Psalm 23:5: You set a table before me in front of
my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows
John 6: 48-58;
“’I am the bread of life. Your fathers
ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes
down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread
which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for
ever; and the bread
which I shall give
for the life of the world is my flesh.’ The Jews then disputed among
themselves, saying, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’ So Jesus said
to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of
man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he
who eats my flesh
and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh
and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me,
and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me.
This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and
died; he who eats this bread will live for ever.’"
One of the pleasant surprises we encountered on our
pilgrimage in Poland was the amazing breakfast spread laid out before us in
every hotel on our travels. I will never forget the first morning I entered the
dining room and stood speechless at the tables of cheeses, sweet fruit spreads,
eggs, meats, fruits, cereals, breads, wonderful coffee and tea choices, and a
variety of local specialties. Dinner was always a delightful traditional meal
served with wonderful bread and choice wines. We lacked for nothing. I felt special,
important, loved and cared for. I felt the hotel management wanted me to be
well-fed, but also to experience the pride they felt in their national foods. I
remember my grandmother always made a feast on Sundays. Cranking pasta from a
machine she had set up in the kitchen, she would give us orders to set the
table with the finest cloth and the best china. It was Sunday, after all, and
in a traditional Italian home at that time, Sunday dinner meant you never knew
what relatives would show up for dinner, held in the early afternoon so
everyone would have plenty of time to eat!!
Grandma was proud of her cooking, and loved to share it, much like the
hotel personnel we experienced in Poland.
The above passages show us that God feels the same way toward
us. His sets His table before us every day at Mass; He provides for our hunger,
our spiritual hunger, with the best He has to offer: His only begotten Son. No
matter how much food I ate at breakfast, and I ate quite a bit, I was always
hungry later on. Although the food
matched the Old Testament description of juicy food and choice wine, it did not
satisfy for very long. Christ tells us that the bread and wine set upon the
table of the Eucharist, changed into His Body and Blood, will keep us alive
forever. Every day at Mass I remind myself that the Bread I am about to receive
is the only necessary food in my life. Christ tells me that, in this partaking
of the Body and Blood of Christ, I will be filled with life and have the craving inside
of me fulfilled.
Every day while I was in Poland, I enjoyed delicious
food, and I am thankful for that. Every day while I was in Poland, Fr. Neil,
our spiritual director, said Mass for us in a beautiful church. He consecrated
the bread and wine, and fed our souls. I am eternally thankful for that. The
one table spread before me lasted but few hours; the holy table set before me
in all the churches we entered will keep me alive for eternity. Thank you God,
for good food, good wine, and good meal companions. Thank you God, for the
Eucharist, for priests who can and do consecrate, for the faithful, who join me
in this meal, and for the promise of life to come, which is the best gift of
all.
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