Jesus healed all these people

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (15: 29-37) today, which tells of Jesus healing many people in the hills near the Sea of Galilee then feeding the large crowd with just seven loaves and a few small fish.

Fr Paul says Matthew, like Mark, has two stories about the feeding of large crowds. There is the feeding of the five thousand and then there is today’s Gospel, the feeding of the four thousand. Sometimes they are confused as one and the same event.

The feeding of the crowds makes it clear that Jesus is the Messiah. The Messiah is the messenger and representative of God.

In providing this food for so many, Jesus provides food in a way that only God can. Jesus is also wiping away all the tears, all the discomfort and sorrow through the many healings he conducts in the Gospel. Again, it all points towards Jesus being the Messiah, the messenger and representative of God.

And so, identifying who Jesus is, Fr Paul invites us to reflect on this as our Advent journey continues.