Christ is risen! As we conclude our second week of paschal celebrations, we find St Peter still preaching the death and resurrection of Christ in the reading from the Acts of the Apostles (5:21-33). The Acts, at least in the first few chapters, contains much preaching and testimony to these fundamental mysteries of the Christian faith, and twice in this short passage St Peter says he does so in obedience to God. It is in obedience that he preaches in the name of Jesus, testifying to his death and resurrection, saying that God raised Him from the dead and exalted Him at his right hand as our Savior. This is for the purpose of granting the grace of repentance and thus the forgiveness of sins. Not only that, to those who obey God the Holy Spirit is given, as an interior witness to these divine truths and as the very life of God dwelling within us.
After hearing all this good news, the religious authorities were filled with rage and wanted to kill the apostles! One would think that they’d be happy to be given a chance at eternal life, but since they were the ones who arranged for the death of Jesus, they didn’t want to hear anyone say that Jesus was raised from the dead, that He was the Son of God and the only Savior of the world. And so it has continued to this very day, that at the name of Jesus some people rejoice in their salvation, and others hate and try to kill them for it. Perhaps it will be this way until the end of time, but the Holy Spirit will always be given to those who obey God and abandon the vanities, malice, and unbelief of men.
In the Gospel today (Jn. 6:14-27), we have an event that provides a link between Jesus’ multiplication of the loaves and his precious discourse on the Bread from Heaven, the Holy Eucharist, which He gives to his beloved disciples as a pledge of eternal life.
We might wonder how Jesus’ walking on the sea links the multiplication of the loaves with the teaching on the Holy Eucharist. The basic reason is that here Jesus uses the divine name, “I AM,” to identify Himself for the first time in this Gospel. Thus He not only confirms that it was his divine power that multiplied the loaves; more importantly, He shows that He has both the right and the power to give his flesh and blood as food and drink for the life and salvation of the world. It would have to be either the God-man or a madman who would say such a thing, but Jesus’ own testimony, as well as that of the Church as such, and countless individual saints, proves that it is indeed the Son of God who gives us this inexpressible gift. It is not something the Church could have thought up on her own. It is only because it came from the mouth of Christ Himself that we believe it, and because the mystery of the Holy Eucharist is such a beautiful expression of God’s wisdom, compassion, and love, that we can’t help but embrace it as of divine origin.
In reading this Gospel, one might not at first even recognize the divine name, because most English translations do not provide it for us. When Jesus comes to the disciples across the water, they have Him say: “Do not be afraid; it is I.” But it literally says: “Do not be afraid; I AM.” The reason they need not be afraid is not merely because what they thought was a ghost is really only their Master and Rabbi, Jesus. It is because this Master and Rabbi is the divine Son of God! Rabbis don’t calm raging seas with a word. Only God can do that. So Jesus was not only helping them in their distress; He was revealing Himself to them.
Perhaps that is why the Twelve stayed with Jesus after his controversial Bread of Life discourse while many others left Him. The Twelve heard Him identify Himself with the divine name, and they witnessed his awesome power. So when Jesus spoke of the imperishable food that endures to eternal life, which He would give them, his own body and blood by which He would abide in them and they in Him, they did not leave Him as did the unbelieving multitude. Even if they found his teaching difficult to grasp, Peter—when Jesus asked if they would leave, too—had the faith and good sense to say: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life… You are the Holy One of God.”
And so it should be with us. We believe the words of Jesus because He has revealed Himself as the Son of God, and He has bequeathed to his Church the great and precious Mysteries of his Body and Blood, through which we have eternal life. He said that He is the Resurrection and the Life, and that his flesh is given us as food unto eternal life. Let us then approach with faith, and as we pray in our paschal Communion hymn: “Receive the Body of Christ, and taste the Source of immortality.”
Making All Things New 