Mass in the Cave at Bethlehem
John 6:44-51
One of my ministries here at St. Robert’s is a small group Bible Study affectionately known as “Soul Food.” For the past 6 years, a small group of faithful and dedicated individuals have on Thursday mornings every single week to reflect on the Sunday Scripture readings, that is until March 15, 2020 when the pandemic shut everything down.
Throughout this difficult time, we have managed with simple emails and Facebook posts to continue the tradition. But it is certainly not the same as gathering together as a community of faith. Thankfully that is about to change. We will meet together for the first time in almost 14 months on Thursday May 6. You can imagine the joy I received in emails and texts when I announced the news!
And I think it says something important directly related to the dedication of our group and especially our ‘name.” Jesus today continues His discourse on the Bread of Life! Bread! And not simple bread, but bread that give us eternal life! Over the course of this pandemic I have learned to make bread; I regularly make 2 loaves every week which, by my count, puts me over 100 loaves! But the number is unimportant! The bread I make satisfies but only temporarily. I have to keep making it week after week.
The Bread Jesus talks about satisfies not the body, but the soul! And that is what my Bible Study group has been hungering for – food for the soul! That is what we all hunger for – food that satisfies our spirit and gives us the promise of life eternal! True Soul Food!