Apr 12, 2026 Written by 

Food of the Eternal and Faith

In today's passage, after the sharing of the loaves, the crowd chases Jesus to the other shore, towards Capernaum.

And immediately the Lord puts his finger on the sore spot by emphasising that they seek Him not because of the signs they have seen, but because they are satiated.

A quest driven not by faith, but perhaps by need.

And, to those who ask what to fulfil to do the works of God, the Lord urges the work par excellence: believing.

Jesus dismounts and shifts his gaze from law to Faith.

Wonderful context that in the time of Francis and Clare led the poor people of Assisi to evolve their path of trust and abandonment in God.

In the extraordinary Franciscan Sources we find Francis himself called by the Lord to a leap of faith.

"The Saint found great consolation in the Lord's visits and was assured by them that the foundations of his Order would always remain stable [...].

Being troubled by bad examples, and having resorted one day, so bitterly, to prayer, he felt himself addressed in this way by the Lord:

«Why are you, little man, troubled? Perhaps I made you pastor of my Order in such a way that you would forget that I remain its principal patron?

That is why I have chosen you, simple man, so that those who will, may follow the works that I will do in you and that must be imitated by all others.

I have called you: I will preserve and shepherd you, I will make up with new religious the void left by the others, to the point of giving birth to them if they were not already born.

'Do not therefore be troubled, but wait for your salvation, for if the Order should be reduced even to only three brothers, my help will always be stable'.

From that day it was customary to say that the virtue of a single holy friar overcomes a quantity, however great, of imperfects, as a single ray of light dispels the thickest darkness» (FF 742).

To him who believes in Him who makes us righteous, it is his faith that is reckoned to him for righteousness (cf. Rom 4:4-5).

S. Clare, then, lived literally what Jesus suggests in this Gospel passage: be concerned about food that lasts forever.

In fact, Pope Gregory, with the Bull «Quo elongati» [Up to what point] of 28 September 1230, forbade the Friars Minor from entering monasteries without a special licence from the Holy See - and that only those brothers deputed to do so could take care of the Poor Clares.

In this context, here is what the Sources attest:

"Once, when the Lord Pope Gregory had forbidden any monk to go to the monasteries of the Women without his permission, the pious Mother regretted that the sisters would more rarely have the food of sacred doctrine and groaning said:

«Take them all away from us now, the brethren, after you have taken away those who gave us the nourishment of life!».

And she immediately sent all the brothers back to the minister, not wanting to have beggars to provide the material bread, when they no longer had those who provided them with the bread of the spirit.

But when Pope Gregory learned of this, he immediately put the prohibition back in the power of the general minister" (FF 3232).

Solicitude of a soul in love with the eternal food and willing to renounce everything for It.

 

«Work not for the food that perishes, but for the food that remains for the life of the LORD [...]» (Jn 6:27).

«This is the Work of God: that you believe in him whom he has sent» (Jn 6:29).

 

 

Monday of the 3rd wk. in Easter  (Jn 6:22-29)

156 Last modified on Sunday, 12 April 2026 04:38
Teresa Girolami

Teresa Girolami è laureata in Materie letterarie e Teologia. Ha pubblicato vari testi, fra cui: "Pellegrinaggio del cuore" (Ed. Piemme); "I Fiammiferi di Maria - La Madre di Dio in prosa e poesia"; "Tenerezza Scalza - Natura di donna"; co-autrice di "Dialogo e Solstizio".

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Wherever people want to set themselves up as God they cannot but set themselves against each other. Instead, wherever they place themselves in the Lord’s truth they are open to the action of his Spirit who sustains and unites them (Pope Benedict
Dove gli uomini vogliono farsi Dio, possono solo mettersi l’uno contro l’altro. Dove invece si pongono nella verità del Signore, si aprono all’azione del suo Spirito che li sostiene e li unisce (Papa Benedetto)
But our understanding is limited: thus, the Spirit's mission is to introduce the Church, in an ever new way from generation to generation, into the greatness of Christ's mystery. The Spirit places nothing different or new beside Christ; no pneumatic revelation comes with the revelation of Christ - as some say -, no second level of Revelation (Pope Benedict)
Ma la nostra capacità di comprendere è limitata; perciò la missione dello Spirito è di introdurre la Chiesa in modo sempre nuovo, di generazione in generazione, nella grandezza del mistero di Cristo. Lo Spirito non pone nulla di diverso e di nuovo accanto a Cristo; non c’è nessuna rivelazione pneumatica accanto a quella di Cristo - come alcuni credono - nessun secondo livello di Rivelazione (Papa Benedetto)
Who touched Lydia's heart? The answer is: «the Holy Spirit». It’s He who made this woman feel that Jesus was Lord; He made this woman feel that salvation was in Paul's words; He made this woman feel a testimony (Pope Francis)
Chi ha toccato il cuore di Lidia? La risposta è: «lo Spirito Santo». È lui che ha fatto sentire a questa donna che Gesù era il Signore; ha fatto sentire a questa donna che la salvezza era nelle parole di Paolo; ha fatto sentire a questa donna una testimonianza (Papa Francesco)
But what does it mean to love Christ?  It means trusting him even in times of trial, following him faithfully even on the Via Crucis, in the hope that soon the morning of the Resurrection will come.  Entrusting ourselves to Christ, we lose nothing, we gain everything.  In his hands our life acquires its true meaning.  Love for Christ expresses itself in the will to harmonize our own life with the thoughts and sentiments of his Heart.  This is achieved through interior union [Pope Benedict]
Ma che vuol dire amare Cristo? Vuol dire fidarsi di Lui anche nell'ora della prova, seguirLo fedelmente anche sulla Via Crucis, nella speranza che presto verrà il mattino della risurrezione. Affidandoci a Cristo non perdiamo niente, ma acquistiamo tutto. Nelle sue mani la nostra vita acquista il suo vero senso. L'amore per Cristo si esprime nella volontà di sintonizzare la propria vita con i pensieri e i sentimenti del suo Cuore. Questo si realizza mediante l'unione interiore [Papa Benedetto]
St Thomas Aquinas says this very succinctly when he writes: "The New Law is the grace of the Holy Spirit" (Summa Theologiae, I-IIae, q.106 a. 1). The New Law is not another commandment more difficult than the others: the New Law is a gift, the New Law is the presence of the Holy Spirit [Pope Benedict]
San Tommaso d’Aquino lo dice in modo molto preciso quando scrive: “La nuova legge è la grazia dello Spirito Santo” (Summa theologiae, I-IIae, q. 106, a. 1). La nuova legge non è un altro comando più difficile degli altri: la nuova legge è un dono, la nuova legge è la presenza dello Spirito Santo [Papa Benedetto]
Even after seeing his people's repeated unfaithfulness to the covenant, this God is still willing to offer his love, creating in man a new heart (John Paul II)
Anche dopo aver registrato nel suo popolo una ripetuta infedeltà all’alleanza, questo Dio è disposto ancora ad offrire il proprio amore, creando nell’uomo un cuore nuovo (Giovanni Paolo II)

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