast of St. Michael 1448 years from the date of the election of the first Leo - Pope Saint Leo the Great. Everyone is familiar with the first prayer below which was mandated by His Holiness as part of the Leonine Prayers after Low Mass. After Vatican II, in legion with the devil Giovanni Montini outlawed this necessary prayer and then one wonders how "the smoke of satan" got into the sanctuary? The conciliarists wanted to make sure the words in bold below would never see the light of day again for in it Leo foretold what would happen: The shepherd would be struck, the sheep scattered. Below are both the short and longer versions of this poignant prayer which should never be forgotten.
Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray, and do thou, O heavenly hosts, by the power of God, thrust into hell satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.Look down upon me, O good and gentle Jesus, while before Thy face I humbly kneel, and with burning soul pray and beseech Thee to fix deep in my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity, true contrition for my sins, and a firm purpose of amendment; the while I contemplate with great love and tender pity Thy five most precious wounds, pondering over them within me, calling to mind the words which David Thy prophet said of Thee, my good Jesus: "They have pierced My hands and My feet; they have numbered all My bones."
PRAYERS AFTER 
