Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Let's talk about everyday life. We eat, we sleep, we care for those we live with (cleaning, cooking, etc.), and take care of the pressing issues of that particular day. The next day we begin all over again. The commonplace, maybe even trivial, things we must do each and every day—the quotidian—has a tendency to be subconsciously or intellectually reduced to those things which must be done but carry limited importance in the ‘big picture’ of our lives. But in today’s Gospel, Jesus demonstrates how the most quotidian of matters can and do express the fullness of love.
St. Matthew’s story of the feeding of the five thousand in today’s Gospel, in a sense, may be considered quite the quotidian matter. Even as Jesus had just learned of the death of John the Baptist and spent the day with large crowds healing their sick, Jesus directs his disciples to feed the large multitude of people rather than send them away. I think Jesus was trying to show the disciples, as well as the people, the importance of something as simple as providing a meal, sharing a meal in community. This simple gesture in the story (and the depth of its meaning) has probably been theologized and commented upon too many times to count. But the tenderness of Jesus is so striking. This was an expression the fullness of love for the people. In many ways, it is every bit as profound as the many healings Jesus did that day. Jesus never saw a separation between the spiritual and the quotidian.
I have always felt extraordinarily special when someone prepares a meal for me. There is something very tender and personal about it. It is a demonstration of love that is often underestimated or taken for granted. But all the commonplace things we do each and every day—washing dishes and clothes, transporting kids, doing the checkbook—take on great significance when we do them fully aware and conscious of the opportunity to love! This day, may we be granted a special awareness while doing these most routine tasks. Through the grace of God, may we see of all of these quotidian matters as invitations to allow Jesus to bring them to completion infused with the love of God.
--Gail Lyman