Fifth Meditation - John 6

This Sunday's gospel completes the five consecutive Sundays devoted to the text of chapter 6 in John's gospel. This occurs every three years. The verses for this Sunday are 6:53, 60-69. We have been keying off of verse 66, (... many of His disciples turned back and no longer went about with Him.) In these Sundays we have explored what led up to their parting with Jesus. Now the final question, "Do you also wish to go away?" We know that there are many Catholics today who have forsaken the practice of their faith. May I suggest that you revisit each of these five reflections so that you can say with Peter, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life." Here are a couple of additions to help your reflection. The challenges that the seed of faith must face today are extremely daunting as Jesus' parable of the sower characterizes. How would you interpret "the path" - "the rocky ground" - "the choking thorns" in today's world?   St. Ignatius in his Spiritual Exercises lays out three degrees, three qualities of commitment to Jesus that people have. Where do you come in? 3 “Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up quickly, since it had no depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose, it was scorched; and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. 8 Other seed fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.” 9 And he said, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” Mark 4:1  St. Ignatius 1st: In the first kind of humility, we express our love for God by doing our duty and following God’s law. We avoid grave sin, for we don’t want to do anything that would separate us from God.  2nd: In the second (and “more perfect”) kind of humility, as in the first, we love God by honoring God’s law and avoiding sin. But we also strive for indifference. (we still have other attachments) We cultivate an attitude of interior freedom, finding a balance in our desires and attachments so that we will follow what God wants for us. We are zealous but our response, though sincere, is not yet wholehearted. 3rd: In the third (and “most perfect”) kind of humility, we move beyond following God’s law and making reasoned judgments—both good things—and we experience a heartfelt desire to imitate Christ more closely. We do not hold back. We simply want to be where Jesus is, no matter the cost. . With which group do I most identify?