Reflection on the Gospel-The Body and Blood of Christ Year A (John 6:51-58)

May 20, 2014

Bread is staple food for much of Earth’s human population. Bread is also a metaphor for the food that sustains a person, a family, a people. Being able to ‘put bread on the table’ is the concern of every parent. Bread means life. Jesus’ claim to be ‘the living bread’ is a unique expression paralleled by his earlier claim to be ‘living water’. It teases the reader with the possibility of multiple meanings. It refers at one level to food that gives life; at another, it is the sustaining gift of God’s life.