The Promise of Eternal Life

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 116

Id-19-il Ħadd matul is-Sena

Messalin B  pp 436

Reading 1              1 KinGS 19:4-8

Elijah went a day’s journey into the desert, until he came to a broom tree and sat beneath it. He prayed for death saying: “This is enough, O LORD!  Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.”  He lay down and fell asleep under the broom tree, but then an angel touched him and ordered him to get up and eat.  Elijah looked and there at his head was a hearth cake and a jug of water.  After he ate and drank, he lay down again, but the angel of the LORD came back a second time, touched him, and ordered, “Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you!”  He got up, ate, and drank;  then strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb.

L-Ewwel Qari     -   mill-Ewwel Ktieb tas-Slaten 19, 4 – 8

F'dak iż-żmien,  il-Profeta Elija rħiela lejn id-deżert. Wara jum mixi waqaf, inxteħet  taħt siġra tal-ġummar, talab li jmut,  u qal:  "Issa biżżejjed, Mulej; ħudli 'l ħajti,  għax m'iniex aħjar minn missirijieti!" U mtedd għad-dell tal-ġummara u raqad. Kif  kien  rieqed  messu anġlu u qallu:  "Qum u kul!" Elija dawwar  wiċċu, u lemaħ ħdejn rasu ftira moħmija u  ġarra ilma;  kiel  u xorob, u raġa mtedd. Għat-tieni darba ġie l-anġlu tal-Mulej u raġa' messu u qallu: "Qum u kul, inkella ma  tkunx tiflaħ  għall-mixja li fadallek." Elija qam, kiel u xorob, u bis-saħħa ta' dak l-ikel u baqa'  miexi għal erbgħin jum u erbgħin lejl sa ma wasal Ħoreb,  il-muntanja tal-Mulej. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Responsorial Psalm                PSalm  34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9

I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Glorify the LORD with me,
Let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
And delivered me from all my fears.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Look to him that you may be radiant with joy.
And your faces may not blush with shame.
When the afflicted man called out, the LORD heard,
And from all his distress he saved him.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him and delivers them.
Taste and see how good the LORD is;
blessed the man who takes refuge in him.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Salm Responsorjali    -      Salm 33  (34)

                R/   Ippruvaw u taraw kemm hu tajjeb il-Mulej.

Kull ħin inbierek il-Mulej,

tifħiru dejjem fommi.

Bil-Mulej tiftaħar ruħi;

jisimgħu l-fqajrin u jifirħu!                          R/           

Xandru l-kobor tal-Mulej miegħi,

ħa ngħollu ismu flimkien.

Jien fittixt il-Mulej, u weġibni,

u minn kull biża' tiegħi ħelisni.                 R/

Ħarsu lejh u tiddu bil-ferħ wiċċkom

u ma jkollkomx  għax tistħu.

Dan il-fqajjar sejjaħ u l-Mulej semgħu,

u mid-dwejjaq tiegħu kollha ħelsu.        R/

L-anġlu tal-Mulej jgħasses

madwar dawk li jibżgħu  minnu, u jeħlishom.

Ippruvaw u taraw kemm hu tajjeb il-Mulej,

ħieni l-bniedem li jistkenn fih.                     R/

Reading 2           EPHesians 4:30—5:2

Brothers and sisters:  Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God,  with which you were sealed for the day of redemption.   All bitterness, fury, anger, shouting, and reviling  must be removed from you, along with all malice.  And be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ. So be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love,  as Christ loved us and handed himself over for us  as a sacrificial offering to God for a fragrant aroma.

It-Tieni Qari   -    mill-Ittra lill-Efesin  4, 30 –5,2

Ħuti, tnikktux l-Ispirtu s-Sanntu  ta' Alla, li fih intom issiġillati  għall-jum il-fidwa.  Imrar, saħna, korla, tagħjir, għajjat, dan kollu warrbuh    minnkom, u  wkoll kull ħażen ieħor.   Kunu twajba ma'  xulxin,  ħennu għal xulxin, aħfru lil xulxin, bħalma Alla  ħafer lilkom fi Kristu. Kunu, mela,  tixbħu lil Alla, bħala wlied maħbuba, u imxu  fl-imħabba, bħalma  Kristu wkoll ħabb lilna u ta lilu nnifsu  għalina,  offerta u sagrifiċċju jfuħu quddiem Alla.   Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Gospel              JohN 6:41-51

The Jews murmured about Jesus because he said,  I am the bread that came down from heaven, ” and they said,  “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph?  Do we not know his father and mother?  Then how can he say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”  Jesus answered and said to them, “Stop murmuring among yourselves.  No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day.  It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God;  he has seen the Father.  Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.  I am the bread of life.  Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die.  I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.”

L-Evanġelju    -    Qari  skond San Ġwann 6, 41 – 51

F'dak iż-żmien,  il-Lhud bdew igergru fuq Ġesu  għax kien qal:  "Jien hu l-ħobż li niżel mis-sema". U bdew igħidu:  "Dan mhuwiex Ġesu', bin Ġużeppi? Lil missieru u 'l ommu ma nafuhomx?   Mela kif  qiegħed jgħid:  :"Jiena nżilt mis-sema"?" Ġesu' weġibhom:  "Toqgħodux  tgorru  bejnitkom." Ħadd  ma jista' jiġi għandi jekk il-Missier li bagħatni ma jiġbdux lejja;  u jien nqajmu mill-imwiet fl-aħħar jum. Hemm  miktub fil-profeti:   "U kulħadd ikun imgħallem  minn Alla."     Mela kull min jisma' lill-Missier u jitgħallem minnu jiġi għandi.  Mhux għax xi ħadd qatt ra  lill-Missier  ħlief  dak li hu minn Alla;  hu dan li ra  lill-Missier.    Tassew, tassew ngħidilkom, min jemmen  għandu l-ħajja ta' dejjem. Jiena hu l-ħobż tal-ħajja.  Missirijietkom  kielu l-manna  fid-deżert, u mietu; dan hu l-ħobż  niżel mis-sema, biex  min jiekol minnu ma jmutx. Jiena hu l-ħobż ħaj,  li niżel mis-sema.   Jekk  xi ħadd   jiekol minn dan il-ħobż jgħix għal dejjem.    U l-ħobż li  jiena nagħti huwa ġismi għall-ħajja tad-dinja." Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

////////////////////   Reflection by Larry Broding

The Promise of Eternal Life

Do you have life insurance coverage? Why is such coverage important to you and your family?

"Life insurance is the bet you pay against your death."  The idea of life insurance is illogical but necessary in our society. Despite the mean jokes about insurance salespeople (and my apologies to lawyers, politicians, and car salespeople), they provide a valuable service. We pay them in life, so they will care for our loved ones if we should die unexpectedly. It's a gamble, but one many of us are willing to take.

If so many of us accept the illogic of life insurance, why do so few of us accept the offer Jesus makes: trust me and live forever. He makes us this offer in Eucharist.

The gospel opened with discussion between Jesus and his audience in progress. The people "murmured" against the statement Jesus made. How could this local son claim so much? How could he hold himself so high as a prophet?  In a subtle way, John drew two contexts together. In both scenes, the people "murmured." In both scenes, God offered the people "bread from heaven." However, here the similarities ended. In the scene with Moses, God gave the people bread in response to their complaints. In the scene with Jesus, the people complained in response to God's offer itself.

Instead of God commanding silence from his people, Jesus himself called for attention. The Galilean spoke for God. He had the power of the Father, for his ministry began as God's initiative. (If "I will raise him up on the last day" is dropped from 6:44-45, both verses refer to God's activity in the ministry of Jesus.) Indeed, following Jesus itself came as a gift from God.

How could Jesus claim such the support of God? Because Jesus (and only Jesus) came from the Father and had "seen" the Father. Jesus found his source directly in the Father. Hence, he claimed to witness for the Father (for he "had seen God and lived"). The power of resurrection stemmed from Jesus' source and witness (6:43b and 6:47).

The image of bread threaded the themes from 6:44-46 together: God's initiative in the ministry of Jesus, the source and witness of Jesus, and the power to raise up the faithful. As THE food staple, bread represented life. As the heavenly bread, Jesus would feed the world by 1) "coming down from heaven" (a reference to his source and witness) and 2) giving bread to the faithful so that "he might eat and not die" and might "live into the final age" (a reference to the resurrection).

Ultimately, the Father gave this bread (i.e., the life of Jesus) for "the life of the world." In other words, salvation became an extension of creation, for the death and resurrection of Christ would usher in a new time and new creation. Followers would receive the "bread of life" as a result of the Father's invitation.

What spiritual experiences have you had in Communion? How has the Eucharist helped you live, renewed your faith, and given you hope?

What a life insurance policy Jesus offers us! In the bread and wine of Eucharist, he gives us the means to life everlasting. It is not a hedge against the unexpected, but a sure promise that we will live despite what will happen.

The cost is so small, yet so few want to pay. It seems parting with our money is easier than parting with our trust. Yet, who else should we trust with our lives?

Who else should we trust? On a piece of paper, write down a list of the people you trust in life in one column. In the other column, write down why you trust them. Where does God fit on that sheet? Use this exercise as a reflection on the place of God in life and his offer to you that the Eucharist represents.

///////////////////////////////////////