From: John 6:30-35
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
[35] Jesus said them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hun-
ger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”
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Commentary:
28-34. This dialogue between Jesus and His hearers is reminiscent of the epi-
sode of the Samaritan woman (cf. John 4:11-15). On that occasion Jesus was
speaking about water springing up to eternal life; here, He speaks of bread co-
ming down from Heaven to give to the world. There, the woman was asking Je-
sus if He was greater than Jacob; here the people want to know if He can com-
pare with Moses (cf. Exodus 16:13). “The Lord spoke of Himself in a way that
made Him seem superior to Moses, for Moses never dared to say that he would
give food which would never perish but would endure to eternal life. Jesus promi-
ses much more than Moses. Moses promised a kingdom, and a land flowing
with milk and honey, good health and other temporal blessings [...], plenty for
the belly, but food which perishes; whereas Christ promised food which never
perishes but which endures forever” (St. Augustine, “In Ioann. Evang.”, 25:12).
These people know that the manna — food which the Jews collected every day
during the journey through the wilderness (cf. Exodus 16:13ff) — symbolized mes-
sianic blessings; which was why they asked our Lord for a dramatic sign like the
manna. But there was no way they could suspect that the manna was a figure
of a great supernatural messianic gift which Christ was bringing to mankind —
the Blessed Eucharist. In this dialogue and in the first part of the discourse (ver-
ses 35-47), the main thing Jesus is trying to do is bring them to make an act of
faith in Him, so that He can then openly reveal to them the mystery of the Bles-
sed Eucharist — that He is the bread “which comes down from Heaven, and gives
life to the world” (verse 33). Also, St. Paul explains that the manna and the other
marvels which happened in the wilderness were a clear prefiguring of Jesus
Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:3-4).
The disbelieving attitude of these Jews prevented them from accepting what Je-
sus revealed. To accept the mystery of the Eucharist, faith is required, as Paul
VI stressed: “In the first place we want to remind you that the Eucharist is a very
great mystery; strictly speaking, to use the words of sacred liturgy, it is ‘the mys-
tery of faith’. This is something well known to you but it is essential to the pur-
pose of rejecting any poisonous rationalism. Many martyrs have witnessed to
it with their blood. Distinguished Fathers and Doctors of the Church in unbroken
succession have taught and professed it. [...] We must, therefore, approach this
mystery, above all, with humble reverence, not following human arguments,
which ought to be hushed, but in steadfast adherence to divine revelation”
(”Mysterium Fidei”).
35. Going to Jesus means believing in Him, for it is through faith that we ap-
proach our Lord. Jesus uses the metaphor of food and drink to show that He is
the one who really meets all man’s noblest aspirations: “How beautiful is our Ca-
tholic faith! It provides a solution for all our anxieties, calms our minds and fills
our hearts with hope” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 582).
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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.
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading | Acts 7:51-8:1 © |
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'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit' |
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Responsorial Psalm |
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Psalm 30(31):3-4,6,8,17,21 © |
Gospel Acclamation | Jn10:14 |
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Or: | Jn6:35 |
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Gospel | John 6:30-35 © |
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It is my Father who gives you the bread from heaven |
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