2 Kings 4:42-44  

A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing Elisha, the man of God, bread from the first-fruits, twenty barley loaves and fresh grain in the ear. ‘Give it to the people to eat,’ Elisha said. But his servant replied, ‘How can I serve this to a hundred men?’ ‘Give it to the people to eat’ he insisted ‘for the Lord says this, “They will eat  and have some left over.” He served them; they ate and had some over, as the Lord had said.

Ephesians 4:1-6 
 
I, the prisoner in the Lord, implore you to lead a life worthy of your vocation. Bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience. Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together. There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, through all and within all.

Gospel Acclamation 

Alleluia, Alleluia
A great prophet has appeared among us; God has visited his people. Alleluia

John 6:1-15   

Jesus went off to the other side of the Sea of Galilee or of Tiberias and a large crowd followed him, impressed by the signs he gave by curing the sick. Jesus climbed the hillside, and sat down there with his disciples. It was shortly before the Jewish feast of Passover. Looking up, Jesus saw the crowds approaching and said to Philip, ‘Where can we buy some bread for these people to eat?’ He only said this to test Philip; he himself knew exactly what he was going to do. Philip answered, ‘Two hundred denarii would only buy enough to give them a small piece each.’ One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said, ‘There is a small boy here with five barley loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Make the people sit down.‘ There was plenty of grass there, and as many as five thousand men sat down. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and gave them out to all who were sitting ready; he then did the same with the fish, giving out as much as was wanted. When they had eaten enough he said to the disciples, ‘Pick up the pieces left over, so that nothing gets wasted.’ So they picked them up, and filled twelve hampers with scraps left over from the meal of five barley loaves. The people, seeing this sign that he had given, said, ‘This really is the prophet who is to come into the world.’ Jesus, who could see they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, escaped back to the hills by himself.

Prayer of the Faithful

Praise to you, Father, Son and Spirit; community of love and compassion. May your love shape our lives. Lord hear us

May our celebration as a community, draw us closer to one another and to God. Lord hear us

May the Prayer, of this community lead us to look to the needs of those who are struggling in life. Lord hear us

We remember those families among us who are suffering the pain of bereavement. May we be their support, as we look to the day when we will all be united again. Lord hear us

Lord, let the ideals of the gospel transform our church and our world so that addressing the real needs of people will always be our first concern. Lord hear us

We stand in silence and solidarity with all who need our prayer and support…………………….Lord hear us

Reflection

Our world desperately needs to come in from the lost islands of desiccated individualism and learn to stand again on the fecund earth where vibrant and vital interaction can happen between people. Our world is facing so many crises ecologically, economically, and spiritually. These cannot be overcome by isolated individuals.
We need to come together. There is incredible power in a community of people who are together because they care, and who are motivated by the ideals of compassion and creativity.
When such a community develops and maintains its own vision, it will not fall into the trap of being prisoners of reaction and beginning to resemble more and more the opposition. It will not deconstruct in the introverted power games, but maintain its care and critical focus.
When such a prophetic community is nourished by prayer and animated by Divine Longing, the harvest of creativity and belonging which it can bring is unlimited.

John O'Donohue
 

Remembered this Weekend

William Stacey (1st A)
John, Josephine, Mary and Joan Hannon
Chrissie De Vesey
Johnny Hand
Joe Poole
John & Maureen Joyce
John & Lily Goulding
Margaret, Michael & Margaret Kinsella
Evelyn O’Neill

 

Feel free to contact us at the email addresses below.

TOP