We Are Not Alone
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
John 6:1-15 - Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near. When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone.
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do.”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
God, at times, may allow us problems that we simply don’t have the power to solve. The more we rack our brains for answers, the more painful the problems become. These can be some of the most stressful and painful times of our lives. In a small way, Jesus gives Philip a taste of this today in the Gospel when Jesus asks Philip to answer a question that Philip can’t answer. Jesus waits as Philip stammers. In presenting Philip with this question, and in allowing difficult problems for us, God is not trying to trick, tease, or torture us; He is testing us because He wants to teach us.
There are two lessons that we must pull from these terrible and wonderful situations. The first lesson is to recognize our poverty. We have limits, inabilities, and needs. We face this fact whenever we realize that the problem we are facing is bigger than us. But when we reach the understanding that, “I cannot do it!” we must not make the mistake of thinking, “It cannot be done!”
This is the second (wonderful) lesson to pull from these situations. We are never meant to solve difficult problems by ourselves, in the first place. Remember the Gospel tells us that before Jesus ever asks Philip the question, Jesus knows the answer. And what is the answer? Jesus, Himself, is the answer! Jesus “knew what he was going to do.” Jesus, not Philip, is planning to answer Philip’s question, because Jesus knows what Philip does not. And Jesus is planning on solving our problems because Jesus can do what we cannot. We must not fear when our problems are too big for us alone… because we are not alone. Jesus is with us, and He is infinitely bigger than our problems.
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above.(Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.
Reminder for Parents: Pier is just meant to be a jumping off point. The real goal is that you pray & eventually use the fruits of your personal prayer as the content of your family’s prayer. Duc in altum.
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