Notes from the Pastor

God gave the Israelites bread from Heaven to sustain them on their desert journey to the Promised Land. The manna appeared on the ground each day near the place where the people were camped. They could gather only what they needed for the day. If anyone tried to hoard more than a day’s portion, it would spoil by the following morning. Only on the sixth day could they gather and save enough for two days, so that they could observe the Sabbath rest on the seventh day. This manna truly was daily bread.

“The more you have, the happier you will be,” seems to define the false values of many people in our modern world. For them, the pursuit of wealth is too often associated with the pursuit of happiness. Unfortunately, many find out too late that a lifestyle of rampant materialism and individualism fueled by greed is full of nothing more than empty promises and dead ends. The socalled “lifestyles of the rich and famous” may bring earthly comfort in the short term, but are rarely, if ever, in conformity with the Gospel message.

Jesus cure during his years of public ministry? Hundreds? Thousands? The Gospels offer specific stories of the healing of individuals, but we are also told that Jesus went to various towns and villages and cured great crowds of people, either from physical illness or from possession by unclean spirits. Jesus’ heart was moved with pity, not only for individuals, but also for the crowds who came to him.

Despite the many advances that have been made in modern technology over the years to help farmers increase the productivity of their fields, they still face some of the same challenges and obstacles that were faced by the farmers of Jesus’ time and even earlier. One of the most significant challenges is the weather, which seems to defy human abilities to accurately predict or control. In our First Reading (Isaiah 55:10-11), Isaiah compares the farmer’s efforts to yield a bountiful harvest with that of the preacher or prophet attempting to sow the seeds of God’s word so that faith may result in the hearts of believers.

Today’s Gospel contains one of the most encouraging invitations Jesus ever issued – “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” What an offer! Yet, in a society such as ours that fosters individualism and independence, even believers sometimes fail to take advantage of Jesus’ offer. Sooner or later, every life encounters labors and burdens. They can be in the form of health problems, family disharmony, or financial difficulties. They can arise from past evils that still haunt us, from the present worries that distract us, or from insecurities about the future that immobilize us. In whatever form or at whatever time they appear, Jesus shares this invitation with us - “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.”

In Chapter 7 of the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus warns his followers to be on guard against following false prophets. He cautions: “You can tell a tree by its fruit.” (Matthew 7:20) In a sense, Jesus is including all of us in this teaching, saying that the fruit of our lives will reveal our true nature. Are we truly His sheep, or are we wolves in sheep’s clothing? Are we doing our part to carry out the Church’s saving mission and share the Gospel message through our words and the way in which we live our lives? Will the fruit that we bear with our lives show us to be followers of Jesus, or will it contradict what we claim to believe in?

In every age, Christ and his Church have been persecuted. Despite his message of love and compassion (or perhaps, because of it), Jesus was taunted by people of his time – by both religious authorities and ordinary people alike. Even his death on the Cross and his victorious Resurrection did not convince every person that he was the Son of God; the promised Messiah. Some of his own followers abandoned him. His Apostles faced ridicule and death. Countless early Christians were martyred for their faith.

Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi). This is a time to celebrate – in a particularly focused way – what we celebrate and believe every time we gather at Christ’s altar for Mass. That is, we profess the Real Presence of the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ in the elements of, and under the appearance of, bread and wine in the Most Holy Eucharist.