In today's gospel passage, the crowd calls out to Jesus: What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do? (Jn 6: 30). Even after they had witnessed the multiplication of the loaves and fish, even after Jesus had walked on water, even after he had spent the entire day teaching them further lessons, they were not satisfied! They wanted more!
Are we not the same as those people? How many times has Jesus shown us his face: in the person who comes to visit us, in the stranger who asks for our help, in the elderly who are isolated and worried about their family members at this time when we must all practice social distancing ... Even though we may have seen the loving and merciful face of Jesus on many occasions, we are always thirsting for more ... What sign can you do, that we may see and believe ...?
In the case of the crowds who were asking this question on that day, Jesus told them that they already had everything that they needed: My Father gives you the true bread from heaven (Jn 6: 32) and I am the bread of life ... whoever comes to me will never hunger ... (Jn 6: 35). The people were asking for signs, but they really didn't understand what they were seeking, nor did they understand what they were asking for.
It was later on, after the Spirit had descended upon the Apostles, that they fully understood and were filled with the confidence to tell others about what they had witnessed. We see evidence of this in the witness of Saint Stephen (Acts 7: 51-53) who was martyred because the people who heard his words were not able to accept them.
What of our time? Even today, perhaps today more than ever before, people need to hear about Jesus: people need to hear that God loves us, with tender love; people need to witness this tender love for themselves, and that begins with our words and our gestures; people need to be shown the signs that will bring their faith to life ... and those people include us. Where will we look, to whom shall we go?
Have a great day.
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