Readings (Year B):
1 Kings 19:4–8
Psalm 34:2–9
Ephesians 4:30–5:2
John 6:41–51
Reflection: Enough, O Lord!
The digital landscape today is fraught with uncertainty, infighting, and divisiveness. However, like a moth to a flame, I cannot stop myself from regularly opening my Twitter app (as well as my other social media accounts) and observing the drama threaded out before me.
I watch as people tear one another down with reckless abandon, lobbing clever quips and biting comebacks across the safe distance and anonymity provided by digital spaces. What makes it even more sad is that the individuals engaged in these scuffles have so much in common with one another. They often share a similar love for country, faith, and mutual interests; yet online, they appear as polar opposites or bitter enemies.
“This is enough, O Lord!” I shout into the void, echoing Elijah in this Sunday’s first reading (1 Kings 19:4). And yet it continues, day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute.
This frustration comes to mind when Jesus is confronted by his fellow Galileans in John 6:41–51. After having fed them with a multitude of loaves and fish in John 6:1–15 and after sharing the news of his generous gift of self as the Bread of Life in John 6:24-35, the crowds start to murmur about Jesus, akin to the start of a negative thread unrolling on Twitter.
They begin by questioning his credentials and family heritage, putting doubt in others’ minds about the veracity of Jesus’ words and actions. The text notes that the crowds talk about him behind his back, in a seemingly anonymous space without confronting him face to face.
Jesus calls them out. He stops the divisiveness in its tracks and responds by invoking their shared cultural heritage—“Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert” (John 6:49)—to remind them what unites them is more important than what divides them. He then reiterates the compassionate message of the Bread of Life, that his mission is to give his life and love to the world, even to those who would beat him down.
In this way, Jesus gives us a model for our divisive and divided world. He asks us to step out of anonymity, remember our shared story, and proceed with selfless compassion for one another.
St. Paul echoes this wisdom, saying that “all bitterness, fury, anger, shouting, and reviling must be removed from you, along with all malice” (Eph. 4:31). He then goes on to say what should replace these elements: “…be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ” (Eph. 4:32).
St. Paul’s summary should be our mantra, too, when we next open our mobile apps or are tempted to engage online. This simple yet profound message of boundless and selfless love, modeling the Lord’s example in the gospel, is truly enough, O Lord, to counter all that assails us today.
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