THE SUM AND SUMMIT

From the very beginning it was not God's intention for man to know what is good and bad but we have our free will so when man was tempted by the serpent and gave in to it man lost his innocence. From that time on we were banned from heaven and not allowed to eat of the tree of life and live forever. As we can see the condition of the world today, these are all products of our 1st parents' disobedience. God is good, despite that big mess we got into, we are still given another shot or chance in heaven. The gates of heaven were opened when Jesus died on the cross and redeemed us from all our sins. Amen. Hallelujah!

Genesis 3:9-24
...Then the LORD God said: “See! The man has become like one of us, knowing what is good and what is bad! Therefore, he must not be allowed to put out his hand to take fruit from the tree of life also, and thus eat of it and live forever.” 23 The LORD God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he had been taken. 24 When he expelled the man, he settled him east of the garden of Eden; and he stationed the cherubim and the fiery revolving sword, to guard the way to the tree of life

Our first parents were the original sinners and we are just the copy cats. In a way we are better off than Adam & Eve in the sense that we have their example of disobedience set before us. We can choose to follow their lead or footsteps by giving in to deception which we know is a bad idea or we can learn the moral lesson of this story and gain wisdom of heart. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalms 90:2, 3-4, 5-6, 12-13
R: In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
...Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart.

The multiplication of the loaves is the only miracle that can be found in all 4 gospels. It is a foreshadowing of the Eucharist and emphasizes the importance of this sacrament of the breaking of the bread and wine. Its counterpart in the Old Testament is the falling down of manna in the dessert. There are some important points to ponder about this miracle in relation to the Eucharist. When Jesus fed the multitude there is always some left over. The tabernacle in the Church where the Sacred Host is kept is reserved for the sick, homebound and dying and is also for private devotion for adoration. We should keep in mind the beautiful effects of the Eucharist. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the effects of the Eucharist, cleanses and separates us from venial sins and commits us to solidarity with the poor. In the miracle it is said that they had nothing to eat which is symbolic with the poor. It communicates to us, through worthy reception, the mystery of the communion with the Trinity. It also establishes the community of believers and a foretaste of the future life in heaven. It is a way of advancing in virtue and helps transform the person through Christ, by shunning and rooting out vices. It provides increase of grace received in baptism which is a source of penance. The effects to the human heart is immeasurable because it is true spiritual food as we receive the body and blood of Jesus, the very author of grace Himself. It unites one into belief with Christ. Through the Eucharist, we assimilate the life of Christ and unites Christians. It unites us with the heavenly liturgy to be realized fully at the end of time for those who are saved. We participate in Christ’s one sacrifice on the cross because mass represents that one sacrifice on Calvary. Take note of the word represent which our protestant brothers and sister mistakenly take as repetition of the sacrifice. St. Ignatius of Antioch said that the Eucharist is the medicine of immortality without which we have no life. This is what he said as he was on his way to his death sentence to be fed to the lions. He assimilated himself with Christ and considered himself like the crushed wheat in the mouth of the lion or that of the crushed grapes in the wine press. As we eat the Bread of Life we are gathered into Christ's body and made members so that we may receive the power belonging to this divine food. We assimilate the suffering of Christ to allow one’s self to be crushed in our own suffering. It could be any difficulty that we want to assimilate to the life of Christ. St. Peter Chrisologus said that we should ask for our daily bread as in Our Father prayer, as the bread of heaven, baked in the tomb of heaven, sown in the virgin and brought to the altars to furnish the faithful with food in heaven. The sum and summary of our faith and our way of thinking should be attuned to the Eucharist and vice versa the Eucharist should be attuned to our own thinking as stated by St. Ireneus. These are only a few of the quotes from the Church doctors who tells about the beauty of the Most Holy Eucharist. The source and summit of the Christian life, the Most Blessed Sacrament exalted above all the other 6 sacraments. Baptism the gateway sacrament is received before any other sacrament, penance wipes away sin and each of the other sacraments has its own private place and effect the place it signifies. All of these sacraments are bound up in the Eucharist which is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of the communion of the divine life. The culmination of christ’s action of sanctifying the world. We must conform our life to the Eucharist and must realize the great gift we have in this sacrament. Amen. Hallelujah!


Mark 8:1-10
1 In those days when there again was a great crowd without anything to eat, Jesus summoned the disciples and said, 2 “My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will collapse on the way, and some of them have come a great distance.” 4 His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread to satisfy them here in this deserted place?” 5 Still he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” “Seven,” they replied. 6 He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then, taking the seven loaves he gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to his disciples to distribute, and they distributed them to the crowd. 7 They also had a few fish. He said the blessing over them and ordered them distributed also. 8 They ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over — seven baskets. 9 There were about four thousand people. He dismissed them 10 and got into the boat with his disciples and came to the region of Dalmanutha.