Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (6: 52-59) in which Jesus says ‘As I, who am sent by the living Father, myself draw life from the Father, so the whoever eats me will draw life from me. This is the bread come down from heaven, not like the bread our ancestors ate’. After the Gospel, Fr Paul shares a little about the life of St Peter Chanel, whose memorial we celebrate today.Fr Paul says Peter Chanel was born in France, at Cuet (near Belley), in 1803. He had been a priest for three years when he was accepted by the Marists who were a missionary order. He was then sent out to evangelize the island of Futuna in the Pacific, where cannibalism had only recently been banned by the local ruler, Niuliki. At first this mission went well, and Fr Chanel and his lay assistants made many converts; but as he learned the local language and gained the confidence of the people, Niuliki became jealous and fearful; and the baptism of his son and his son’s friends was the last straw. While Fr Chanel’s companions were away, Niuliki sent men who set upon him and clubbed him to death. His mission had lasted only three years: he is the first martyr of the South Seas. Today we prayer: St Peter Chanel… Pray for us!