Gospel Reflection for Sunday the 1st of August 2021

Last week I described how for these 4 weeks of Year B the Sunday gospel is taken from the Gospel of John and the focus in these weeks is on the Eucharist.

How blessed we are in Youth 2000 because the Eucharist is really at the centre of our group. When we meet for our weekly meetings or for our retreats, we put Jesus at the centre and so we can say that Jesus is truly with us. When we gather, the presence of Jesus really is there. This extraordinary fact is what makes Youth 2000 so special. If Jesus were not here among us, if his divine presence was not in the organisation then it wouldn’t be the same. With him with us, instead of looking to each other and staying on a human level, our whole work and activity is drawn higher and higher, and so our meetings and retreats are touched by Jesus and have a little of heaven in them and in some way make the Kingdom of God present here on earth.

It is good to say all these things and remind ourselves of Jesus presence with Youth 2000, but of course, at the same time we have to acknowledge that it is something that can be difficult to really appreciate at times. I know that there are so many young people who are so convinced of the presence of Jesus and who pray to him and go to Church to meet Jesus in the Eucharist and feel the strength of their relationship with him. At the same time it is true that our meetings are not packed full of all the young people out there so we know that recognising Jesus among us is not always easy. Acknowledging this is important, because it can help us get a sense of just how special it is to know Jesus and it can help us also to get a sense of how people might feel distant from him or even feel nothing at all.

But we should not lose hope that they CAN come to know him. In this Gospel Jesus points out very clearly the part that can trip people up in coming to know him. He says “do not work for food that cannot last but work for food that endures to eternal life”. Why is it that we can spend all day hungering and thirsting only about things of this world and forget to spend a thought on God. We pass our time thinking of what we would like to buy or watch on Youtube or Netflix. We think about what clothes we are going to wear or who we are going to meet, we think about work or study. It might not seem like it but all these things are just food for this life. Jesus says work for food that lasts for eternal life. And what does he mean by that? He means we should spend time thinking about the next life, we should spend time thinking just how short this life really is. And if we did, rather than thinking we need to taste all the things of this life before we die, we will start thinking how can I start preparing for the next life!

Does this mean we shouldn’t watch YouTube or go clothes shopping? No, not at all! But it does mean that we should remember that our life has a purpose and a destination. And that on this journey through life we need much more than material things to sustain us. We need spiritual sustenance too. And the point that is being made in today’s Gospel is that the spiritual sustenance is powerful, it is so powerful that he says it excels every other kind of sustenance, he says “for the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world”.

If only people knew Jesus and understood the gift he wants to give them. They might see then the flaw in being attached only to the things of the world and seeking to thrive and live a full life based only on the material things. The fullness of life is found in having a rich and healthy spiritual life too.

Thank you Jesus for coming among us so humbly in the Eucharist. Bless Youth 2000 as it seeks to make your presence known. Help us to bring others to see that you are here and that whoever comes to you will never hunger and thirst.

-Fr Declan Lohan