Archbishop of Sydney

His Eminence,
Cardinal George Pell
Cardinal Priest of the Title of S. Maria Domenica Mazzarello

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Home > Our Archbishop > Homilies 2003 > Article	Printable Version

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

St Mary's Cathedral
Ex 16:2-4,12-15; Eph 4:17,20-24; Jn 6:24-35

By + Cardinal George Pell
Archbishop of Sydney
3 August 2003

“Man does not live on bread alone”. This beautiful saying has passed into the language; it embodies a powerful truth; as powerful today as it was when first uttered by Jesus nearly 2,000 years ago.

Prosperity is a blessing, but it does not necessarily bring happiness. A good country needs more than a good economy. St. Paul, writing to the Ephesians, was following a somewhat similar line of thought when he urged the importance of meaning and purpose; not leading “the aimless kind of life pagans live.”

Last week we heard of the miracle of the loaves and fishes, where 5,000 men were fed. The traditional site for this in the hills above the Sea of Galilee is a lovely spot with a series of undulating valleys spreading out from a high point, where Mass is now celebrated. Our guide claimed that tests have been run there to show that up to 12,000 adults could fit into a space, where a speaker could be heard in this natural amphitheatre. The people wanted to make Jesus king after this spectacular miracle, but Jesus escaped from this. Political power was not his province; his ambitions for the people were elsewhere.

In today’s gospel the people have again pursued Jesus, crossing the Sea of Galilee to be at Capernaum, where Peter lived near the synagogue. Our Lord rebuked them, because these followers had not come seeking a sign, a miracle pointing beyond itself to a deeper, spiritual reality. They were seeking another meal; a free feed. For Jesus this was a mistake because they should have been seeking the food that endures to eternal life.

A lively dialogue followed this rebuke, which was not accepted silently. Jesus insisted that God’s followers must accept the one God has sent and they took up this theme and asked what signs he could produce to validate his claims, because Moses brought down manna from heaven when the Jews were escaping from Egypt. Could he do as much?

Once again there was a correction as Jesus explained that it was God, His Father who gave the bread from heaven, not Moses. Then he went on to spell out the remarkable claim that He himself was the bread of life. Those who come to him will never be hungry, while those who believe in him will never thirst. This true bread of God from heaven gives life to the world.

We have here all the traditional Christian and Catholic doctrine of the Eucharist, where Christ the only Son of God, who died and rose to save us, is present under the forms of bread and wine.

Just recently, some months back, the Holy Father restated the importance of the Mass with a document entitled The Church and the Eucharist and the next Synod of bishops in Rome, a gathering of about 200 bishops every few years to advise the Pope, will have the theme of the Eucharist as its main focus.

We must work to deepen our understanding and love of the Mass, because it is the centre of the Church’s life. Through the Mass we are brought back to Jesus’ Last Supper (which was the first Mass celebrated), his death on the cross and then his resurrection.

This is a mystery of faith as there is a profound unity between every celebration of the Mass, which makes present to us the Son of God’s unique redeeming sacrifice. We are not just a group of decent people striving to live moral lives, who come together regularly to acknowledge our unity of purpose, and our impotence before the mighty forces of nature and chance.

We are believers in the one true God, united in amazement and gratitude that God’s Son has visited us and saved us and that we are able to eat His Flesh and drink his Blood in the sacrament of communion.

The Eastern Catholic liturgy has a beautiful few lines which capture what should be our attitudes. It runs like this “Son of God make me a participant today in your sacramental meal. I will not reveal this Great Mystery to your enemies. I will not give you a kiss as Judas did, but like the good thief I say to you ‘Remember me Lord in your Kingdom’.”

The beautiful setting of this Cathedral and the regular beautiful music we experience here make it easier for us to realise that we are not simply attending a do-gooders barbecue. We are imperfect, sinful people, but we are participating in a great Mystery, where Heaven touches earth, the terrible struggle between good and evil is remembered, and we are strengthened to do out bit. We are not to live aimless lives like the pagans.

This morning some of our novice choristers will be admitted to membership of our choir to continue the tradition of music and poetry which enhances our Catholic worship in this holy place. We pray for them and their fellow choristers that they will grow in faith, goodness and prayerfulness through their years in the choir, as they help us to glimpse the sublime truth that Jesus, the Son of Mary, is truly the Bread of Life and the medicine of immortality.

In the Name of the Father, and of son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.