One of the most profound truths of Scripture is that ‘man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.’ This was originally said by Moses to the Israelites (Deut 8:3) to remind them that God sustained them with manna in the wilderness. Jesus famously quoted it (Mt 4:4) to defeat temptation, emphasising that, like physical food, spiritual food is indispensable.
Today’s readings turn the spotlight on just that — physical food — but the final thrust is on the spiritual nourishment. In the First Reading (Is 55:1-3), the Lord calls us who are thirsty to come to the water; those who have no money, to come and receive grain, drink wine and milk — all of it for free. But He does not stop there. He comments on earthly food, saying ‘Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy?’
Very much so. The bread we eat lets us live; but to live eternally, only what comes from God’s hand can help. Hence, an early church tradition about organised charity says that material relief should be dispensed through the parish structure, where recipients could simultaneously receive spiritual instruction: food for the body and for the soul, hand in hand.
A question that strikes us about the Gospel (Mt 14:13-21) is: why did Jesus withdraw to a deserted place when He heard of the death of John the Baptist? Was it an act of cowardice or of indifference? He was turning away from the noise of the public, to grieve and to pray to the Father for strength to align His human will with the unfolding Paschal Mystery. It was not an act of prudence or cowardice to avoid a premature confrontation with Herod.
The Evangelist does not speak of any protest or even a mere murmur of discontent. The crowds went about their daily chores. We could say they forgot everything else and set their eyes on the Lord – the Bread of Life and the Living Water – who is gracious, merciful, kind, compassionate, just, and truthful, was moved with pity for them. He did not insist they looked heavenward but promptly satisfied their immediate need: physical hunger.
While the disciples wanted Jesus to dismiss the crowds and have them go find food for themselves, Jesus said: ‘There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.’ Jesus taught them that when God is with us, there is nothing we can want. Just as He partakes of our joys and sorrows, we must show concern and exercise charity in everyday life.
But then, like the disciples who said, ‘Five loaves and two fish are all we have here,’ we too complain that we don’t have much, don’t we? Instead, why not simply fall back on God, who is our Provider and Physician? Jesus teaches us a lesson in how to ask God, in how to pray. As the Gospel says, ‘Looking up to heaven, He said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds.’
Beyond the act of satisfying physical hunger, Jesus provided a powerful prefigurement of the Holy Eucharist by performing the exact actions of taking, blessing, breaking, and giving the loaves. It is not a symbol but a reality, not just a remembrance but true sustenance. Several saints and mystics have subsisted entirely on the Holy Eucharist without other food or drink.[1] That’s because God’s grace is never scarce; it is a superabundant gift.
St Paul in the Second Reading (Rom 8:35, 37-39) says that nothing should separate us from the love of Christ — neither anguish, nor distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, or the sword — simply nothing! On the contrary, ‘in all these things, we conquer overwhelmingly through Him who loved us.’
In fact, we can safely say that those who have God have everything; those without Him, even if they have everything else, have nothing. In God alone, we live a whole life.
[1] It is a phenomenon called inedia, mystical fasting, examples of which are St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380), an Italian Catholic mystic and diplomat; St Nicolau of Flue (1417-1487), a Swiss hermit and ascetic who is the patron saint of Switzerland; Servant of God Teresa Neumann (1898-1962), a German Catholic mystic and stigmatist; Venerable Marthe Robin (1902-1981), a French Roman Catholic mystic and stigmatist and founder of the Foyers de Charité association; and Blessed Alexandrina Maria da Costa (1904-1955), a Portuguese mystic and victim soul.