Reflection for the Week of 07/30/06:
"We Come for the Food"

By Sr. Reginia Siegfried, ACS

one of our parishioners says that he first came to St. Vincent's for the meals; he now stays for the community. Today's first reading and the Gospel passage from the writer of John both paint pictures of meals with leftovers. The prophet Elisha fed a crowd and "there was some left over." The familiar story of the feeding of the multitude also mentions that there was "more than they could eat." The real work of wonder is that the people shared what they themselves had brought along so that love and generosity was stronger than selfishness and hoarding.
Jessica Powers, the Carmelite poet, aptly relates both readings in her poem

"The Leftovers."
With twenty loaves of bread Elisha fed
the one hundred till they were satisfied,
and Scripture tells us there was bread left over.
Jesus did more: with five small barley loaves
and two dried fish he fed five thousand men,
together with their wives and children, all
neatly arranged upon the cushioned grass.
The awed disciples, when the crowd had eaten,
gathered up what was left: twelve baskets full.
Who then received these fragments? Hopefully
the least (though not less favored) and the poor.
I think of those who always seem to get
the leavings from the banqueting of others,
the scraps of bread, of life, that goodness saves.
I pray that they come proudly when invited,
make merry at their meal and have their fill,
and rise up thankfully, remembering
the fragments, too, were miracles of love.

Most people have fridges with leftovers in them. Those leftovers can be symbols of the food of ourselves that we can easily share with others. As Jessica Powers reminds us, even the fragments are miracles of love. Our parish has a reputation for its love of and generosity to the poor and to the hungry who come to our doors. While our guests might come for the food, we can share more than food. We can feed them with the generous miracle of our love.
Ponder:
*What in my life can I share with someone that can become a miracle of love?
*If I come to St. Vincent's to be nourished by our liturgy, prayer together, and music, how can I contribute to our mission?
Do:
*Do the obvious this week: help with meals!

Parish Mission Statement

We, the people of St. Vincent's Parish in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, Missouri, are committed to following Christ, evangelizer of the poor. We do this through:
- Worship and continued spiritual formation for both laity and clergy
- Serving the poor and oppressed
- Preaching the Gospel by word and action in an ecumenical spirit