Today, in the Gospel, (John 6 24 - 35) Jesus tells us that he is the bread of life. Without staple foods like bread we cannot survive. Unless the wheat is sown, grown, harvested and crushed it cannot give life. That is the way that Jesus saw his life, as something that is broken open for others. A life that flowed from compassion into need, a life that flowed from anger into justice. A life that was moved in service to community and interdependence.
In the Eucharist Jesus invites us to "do this in memory of me". I don't think he was just saying "go to mass and remember me". I think he was saying " go and lay down your own life in service, in compassion and in the cause of justice. I believe he was asking all of us to become bread for others. To let our lives flow with the life of God for the good of others.
Below is a video reflection on the same theme. I made this a few years ago and it came back to my mind today as I read the Gospel at mass.
Fr David O'Malley SDB
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