Promise of immortality

The word 'bread' in common usage often stands for food in general. And food is for us human beings the most basic of all necessities. One can live without much money, or without some of the comforts which for many people seem to have become a primary necessity, such as a comfortable home or a recent model car.

But one cannot survive without food. The starving millions of persons in the third world are certainly not eager for such comforts, especially if most of them have never seen or heard of them. Their only need is food for themselves and their children many of whom will not enjoy the light of day for more than a few years or even days.

Against such a background we can better understand the meaning of Our Lord's words when, shortly after the miracle of the multiplication of bread, he said to the crowds and his disciples: "I myself am the living bread that has come down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever."

Life is, one might say, the entire Gospel's slogan. No advertisements are to be seen or heard anywhere about the value and importance of the kind of life Jesus has made available and has been offering ever since. The one and only advert are Jesus' words. It is entirely a matter of faith. You can take it or leave it.

Meanwhile almost 2,000 years have passed since Jesus said these words, promising the 'bread of life' at the synagogue of Capharnaum. And ever since this promise has become a reality: well protected in the tabernacles of all Churches, preserved in golden ciboria, indicated by a small vigil light. We are all hungry for this truly life-giving bread, a bread which guarantees a healthy spiritual life for us here on earth and everlasting happiness in heaven.

Besides being a reality, the Eucharist for the Christian stands as a symbol of spiritual vitality in a world that is becoming more and more materialistic. The man of today, let's face it, has become more interested in tangible results than in spiritual realities. Influenced as he is by today's electronic civilisation, he only looks for things and experiences which offer him immediate satisfaction.

That is the rampant materialism about which we hear so much today, the spiritual 'disease' which makes us forget that we are, after all, spirits dressed in matter, and prevents us from appreciating the supreme values which alone can feed our spirit and give us the truly genuine satisfaction which every human being really needs and longs for.

Religious faith, including the Christian one, is today in crisis, whether we are prepared to accept it or not. The presence of materialism and practical atheism is massive. As human beings, and especially as Christians, we must know the difference and develop a strategy which can bridge the gap.

The so-called separation of Church and State, in which today we all believe, is often taken to mean the irrelevance of religion to society, as if those whose lives are guided by religion are the only ones who may not participate with equal right in the public discussion.

"I am the bread of life." These words have probably never been more relevant than today. If faith in Christ has been gradually becoming ineffective in today's society, and still worse in our own lives as Christians, we should not be surprised.

We may be clever, but not necessarily wise, unless we are willing to throw wide open for Jesus Christ the gates of our lives and to operate in the world as agents of change.