Mt 14:13-21
13When 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. 14When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick. 15When 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.” 16[Jesus] said to them, “There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.”
17But they said to him, “Five loaves and two fish are all we have here.” 18Then he said, “Bring them here to me,” 19and 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. 20They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the fragments left over—twelve wicker baskets full. 21Those who ate were about five thousand men, not counting women and children.
Reflection:
Give them some food yourselves. We have pat answers to situations, pointing the responsibility to someone else. Traffic problems—call the police. Calamity—this is the job of the disaster council. Moral degradation—the Church is remiss. Corruption—who else to blame but the politicians?
The disciples are in this pass-the-buck mode. The people have no food—send them home; let them get food for themselves. But Jesus’ order is short, clear, and direct: “Give them some food yourselves.” Five loaves and two fish are all they have; again, the disciples are trying to avoid responsibility. Jesus’ response is simple: “Bring them here to me.” Jesus is taking responsibility. He is giving them food himself.
I am not saying that we are to take responsibility for all the troubles in the world or try to solve the problems on our own. The Lord believes we can do something. We can make a difference, give our share, contribute our own ability, and help in our own simple ways.
A man is praying and reprimanding the Lord for all the problems in the world. He sighs, “What are you doing, Lord? There are so many suffering and poor people, so many abused lives hungry for justice. What are you doing?”
The Lord answered, “What am I doing? I created you!”
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