Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

112A Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catechism Links
CCC 2828-2837: Give us this day our daily bread
CCC 1335: Miracle of loaves prefigures the Eucharist
CCC 1391-1401: The fruits of Holy Communion

CCC Cross Reference
Is 55:1 694, 2121; Is 55:3 762
Ps 145:9 295, 342
Rom 8:31 2852; Rom 8:32 603, 706, 2572; Rom 8:34 1373, 2634
Mt 14:13-21 1335; Mt 14:19 1329

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Reading 1
Is 55:1-3

Thus says the Lord:
All you who are thirsty,
come to the water!
You who have no money,
come, receive grain and eat;
Come, without paying and without cost,
drink wine and milk!
Why spend your money for what is not bread;
your wages for what fails to satisfy?
Heed me, and you shall eat well,
you shall delight in rich fare.
Come to me heedfully,
listen, that you may have life.
I will renew with you the everlasting covenant,
the benefits assured to David.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 145:8-9, 15-16, 17-18

R. (cf. 16) The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The Lord is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

The eyes of all look hopefully to you,
and you give them their food in due season;
you open your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

The Lord is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The Lord is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

Reading II
Rom 8:35, 37-39

Brothers and sisters:
What will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine,
or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?
No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly
through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities,
nor present things, nor future things,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
nor any other creature will be able to separate us
from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Gospel
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.”
Jesus 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.

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

First reading Isaiah 55:1 – 3

Oh, come to the water all you who are thirsty;
though you have no money, come!
Buy corn without money, and eat,
and, at no cost, wine and milk.
Why spend money on what is not bread,
your wages on what fails to satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and you will have good things to eat
and rich food to enjoy.
Pay attention, come to me;
listen, and your soul will live.
With you I will make an everlasting covenant
out of the favors promised to David.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 144:8-9,15-18

You open wide your hand, O Lord; you grant our desires.

The Lord is kind and full of compassion,
  slow to anger, abounding in love.
How good is the Lord to all,
  compassionate to all his creatures.

You open wide your hand, O Lord; you grant our desires.

The eyes of all creatures look to you
  and you give them their food in due time.
You open wide your hand,
  grant the desires of all who live.

You open wide your hand, O Lord; you grant our desires.

The Lord is just in all his ways
  and loving in all his deeds.
He is close to all who call him,
  who call on him from their hearts.

You open wide your hand, O Lord; you grant our desires.

Second reading Romans 8:35 – 39

Nothing can come between us and the love of Christ, even if we are troubled or worried, or being persecuted, or lacking food or clothes, or being threatened or even attacked. These are the trials through which we triumph, by the power of him who loved us. For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing, can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Gospel Matthew 14:13 – 21

When Jesus received the news of John’s death he withdrew by boat to a lonely place where they could be by themselves. But the people heard of this and, leaving the towns, went after him on foot. So as he stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them and healed their sick.

When evening came, the disciples went to him and said, ‘This is a lonely place, and the time has slipped by; so send the people away, and they can go to the villages to buy themselves some food.’ Jesus replied, ‘There is no need for them to go: give them something to eat yourselves.’ But they answered ‘All we have with us is five loaves and two fish.’ ‘Bring them here to me’ he said. He gave orders that the people were to sit down on the grass; then he took the five loaves and the two fish, raised his eyes to heaven and said the blessing. And breaking the loaves handed them to his disciples who gave them to the crowds. They all ate as much as they wanted, and they collected the scraps remaining; twelve baskets full. Those who ate numbered about five thousand men, to say nothing of women and children.

Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

From: Isaiah 55:1-3

Epilogue: Invitation to partake of the banquet of the Lord’s Covenant
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[1] “Ho, every one who thirsts,
come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.
[2] Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labour for that which does not satisfy?
Hearken diligently to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in fatness.
[3] Incline your ear, and come to me;
hear, that your soul may live;
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, sure love for David.

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Commentary:

55:1-13. The invitation to the Covenant banquet acts as the epilogue to the second part of the book of Isaiah, and picks up on themes in chapter 40, which is its prologue. The two chapters help to give literary and thematic unity to this part of the book. The oracle in chapter 55 sums up in a way the teachings contained in the preceding chapters -- the invitation to the Covenant banquet (vv. 1-3), reminiscent of that celebrated by Moses at Mount Sinai (Ex 24:5, 11); the renewal of the Covenant with David on Zion (vv. 4-5); the transcendence of God, who is unaffected by the sins of men (vv. 8-9); the power of the word of God (vv. 10-11); and, as a final synthesis, the promise of a new exodus, a sign of God’s everlasting salvation.

These oracles are a call for conversion, a call to take advantage of the salvific gifts so generously offered: “Come to the waters” (v. 1), “Come to me” (v. 3), “Seek the Lord” (v. 6), “Let the wicked forsake his way” (v. 7). Originally, it was a call to those exiled in Babylon to return to Jerusalem; but it is a call that is made at all times, to everyone. The reference to an everlasting Covenant, in keeping with promises made to David (cf. v. 3), can be read by Christians as an invitation to share in the new and eternal Covenant sealed with the Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, a pledge of salvation for all mankind. In the Eucharist, the banquet of the New Testament, the words of the prophet come true in the complete sense in the words spoken by our Lord when he instituted that sacrament: “Take and eat” (cf. v. 1) the true bread of life, the very finest food, which money cannot buy (vv. 1-3). Therefore, the invitation extended by the prophet is a call to Christians to partake of the Blessed Eucharist. Paul VI, urging the faithful to take part in the Sunday celebration of the Eucharist, wrote: “How could we fail to take part in this encounter, to partake of the banquet that Christ has lovingly prepared for us? Our participation should be dignified and filled with joy. Christ, crucified and glorified, comes among his disciples to draw them all into the power of his resurrection. It is the pinnacle, here on earth, of the Covenant of love between God and his people: the sign and source of Christian joy, the preparation for the eternal banquet in heaven” (Gaudete in Domino, 322). Verses 1-11, like 54:5-14, are read in the liturgy of the Easter Vigil, which celebrates Christ’s victory over sin and which invites the faithful to partake of the banquet of the Covenant sealed by his death and resurrection: “On the feasts of the Lord, when the faithful receive the Body of the Son, they proclaim to one another the Good News that the first fruits of life have been given, as when the angel said to Mary Magdalene, ‘Christ is risen!’ Now too are life and resurrection conferred on whoever receives Christ” (Fanqith, Brevarium iuxta ritum Ecclesiae Antiochenae Syrorum, in Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1391).

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From: Romans 8:35, 37-39

Trust in God
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[35] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? [37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

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Commentary:

31-39. The elect will emerge unscathed and victorious from all attacks, dangers and sufferings and will do so not through their own efforts but by virtue of the allpowerful aid of him who has loved them from all eternity and who did not hesitate to have his own Son die for their salvation. It is true that as long as we are on this earth we cannot attain salvation, but we are assured that we will attain it precisely because God will not withhold all the graces we need to obtain this happy outcome: all that is needed is that we desire to receive this divine help. Nothing that happens to us can separate us from the Lord--not fear of death or love of life, not the bad angels or devils, not the princes or the powers of this world, nor the sufferings we undergo or which threaten us nor the worst that might befall us. "Paul himself", St John Chrysostom reminds us, "had to contend with numerous enemies. The barbarians attacked him; his custodians laid traps for him; even the faithful, sometimes in great numbers, rose against him; yet Paul always came out victorious. We should not forget that the Christian who is faithful to the laws of his God will defeat both men and Satan himself" ("Hom. on Rom", 15).

This is the attitude which enables us to live as children of God, who fear neither life nor death: "Our Lord wants us to be in the world and to love the world but without being worldly. Our Lord wants us to remain in this world--which is now so mixed up and where the clamor of lust and disobedience and purposeless rebellion can be heard--to teach people to live with joy [...]. Don't be afraid of the paganized world: our Lord has in fact chosen us to be leaven, salt and light in this world. Don't be worried. The world won't harm you unless you want it to. No enemy of our soul can do anything if we don't consent. And we won't consent, with the grace of God and the protection of our Mother in heaven" (S. Bernal, "Monsignor Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer", p. 213).

38-39. "Angels", "principalities": names of different angelic hierarchies (cf. Eph 1:21; 3:10); also a possible reference to fallen angels, demons (cf. 1 Cor 15:24; Eph 6:12). "Powers" can mean the same as "angels" and "principalities".

"Height" and "depth" may refer to cosmic forces which, in the culture of that time, were thought to have some influence over the lives of men.

By listing these powerful superior forces (real or imaginary) St Paul is making the point that nothing and nobody, no created thing, is stronger than God's love for us.

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From: Matthew 14:13-21

First Miracle of the Loaves and Fish
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[13] Now when Jesus heard this, He withdrew from there in a boat to a lonely place apart. But when the crowds heard it, they followed Him on foot from the towns. [14] As He went ashore He saw a great throng; and He had compassion on them, and healed their sick. [15] When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, "This is a lonely place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves." [16] Jesus said, "They need not go away; you give them something to eat." [17] They said to Him, "We have only five loaves here and two fish." [18] And He said, "Bring them here to Me." [19] Then He ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass; and taking the five loaves and the two fish He looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. [20] And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. [21] And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

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Commentary:

14-21. This episode must have occurred in the middle of springtime, because the grass was green (Mark 6:40; John 6:10). In the Near East loaves were usually made very thin, which meant it was easy to break them by hand and distribute them to those at table; this was usually done by the head of the household or the senior person at the meal. Our Lord follows this custom, and the miracle occurs when Jesus breaks the bread. The disciples then distribute it among the crowd. Here again we can see Jesus' desire to have people cooperate with Him.

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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

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