Fr. Michael Williams

On the shores of Lake Galilee, in the town of Capernaum, are the ruins of a Jewish synagogue. This synagogue, which was built by a Roman centurion for the Jewish people, was a place where Jesus taught some of His most important doctrines and where He performed a number of healings. When I visited the remains of this synagogue a few years ago, I was moved to think that Jesus had taught and healed on this exact spot almost two thousand years ago.

It was at this particular synagogue that Jesus taught His doctrine on “the Bread of Life”. This doctrine scandalised many of His listeners, and it continues scandalise people today. At the end of His teaching on the Bread of Life, St. John’s gospel tells us, “After this, many of His disciples went away and accompanied Him no more”. Only a few of the disciples remained with Jesus after this discourse. He asked those that remained, “What about you do you want to go away too?” Simon Peter answered, ‘Lord to whom shall we go? You have the message of eternal life…and we have come to know that You are the Holy One of God’”. Today many people continue to recognise the truth of Simon Peter’s words.

The synagogue in Capernaum was one of the many places in the Holy Land, where Jesus proclaimed the gospel and healed. The synagogue for Jews in Jesus’ time, and indeed today, was the place where Jews went to worship the one true God, and to be fed spiritually, especially on the Sabbath.

The Catholic Faith grew out of the Jewish Faith, and we can see this in many different ways. Faithful Jews will gather together on the Sabbath to worship the Lord in the local synagogue; Faithful Catholics will gather together on the Lord’s Day to worship Him in the local church. If you went into a synagogue you would notice a lamp burning close to where the Hebrew Scriptures are kept, as a sign that God is with His people; if you go into a Catholic Church you will notice a lamp burning close to the Tabernacle where the Bread of Life is kept, which indicates that God is with us.

When we come to church, we are fed by Jesus the Bread of Life, who continues to bring His healing touch to lives that are broken. Just as Jesus taught in the synagogue at Capernaum, He continues to teach us when we attend Mass. He especially teaches us when the Sacred Scriptures are read. He has taught us today with His doctrine on the Bread of Life. He told us, “Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life…For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink”. The Bread that we eat and the Cup that we drink from is Sacred, because it is truly Our Lord, that is why we must have great reverence always for the Eucharist. We should never treat this Gift lightly.

Jesus taught His doctrine at Capernaum, as He taught it to us today. But He goes further today. He feeds us with Himself in Holy Communion, with the promise, “anyone who eats this Bread will live forever”.

By receiving Jesus with faith and love, let us pray that we will be transformed into what we receive, so that we will proclaim His Good News to a darkened world, which also needs to be healed by the Divine Physician.