Sixty-six years ago today one of the biggest military operations in our time took place - D-Day.  The Allied Forces landed on three beaches in France to begin the liberation of Europe from Hilter and his Third Reich.  As we remember this day we especially pray for those who did not live through that invasion.  They gave their lives and never came home to their loved ones.  Their ultimate sacrifice is an encouraging example that makes us grateful and inspires us to give of ourselves to our nation for the good of all.  Not only do we just enjoy the fruit of what they have done, it is our time to continue on with their spirit of sacrifice.

Today we celebrate another sacrifice that has touched the lives of billions of people - the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.  That sacrifice is made real and life giving to us each time Mass is celebrated.  Not only do we remember what Jesus has done and give thanks, we also have the opportunity to receive Him in the Eucharist.  His prayer, that we will be one with him and the Father, is answered as he enters our very bodies through the bread of life.  This food, which is Jesus himself, not only inspires and encourages us, but impels us to live and love fully as he did.  He enters our bodies physically, it is up to us to let him into our minds and hearts.  How wonderful our world would be if we all responded to the love and presence of God totally and completely.  When couples come in to arrange their weddings, I ask them if they go to Mass every week.  Frequently they say they do not.  My response is to tell them that if they love the person they are going to marry they need the help of God.  There is no better place to receive that help and strength to love than in the Eucharist.  I tell them that they want to love as best they can, but without the help of God they cannot.  To be the most loving husband and wife, as to be the best in any relationship and commitment of love, we need divine assistance.  After all, we are created in the image and likeness of God.  It is when we love that that image becomes real and life giving for ourselves and others.  Today’s gospel gives us the account of the multiplication of the loaves and fish according to St. Luke.  How stunning it had to be to hear Jesus tell them, “Give them something to eat yourselves.”  How will twelve men with a meager amount of food and probably not enough financial resources feed 5,000 people?  What Jesus is doing is pre- figuring what has taken place every time Mass has been celebrated since the Last Supper.  Countless people have been fed by Jesus himself in those 2,000 years.  We are blessed to be part of the Church and to encounter Jesus personally in this sacrament.  When Jesus says, “Give them something to eat yourselves,” he is expanding their horizon on how he expects them to love and how much love they are really capable of.  The potential, strength and ability to love is in each of us - again, we are created in the image of God.  But what is it that taps that potential and opens the floodgates so we can pour forth love?

Our celebration today reminds us that when we feed others with self-giving love, our love is never exhausted or used up.  Jesus on the cross seemed to be done loving.  There was no more opportunity left.  But there was!  His seven last words were words of love.  He was confined to the cross by nails, pinned immobile, but the love in his heart kept pouring out until the end.  At times when I look at the crucifix in our church, I think of how Jesus was trapped and confined on the cross.  But the message is that no matter where we are or who we are with, we have the resources and ability to love.  It is not always easy.  But what greater challenge will we face than Jesus on the cross on Calvary?  He did not feel sorry for himself or allow himself to feel trapped.

As we look at our lives we can see how we have done outstanding and even unbelievable things for those we love.  We were not tired and glad the experience was over, but grateful that we had the opportunity to love.  That is exactly what Jesus expects and is one with us as we do.  That is exactly what makes us fully alive.  We thank God for Jesus and his love.  We thank God for those who sacrifice for us personally and as a nation.  And we thank God for the trust and ability he has put in us to feed one another with our love.  Fed by the Body of Christ, we are the Body of Christ.

Father Walden ; ;