Sermon for the 4th Sunday in Lent, March 27th, 2022

 

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.

 

My dearly beloved in Our Lord,

 

Today we hear about the miraculous multiplication of bread and fishes by Our Blessed Lord. It is the only one related by St John. The other Gospels tell us that such a miracle happened twice.

In St John the multiplication of bread is the first part of chapter 6. It is followed by Our Lord joining the disciples who make their way over the lake during the night. He is walking on the water and then brings them to the shore. The next day many of those who had benefited from the multiplied food, come again to Our Lord whom they want to make their king. He follows up on the miracle by teaching them about him being the true bread of life that has come from Heaven. Ultimately he announces that he will feed his children with his own body and blood. “Many therefore of his disciples, hearing it, said: This saying is hard, and who can hear it?” (Jn 6:61) “After this many of his disciples went back; and walked no more with him.” (Jn 6:67)

St Paul in today’s Epistle explains the same reality as Our Lord on this occasion. Christ says: “It is the spirit that quickeneth: the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I have spoken to you, are spirit and life. But there are some of you that believe not.” (Jn 6:64-65) St Paul explains, speaking about the two sons of Abraham: “Which things are said by an allegory… Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he, that was born according to the flesh, persecuted him that was after the spirit; so also it is now.”

The earthly, sensible reality is certainly real. It is not itself an allegory or an analogy or a figment of our mind. But it always contains an allegory because it points to something more, something higher: All creatures are a trace of the Creator. The human soul is even an image and a likeness of God, as the book Genesis says: “And he said: Let us make man to our image and likeness… And God created man to his own image: to the image of God he created him: male and female he created them.” (Gen 1:26.27)

The miracle by which Our Lord multiplied food to feed several thousand people, is a historical fact. But it is also an allegory of the Holy Eucharist. We receive the Eucharist in the manner of food. But it is not meant to feed our body, but our soul. It is the greatest of the seven Sacraments because it contains sacramentally, truly and really and substantially the giver of grace himself. Anyone who does not discern this invisible reality from the physical host, eats it for his own condemnation, as St Paul teaches us on Maundy Thursday and on Corpus Christi: “For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord.” (1Cor 11:29)

The perennial philosophy, that of the Scholastics and in particular of St Thomas Aquinas, is called realism. It takes things for real, and for what they really are. This includes different levels of being, hence the fundamental and necessary distinctions of actual and potential; material and formal, and substantial and accidental. Every time one aspect is lost, or over- or under-stated, catastrophe looms over our heads. For ideas have consequences!

This realism of thought and ideas also allows us to be truly humble. It is easy for anyone to discern true from false and affected humility. True humility comes through many humiliations which we accept willingly instead of puffing ourselves up. It consists in holding our place in life which God has assigned us, and not as we wish or dream it.

Holy Church is a most perfect and sensible teacher and educator. Only we need to make ourselves better aware of what she teaches and shows us. This is true with regards to humility also.

Take the rites of Holy Mass for example. The priest through sacred Ordination possesses a power that is beyond that of the Angels, that of bringing down Our Lord sacramentally on the altar in the Consecration of bread and wine.

Still, he has to make himself small, again and again. A number of times he must bow down or genuflect.

In the Confiteor he has to confess that he is a sinner. Although having been made similar to the Eternal High Priest, he remains a human being and therefore an imperfect tool for God’s service.

At the end of the Offertory he turns to the people and humbly, with a subdued voice, says “Orate, fratres – Brethren, pray that my Sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God the Father almighty.” He thereby admits that it is not of his own doing, but by that of Holy Church, represented by those assisting at Mass, that the great work and the miracle of the unbloody reenactment of the Sacrifice on the Cross happens.

Before the solemn conclusion of the Canon the priest says in a slightly audible voice, striking his breast: “Nobis quoque peccatoribus - To us also, Thy sinful servants, confiding in the multitude of Thy mercies…” Even in the middle of the silent sacred action the priest confesses that he is among the sinners.

To prepare for the Communion of the Host, the priest bows and says thrice, again in an audible voice, the words which so pleased Our Lord when he heard them from a Roman officer: “Domine, non sum dignus… Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst enter under my roof; say but the word, and my soul shall be healed.”

These are but a few examples of how Holy Church teaches her servants and her children to pray and to behave. We seek not an earthly glory, but a heavenly one!

We should realize this better on this Sunday when we hear of the multiplication of bread. The crowds get it wrong, totally wrong. They seek to make Christ their earthly king so they need not worry about food again. The Samaritan woman did the same when Christ started to teach her about the true life, promising her living water. “The woman saith to him: Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come hither to draw.” (Jn 4:15) Our Lord promised her life everlasting, she cares about food and drink… It is similar to people winning a jackpot (not that I encourage anyone to play those games!): What are they going to do with heaps of money? Some go crazy, others lead a bad, sinful life of pleasure. What is the use of it? Ten days ago on Thursday we have read the parable where Our Lord compares a rich man who feasted sumptuously every day and a poor beggar named Lazarus, full of sores (cf Lk 16:19-20) and whom even the leftovers from the rich man’s table are refused. Both die and receive their just reward. The rich man is buried in Hell for his lack of charity, and Lazarus finds himself in the bosom of Abraham, in Heaven, for his sufferings endured patiently. “For what doth it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his own soul? Or what exchange shall a man give for his soul?” (Mt 16:26; Mk 8:3)

Let us study and consider what God’s thoughts and ways are, and then go by them, and not our own devices! Let us conform our will to God’s will which is perfect and holy. Let us lead a decent life according to our condition, and strive for no other glory but that of Heaven.

 

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.

 P. Arnold Trauner (paterarnold@hotmail.com), njemački i engleski.