St John, the dramatist, presents the teaching on the Eucharist in three main scenes. The first is the feeding of the five thousand. Imagine the little boy timidly approaching Andrew and offering his lunch. Barley loaves were the food of the poor, so probably it was a huge sacrifice. However, this act is symbolic of what the Eucharist is all about. It is the fruit of Christ’s total self-giving on the cross. It also represents how God can magnify a small act of generosity.
Jesus fed the hungry crowds with loaves and fishes. However, John skilfully links the physical feeding with the much greater spiritual feeding which he depicts in the next scene (John 6:22-71). Jesus spoke of himself as the “Bread of Life.” We might remember the scene in the gospel a few weeks ago, when the woman who had a haemorrhage touched Jesus’ cloak and he felt the power go out of him (Mk 5:25-35). It is an image of what happens to us when we receive the body and blood of Christ. The scene ends sadly, however, with many of Jesus’ disciples leaving him because they could not accept the wonderful gift he was offering. The gift, however, is not for us alone. The meal is to be shared. In the last of John’s scenes the Lord washed the feet of his disciples at the Last Supper, showing them what the fruits of his self-giving in the Eucharist were meant to be (John 13:3-6).