"There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves." (Mt 14:16)
READING OF THE DAY
A reading from the Book of Jeremiah
Jer 28:1-17
In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah,
in the fifth month of the fourth year,
the prophet Hananiah, son of Azzur, from Gibeon,
said to me in the house of the LORD
in the presence of the priests and all the people:
“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
‘I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.
Within two years I will restore to this place
all the vessels of the temple of the LORD which Nebuchadnezzar,
king of Babylon, took away from this place to Babylon.
And I will bring back to this place Jeconiah,
son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah,
and all the exiles of Judah who went to Babylon,’ says the LORD,
‘for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.’”
The prophet Jeremiah answered the prophet Hananiah
in the presence of the priests and all the people assembled
in the house of the LORD, and said:
Amen! thus may the LORD do!
May he fulfill the things you have prophesied
by bringing the vessels of the house of the LORD
and all the exiles back from Babylon to this place!
But now, listen to what I am about to state in your hearing
and the hearing of all the people.
From of old, the prophets who were before you and me prophesied
war, woe, and pestilence against many lands and mighty kingdoms.
But the prophet who prophesies peace
is recognized as truly sent by the LORD
only when his prophetic prediction is fulfilled.
Thereupon the prophet Hananiah took the yoke
from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah and broke it,
and said in the presence of all the people:
“Thus says the LORD: ‘Even so, within two years
I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon,
from off the neck of all the nations.’”
At that, the prophet Jeremiah went away.
Some time after the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke
from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah,
The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:
Go tell Hananiah this:
Thus says the LORD:
By breaking a wooden yoke, you forge an iron yoke!
For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
A yoke of iron I will place on the necks
of all these nations serving Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon,
and they shall serve him; even the beasts of the field I give him.
To the prophet Hananiah the prophet Jeremiah said:
Hear this, Hananiah!
The LORD has not sent you,
and you have raised false confidence in this people.
For this, says the LORD, I will dispatch you from the face of the earth;
this very year you shall die,
because you have preached rebellion against the LORD.
That same year, in the seventh month, Hananiah the prophet died.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to Matthew
Mt 14:13-21
When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist,
he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself.
The crowds heard of this and followed him on foot from their towns.
When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick.
When it was evening, the disciples approached him and said,
"This is a deserted place and it is already late;
dismiss the crowds so that they can go to the villages
and buy food for themselves."
He said to them, "There is no need for them to go away;
give them some food yourselves."
But they said to him,
"Five loaves and two fish are all we have here."
Then he said, "Bring them here to me,"
and he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass.
Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and 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.
They all ate and were satisfied,
and they picked up the fragments left over–
twelve wicker baskets full.
Those who ate were about five thousand men,
not counting women and children.
MONDAY OF THE EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Mt 14:13-21
THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE
Dear People of God,
The Word of God in today's Gospel recounts the miracle of Jesus multiplying loaves of bread to feed the people. This reveals the love of God who always loves and is with people in the Sacrament of the Eucharist.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to earth to become a human being. He suffered, died, and was resurrected, and He will be with humanity until the end of the world, that is in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. The Sacrament of the Eucharist is the Body of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. During the Mass, after the priest prays the words of consecration and prays over the bread and wine: "This is My body, which will be given for you; this is My blood, this cup is the new covenant, which will be shed for you." It is then, that God becomes truly present in the bread and wine.
All those who have absolute faith and love in God will recognize the God of Love who is truly present in the Holy Eucharist.
Today, the Word of God would like to call everyone to acknowledge the love that God has for mankind which led Him to sacrifice His own life for humanity. Those who love God should come and remain with Him in the Holy Eucharist. Those who want to become one with Him must purify their souls to welcome the Son of God into their hearts. He also wants to remind everyone that: where there is God, there is peace and happiness, and there is the Kingdom of Heaven.
Therefore, everyone should come to the love of the Holy Trinity God who is present in the Holy Eucharist. He always opens His heart to welcome all His children.
When Jesus saw the crowd, He was moved with compassion, and through that compassion, He prayed to God the Father to perform a miracle to multiply five loaves of bread and two fish to feed the people to their fill.
This is also the image of the Holy Eucharist that God wants to give to people so that when people welcome Him into their hearts, they will be nourished by Him in body and soul. Where God reigns, there is peace and happiness. There is nothing happier than having God reign in your heart.
We should give thanks to God for keeping our souls pure so that God can reign in our hearts because the soul of each person is the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, when committing a grave sin, each person should repent and confess to God to be healed by Him, then receive the Holy Body of Christ.
In this era, God the Father also teaches us that we can still receive Holy Communion in the state of venial sins. However, if we deliberately commit venial sins in spite of being taught many times by God the Father, then God the Father will not be pleased. And if God the Father is not pleased, then we should not receive the Lord. We must go to confession before receiving the Holy Body of Christ.
In today's Word of God, God earnestly calls humanity to believe and desire to welcome God into our souls to live eternally with Him; to have enough strength to fight against Satan and his minions.
God said that Satan hates those who come to the Holy Body of Christ, particularly they hate those who receive the Holy Body of Christ with the consciousness that they are receiving God into their hearts. Especially they hate those who worship Jesus in the Holy Eucharist day and night, those who keep their hearts pure for God to enter.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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