The Eucharist is the fountain of Christian Life. That is, it is the source and summit of the Christian life and Church. This is the affirmation of the Vatican II document. The Christian life is a journey of perfection towards a spirituality oriented towards Heaven and God. It is a weary journey that needs food to strengthen us on the way.
We have various pangs of hunger that need to be satisfied but, above them, all is the spiritual hunger that only God can spiritually satisfy in us. This hunger, desire or longing for love, care, recognition, fame or money and material things are ways man searches out his destiny.
There is a miracle of abundance and superabundance in life when there is love and sharing with others. This is the central focus of this Sunday readings. It is God that multiplies, but not out of nothing. It is what we bring to God in faith and trust that he multiplies into abundance for us all. The love action to share the little we have is the miracle of abundance.
The concept and the context of the word shepherd in the reflection of this Sunday is a leadership challenge. If an existential threat affecting families, the churches, and the world today. It is leadership qualities. It is an age-long problem that plagues the human race at all levels. Especially, families, nations, institutions and groups like the Christian Church or community is leadership.
The mission of Christ continues through our Christian vocation to witness to the Kingdom of God. This is the mission of God, and we are just participants or collaborators. It is a prophetic mission to proclaim the grace, mercy, and peace of God. As well as it is a mission to denounce evil, injustice and oppression.
The Christian life is a life of grace in weakness or strength in weakness through God´s grace and mercy. This strength in weakness is the beauty and mystery of our lives in God.
God from all intent and purpose wants us to have life and have it in abundance; he is the giver of life and not death. This mystery of God´s generosity of life to us is difficult to understand, especially in a world where there are too many miseries around us.
With the Lord, there is peace amidst storm always. All we have to do is to be still and know that the Lord is in control. In life, there will always be storms. Indeed, powerful storms that, shake us to the foundation of our being. However, the storms do not affect us, but also everything and everyone around us is constantly shaken by the storms of life.
The Christian life is a life of spiritual growth and spiritual fruitfulness through the action of the Holy Spirit. It is a life of grace, faith and mercy. Though with our effort and cooperation with God´s grace through sacramental and prayerful life.
The body and blood of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is not only a sacrament of the Church. The celebration of the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist is a pure, perfect and living sacrifice. The Eucharist is the sacrifice of the cross where Christ´s body was immolated, and his blood was poured out for us.