2 min
Reflection on Wednesday 1st Week of Advent (Jesus Feeds Hungry People) Seeds ' Scattered by Fr. Michael Marzan
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- Andlighet
We could easily identify with disciples in the gospel who saw the crowds following Jesus for days and had nothing to eat. Like them we feel helpless when we see millions of our own people not having enough only with these people well, very often we pray for them. What prevents us from taking positive action is often realistic assessment that the little we can do is not really going to make any difference to the hungry people.
"Where could we ever get enough to satisfy such a crowd? We might ask Jesus like the disciples. But Jesus insists it is not enough to have pity. One has to be moved to action. 'How many loaves do you have?" Jesus would ask us. Do something to someone from what you have. That will make the difference.
It is like this story. Two friends went to walk along the ocean. When one of them saw a dying starfish lying on the sand, he would pick it up and throw it back to the ocean. Irritated, his friend asks him, "What difference does one starfish make over the billions of starfish in the ocean?" said the other one, "But for that one starfish I just threw back to the ocean, for him there is a huge difference ; it means for him life or death.
In comparison to the hungry millions, the help you give to one hungry mouth will make a very little difference. But for that one hungry person to whom your help will be given, it means a huge difference, beacause it could mean for a lot for him, could mean life and death.
We could easily identify with disciples in the gospel who saw the crowds following Jesus for days and had nothing to eat. Like them we feel helpless when we see millions of our own people not having enough only with these people well, very often we pray for them. What prevents us from taking positive action is often realistic assessment that the little we can do is not really going to make any difference to the hungry people.
"Where could we ever get enough to satisfy such a crowd? We might ask Jesus like the disciples. But Jesus insists it is not enough to have pity. One has to be moved to action. 'How many loaves do you have?" Jesus would ask us. Do something to someone from what you have. That will make the difference.
It is like this story. Two friends went to walk along the ocean. When one of them saw a dying starfish lying on the sand, he would pick it up and throw it back to the ocean. Irritated, his friend asks him, "What difference does one starfish make over the billions of starfish in the ocean?" said the other one, "But for that one starfish I just threw back to the ocean, for him there is a huge difference ; it means for him life or death.
In comparison to the hungry millions, the help you give to one hungry mouth will make a very little difference. But for that one hungry person to whom your help will be given, it means a huge difference, beacause it could mean for a lot for him, could mean life and death.
2 min