Last Sunday Jesus fed five thousand men using five loaves of bread and two fish, collecting twelve hampers of scraps at the end. It’s quite an achievement, isn’t it? So it’s hardly surprising the crowd is looking for Jesus in today’s gospel. St John reports them crossing the lake in boats in their pursuit and then finding Jesus in a synagogue in Capernaum. For five thousand people it would require quite a flotilla to convey them, and a huge building with an efficient PA system to carry out this meeting. It’s pretty unlikely in that relatively small fishing town. So, we can profoundly assume there is only a bunch of people, exceptionally desperate to find Jesus. It would be interesting to find out what reasons drive them to make such an effort.
The dialogue between Jesus and these people can give us some insight to their expectations and desires. Let’s listen again to the first words spoken by the Lord: ‘you are not looking for me because you have seen the signs but because you had all the bread you wanted to eat’. Perhaps they are not the most pleasant words they would expect from Jesus after all their effort to find him. But, honestly, their motivation is hardly spiritual. They are looking for ways to make their lives relatively comfortable, effortless and easy. So they just represent most of the human population of all time. They ask Jesus: ‘what must we do if we are to do the works that God wants?’ hoping it will be something easier than the usual everyday hassle. This question recalls a deeply imprinted belief that God wants us to do some semi-magical rites; in return he would give us a peaceful and rich existence.
Jesus’ answer is disappointing: ‘you must believe in the one he has sent’ – or putting it in a more direct way: you must believe in me. Jesus doesn’t give a new set of rules to fulfil and rites to perform. That’s the trouble. Following the rules and attending the rites seems to be easy as after a little while we are able to do it in auto-pilot mode. Think about us attending Sunday Mass – after several weeks since the new translation was introduced we have got used to it and do our parts routinely, without engaging too much of our minds. The living faith is something far greater than rules and rites – it’s a personal and dynamic relationship with God.
Jesus’ offer is incredibly generous: ‘the bread of God […] gives life to the world. […] I’m the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be hungry’. In fact we are craving for love and attention; we desperately want to be noticed, appreciated, respected and loved. People are able to do a lot to obtain food. They can be suicidal when left completely alone, even those living in splendour. We don’t realise this need as long we have family or friends. But they will not be around you for ever. They will abandon you – willingly of unwillingly – because that’s the reality of life. Jesus offers you himself as someone who can satisfy all your needs. Now it is your turn. What’s your answer?