A man came from Balshalshah, bringing the man of God bread of the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And Elisha said, "Give to the men, that they may eat." But his servant said, "How am I to set this before a hundred men?" So he repeated, "Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the LORD, 'They shall eat and have some left.'" So he set it before them. And they ate, and had some left, according to the word of the LORD.
Today's Song of Praise is taken from Psalm 145/146(V/RSV):
All thy works shall give
thanks to thee, O LORD, and all thy saints shall bless thee!
They shall speak of the
glory of thy kingdom, and tell of thy power,
The eyes of all look to
thee, and thou givest them their food in due season.
Thou openest thy hand, thou
satisfiest the desire of every living thing.
The LORD is just in all
his ways, and kind in all his doings.
The LORD is near to all
who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.
Today's Epistle is from the Letter of Paul to the Ephesians, beginning at the 4th Chapter, and the 1st Verse:
I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all lowliness and meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all.
+ A Reading from the Gospel of John, beginning at the 6th Chapter, and the 1st Verse:
After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a multitude followed him, because they saw the signs which he did on those who were diseased. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a multitude was coming to him, Jesus said to Philip, "How are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?" This he said to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.
Philip answered him, "Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little." One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are they among so many?" Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place; so the men sat down, in number about five thousand. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, "Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost." So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign which he had done, they said, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!" Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
Today's reading most relevant to me and my concerns as a newly-minted bishop is the extract from Paul's Letter to the Ephesians. He begs me to lead a life worthy of the office to which I have been called, to exercise: "...lowliness and meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."
Holders of the office of the Episcopacy have not always been eager to maintain unity, much less lowliness and meekness. As I look at the things which go with being a bishop -- issuing Letters of Incardination, Faculties, etc., the styles and vestments, I find myself profoundly unimpressed with the pomp and circumstance.
I have been on stage, in various venues, and dressed up, but underneath the fripperies and the colorful orfreys, there has always been just me. The things that have been constant, that have been rewarding, that have been meaningful to me, have been the Word of the Lord and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
And it is just these things that I am charges with safeguarding, with promulgating, with shepherding. Jesus said: "Feed my sheep.", and the food we have is His Word, and He Himself.
Today's First Reading tells about Elijah feeding a hundred men from 20 loaves of barley bread; the Gospel tells of Jesus feeding 5,000 with five barley loaves and two fish. I feel like those 5 barley loaves and 2 miserable fish -- and I devoutly hope the Lord can make me an instrument for feeding His people -- Lord knows, it will take a miracle.
As the Song of Praise today says, I call upon the Lord to do with me as He will, that I may feed His sheep.
I also ask that you pray for me and my mission . . .
In the Name of The Father + And of the Son And of the Holy Spirit Amen.