First Reading
Joshua 24:1-2a,15-17,18b
Joshua and the people declare that they will serve the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 34:2-3,16-17,18-19,20-21
The Lord hears the cries of the just.
Second Reading
Ephesians 5:21-32 (or shorter form Ephesians 5:2a,25-32)
Husbands and wives should love one another as Christ loves the Church.
Gospel Reading
John 6:60-69
Simon Peter confesses his faith that Jesus alone has the words of the
eternal life.
Many of Jesus' disciples who were listening said,
"This saying is hard; who can accept it?"
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this,
he said to them, "Does this shock you?
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending
to where he was before?
It is the spirit that gives life,
while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe."
Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe
and the one who would betray him.
And he said,
"For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by my Father."
As a result of this,
many of his disciples returned to their former way of life
and no longer accompanied him.
Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?"
Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe
and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God."
Background on the Gospel Reading
For our Gospel today we hear the conclusion of the "Bread of Life
discourse" in the sixth chapter of John's Gospel. In the preceding verses,
which we have heard proclaimed in our liturgy over the past few weeks, we
have heard Jesus explain that he is the Bread of Life, given so that those
who believe may have eternal life. This discourse follows the miracle in
which Jesus fed more than five thousand people with five barley loaves and
two fish. As Jesus has been teaching these things, John's Gospel describes
a murmuring crowd unable to accept Jesus' words. In today's Gospel, the
crowd has dwindled in number, and John no longer references them, or the
Jews. Instead John describes the questioning of those considered to be
Jesus' own disciples.
Today's Gospel first records the response of those in the crowd who are
described as Jesus' disciples. Just as the larger crowd had struggled with
Jesus' teaching, these disciples also cannot accept Jesus' words. Jesus is
said to know about their murmuring. He responds by acknowledging their
unbelief and by reiterating that only those chosen by the Father will
follow Jesus to the end. John's Gospel reports that many of those who had
been Jesus' disciples ceased to follow him at this point. The number of
people following Jesus dwindled from a crowd of more than 5,000 to only 12
people. And it is to these Twelve that Jesus now turns his attention.
Simon Peter's response to Jesus' question as to whether those closest to
him will also leave, reminds us of the reports of Peter's confession of
faith in the Synoptic Gospels. Peter announces, on behalf of all the
Twelve, that they have come to believe all that Jesus has taught about
himself: Jesus is the one from God in whom they have found the path to
eternal life.
This conclusion of the Bread of Life discourse focuses on personal faith
in the life of Christian discipleship. Each person must make his or her
own judgment about who Jesus is and in doing so determine the way of life
that he or she will follow. God's grace invites us to be Jesus' disciples,
but each person must respond to the grace of God and confess as his or her
own the belief that Jesus is the one from God. This faith then commits us
to the path of life, leading us to eternal life.
Family Connection
When a child is baptized, the parents speak on behalf of the child in
professing the faith in which the child is to be baptized. The parents
promise to teach their child this faith so that they may one day accept
this faith as his or her own. In the example of Simon Peter, we learn that
each person must also make his or her own profession of faith in Jesus as
the one sent by God to save us. We pray for our children as they mature in
the faith that they may learn that Jesus alone has the words of eternal
life and that they may choose to follow the way of Christian discipleship.
As you gather as a family, talk about promise that parents make at their
child's baptism to teach their child about Jesus and the faith of the
Church. Talk about the importance of this promise to your family and about
some of the things that you are doing to try to honor this commitment. In
today's Gospel we hear Simon Peter speak about what he has come to believe
about Jesus. Together read today's Gospel, John 6:60-69. Pray together
that each person in our family will grow in his or her faith that Jesus is
the one sent by God who alone has the words of eternal life. Pray together
the Apostles' Creed or the Nicene Creed
Sources: Loyola Press; Sunday Readings
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