Tuesday, January 05, 2021

Memorial of Saint John Neumann, Bishop

What is it you hunger for? I bet that everyone who might be reading this reflection will NOT answer that question with the response “Food.” Unlike some people one might encounter on the busy streets of Chicago who truly are physically hungry. The people in today’s gospel in the multiplication of tbd loaves WERE physically hungry; they needed food for the stomach.

For many of us, our difficulty is not that we have little food but that we have too much. Now that the holidays are over, we need to watch what we eat and the calories we consume. Even those who are vegans and shop at Whole Foods aren’t physically hungry. Many people who eat such organic and wholesome foods have the money to do so. Poor people don’t have that luxury. They have to eat the cheapest food, which usually is not that healthy.

So the question: what is it you hunger for, if it’s not food?
What needs to be “multiplied” within your heart for you to be nourished?

Peace,
Fr. Frank