Today is the Ninth Sunday after Trinity. Today’s Gospel reading is Matthew’s account of Jesus feeding the five thousand, a narrative shared by all four Gospels. On the one hand, this narrative looks back to the way in which Moses fed the Israelites on manna in the wilderness. On the other hand, this narrative looks forward to the way in which Jesus feeds his followers at the last supper and in the eucharist. The link with the eucharist is made stronger by the way in which the narrative draws attention to the four-fold actions when Jesus took the bread, blessed, broke and distributed the pieces.
For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during the preceding week, I invited reflection on the image of picnic. In today’s picture from the illustrated communion book, The Lord is Here!, Teddy Horsley is enjoying a picnic with his family and friends.
Lord Jesus Christ,
you fed five thousand people
with five loaves and two fish.
Inspire your people today,
to share the riches of your food
throughout the world;
for you are the Bread of Life.
Amen.
Next Sunday is the Tenth Sunday after Trinity. The reading from Matthew’s Gospel is Matthew’s account of Jesus stilling the storm. The image to help prepare for this theme is gales. You can find out more about that theme by looking at the Educational Resources and the Preparation Resources.
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Eighth Sunday after Trinity – Exploring the Sunday Gospel