When 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. When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick.
When 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.” Jesus said to them, “There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.” But they said to him, “Five loaves and two fish are all we have here.” Then he said, “Bring them here to me,” and 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. They all ate and were satisfied. When they picked up the fragments left over, they filled up twelve wicker baskets. Those who ate were about five thousand men, not counting women and children.
Gospel Trivia:
The miracle of the feeding of the five thousand is the only miracle that is in all four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. (This is not to be confused with the miracle of the FOUR thousand which appears only in Mark and Matthew). Therefore, this must be a very special event for it to be captured by all four evangelists.
Many interpretations of this gospel convey that that the message refers to sharing one's food and resources with others, and that if we all did, then there is enough for everyone. While each evangelist has his own specific message when including an event in his gospel, this interpretation is likely NOT the intended message of Matthew.
We should note the following in Matthew's version:
- the context of this miracle is during a day of healing the sick; and healing the sick is one of the ways Jesus uses in communicating the condition of the Kingdom of God. (Note: in Mark, the context is a day of teaching, not healing).
- the phrase "when it was evening" is the same phrase used in designating the time of the last supper; interestingly, in Matthew's gospel, the "bread" is given a lot more emphasis than the "fish" in Jesus' thanksgiving prayer.
- the disciples play a key role in distributing the food: Jesus orders them to give food to the crowd and later on, Jesus gives the food to the disciples who in turn gives it to the crowd.
Matthew's message is the role of the disciples in building the Kingdom of God: the disciples are the extension of Jesus' power and ministry. Also, for Matthew, the Eucharist is more than a ceremony or prayer, but it finds its true meaning when we extend Him who we receive in the Eucharist to others.
When we celebrate the Eucharist, we become like Jesus to those we encounter in the other six days of the week.
There are twelve baskets of leftovers, referring to the heavenly banquet, when our Kingdom building finds its fulfillment.
Reference:
- Nil Guillemette, SJ, A Kingdom for All (Makati: St. Paul's Publications), pp. 201-203.
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