Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 110
25 JULY 2021 A.D.


Reading I
2 Kgs 4:42-44

A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing to Elisha, the man of God,
twenty barley loaves made from the firstfruits,
and fresh grain in the ear.
Elisha said, “Give it to the people to eat.”
But his servant objected,
“How can I set this before a hundred people?”
Elisha insisted, “Give it to the people to eat.”
“For thus says the LORD,
‘They shall eat and there shall be some left over.’”
And when they had eaten, there was some left over,
as the LORD had said.


Responsorial Psalm
Ps 145:10-11, 15-16, 17-18

R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
   and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your kingdom
   and speak of your might.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

The eyes of all look hopefully to you,
   and you give them their food in due season;
you open your hand
   and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.

The LORD is just in all his ways
   and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
   to all who call upon him in truth.
R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.


Reading II
Eph 4:1-6

Brothers and sisters:
I, a prisoner for the Lord,
urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received,
with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another through love,
striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace:
one body and one Spirit,
as you were also called to the one hope of your call;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all.


Alleluia
Lk 7:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
A great prophet has risen in our midst.
God has visited his people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.


Gospel
Jn 6:1-15

Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee.
A large crowd followed him,
because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick.
Jesus went up on the mountain,
and there he sat down with his disciples.
The Jewish feast of Passover was near.
When Jesus raised his eyes
and saw that a large crowd was coming to him,
he said to Philip,
“Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?”
He said this to test him,
because he himself knew what he was going to do.
Philip answered him,
“Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough
for each of them to have a little.”
One of his disciples,
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him,
“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish;
but what good are these for so many?”
Jesus said, “Have the people recline.”
Now there was a great deal of grass in that place.
So the men reclined, about five thousand in number.
Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks,
and distributed them to those who were reclining,
and also as much of the fish as they wanted.
When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples,
“Gather the fragments left over,
so that nothing will be wasted.”
So they collected them,
and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments
from the five barley loaves
that had been more than they could eat.
When the people saw the sign he had done, they said,
“This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.”
Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off
to make him king,
he withdrew again to the mountain alone.

Overview of the Gospel:

~ The Gospel Readings for the next five weeks have shifted from the Gospel of Mark to the Gospel of
John—specifically John 6, the Bread of Life discourse, which in turn leads to Jesus’ great teaching on
the Eucharist.

~ The multiplication of the loaves is the fourth of the seven great “signs” recounted in John’s gospel and
one of only two that involve food (see John 2:1-11). It is the only miracle that is recounted in all four
gospel accounts. They are called signs in John’s gospel rather than miracles because they point to
profound realities that transcend their original limited purposes.

~ In multiplying the loaves, Jesus recalls a similar miracle performed by the great Old Testament prophet
Elisha that we hear about in our first reading (2 Kings 4:42-44). Jesus miracle, however, is much
greater, befitting his greater status as Messiah and God. Whereas Elisha starts with twenty loaves,
Jesus starts with only five; Elisha feeds one hundred men, while Jesus feeds “about five thousand;”
Elisha has “some bread” left over, while Jesus’ multiplication produces twelve wicker baskets full of
leftovers (representing the twelve tribes of Israel).

~ Last week, Mark tells us that Jesus had just finished teaching the crowds “many things” (Mark 6:30-34).
He has just fed them with the word of God and with physical food—now he will prepare them to be fed
with the Bread of Life. [courtesy: Vince Contreras--"Sunday Scripture Study for Catholics"]


"There He is: King of kings and Lord of lords, hidden in the bread. To this extreme He humbled Himself for love
of you." ~ St. Josemaria Escriva

Edited ~ medicmandan

Thanks!