If there is one theme common to this Sunday’s Scripture readings, it’s this: “We have more resources than we think we do.”
Ah the human mind….I wrote that sentence above on Friday, was interrupted for some other work, and now it’s Sunday morning. Darned if I can remember what I wanted to say!! When I pushed back from the desk on Friday, I said to myself: “You better jot down what you were thinking of….”. Sigh.
When faced with the world’s problems, or with our own fears and anxieties, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Panic sets in. What can I do? Will I be able to cope? Will there be enough of this or that or the other thing? It’s exactly what the disciples felt: “Where will we get enough food to feel all these people?”
It was a good question, because all they saw were the five loaves and two fish. Freak-out time for sure! But there was so much more.
An old news story tells about four men adrift on the Atlantic Ocean near the equator. They became so thirsty that they tried to squeeze moisture from the pieces of canvas on their small lifeboat. When rescuers finally arrived, the men lay prostrate from dehydration. After gradually reviving them, the rescuers informed the men of an incredible irony: While they were fighting for a few drops of moisture, they had actually been floating on potable water! You see, they were near the Amazon River – a river so huge that it pushes fresh water far out into the ocean. (The Amazon is immense: bigger than the next eight rivers combined.) The men could have dipped a bucket off the side of their boat and drawn out drinkable water.
As I said, we have more resources than we think we do.
Love deeply, laugh often, pray faithfully!
Fr. Herb, C.S.C.
