And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things

 

 Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.  And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.  So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.  They arrived before them and came together to Him.  And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  So He began to teach them many things.  When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.  Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat."  But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat."  And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have?  Go and see."  And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish."  Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.  So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.  And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.  So they all ate and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.  Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.  

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.  And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.

 

- Mark 6:30–46 

 

Yesterday we read that, on their first apostolic mission mission, the twelve cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.  Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known.  And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him."  Others said, "It is Elijah."  And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets."  But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!"  For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her.  Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife."  Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him.  And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.  Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.  And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you."  He also swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom."  So she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?"  And she said, "The head of John the Baptist!"  Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter."  And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.  Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought.  And he went and beheaded him in prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.  When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.   

Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.   This verse continues from Tuesday's reading, in which the twelve have just been sent out on their first apostolic mission. 

And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.  So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  My study bible comments here that Christ gives rest to His disciples in order to show those engaged in preaching and teaching that they must not labor continuously, but must also take rest.  It also teaches us, generally speaking, about our individual lives as Christ's followers.  We need periods of activity and also reflection.  Our way is a median way, not merely an ideological or philosophical one, but one that understands our full humanity, and is organic to all that we are:  body, soul, and spirit.

But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.  They arrived before them and came together to Him.  And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  So He began to teach them many things.  Let us look at Jesus' response to the multitudes.  They clearly are seeking something from Jesus in a deeply heartfelt way, out of real need.  Jesus understands them through His compassion for them, and sees that they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  Let us note Christ's immediate response to their real need.  It is to fill them with spiritual food:  He began to teach them many things.  My study bible pays special attention to the phrase "moved with compassion."  It is used frequently concerning Jesus (Matthew 9:36, 14:14, 20:34; Mark 1:41, Luke 7:13), showing that Christ's power and authority are extended to those who suffer.

When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.  Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat."  But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat."  And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have?  Go and see."  And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish."  Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.  So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.  And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.  So they all ate and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.  Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.  This miracle in the wilderness is reported by all four evangelists.  My study bible comments that it shows Jesus feeding a great multitude of His people just as He (as the Lord) fed the Israelites in the desert (see Exodus 16).  The Patristic fathers see in this an image of the Eucharist, which is especially clear in John 6.  There is also a traditional spiritual interpretation to this miracle, in which the five loaves indicate the five books of the Law or Torah (Genesis through Deuteronomy), which are broken open in Christ, and thereby feed the universe.  The two fish represent the Gospel Book and the Epistle Book, which constitute the teaching of the fishermen.  The gathering up of the leftovers by the apostles (twelve baskets) shows that the teaching which the faithful cannot grasp are nevertheless kept in the consciousness of the Church.

 

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.  And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.   Does Jesus stay to be acclaimed as king by the multitudes He has just fed in the wilderness?  No, instead His concern is for His mission and what He needs to do.  The disciples are sent back across the Sea of Galilee, while He Himself departed to the mountain to pray.  Once again, we should all learn and take seriously His example of constant communion with the Father, freed of distractions.

Let us take up Jesus' first task that He appears to fulfill in today's reading, and which He fulfills because He is moved with compassion.  It is noteworthy that this task is not feeding thousands of people in the wilderness.  It is not to listen to whatever complaints they have, and it's not even to physically heal them.  Jesus' first task, the need to which He responds in today's reading, is to address -- out of His compassion on them -- the state of these people being "like sheep not having a shepherd."  It is this dire condition He addresses, and the healing medicine that they need, and which He uses, is to teach them many things.  Their real need -- the true way to address and to fill the needs of these lost sheep -- is for wisdom, and specifically the wisdom and teachings of Christ.  For what these people truly lack is leadership that really cares about them, and which is capable of perceiving the real need they have and fulfilling that need.  People need leadership in the form of good teachings, things by which they can live good lives, truth in which they can trust -- and especially those good things which come from the One who loves them.  Jesus will give it to them straight, and not just pander to whatever it is they might think they want or need.  He truly heals with His leadership.  The last thing Jesus does is play to the crowd, for the very last thing for which He pursues His ministry is popularity.  One gets the feeling that His real joy comes from fulfilling the will of the Father, and hence He engages in His public ministry and His walk toward the Cross and the powerful meaning that will bring as part of the fabric of this world.  But in terms of His personal happiness, that notion of what might give some peace in the moment,  one wonders if the life of the carpenter from Nazareth wasn't far easier.  But Jesus' real mission to us is leadership, and to show us the most exemplary model of what that is.  So here, He both perceives and fulfills the real need of these people who've followed Him into the wilderness, even as He tried to withdraw with the twelve to hear about their first apostolic mission.  Jesus is moved with compassion as He detects that this crowd's need is for a good shepherd (John 10:11-16).  As that good shepherd, the first thing with which He feeds them is to teach them many things.  This is what a geniune good leader does.  He gives direction and guidance, giving the sheep what they need to live good lives.  It is only as the day progresses, and all are there without resources for food, that the occasion arises for the miracle of feeding in the wilderness, mirroring the action of the Lord in the Old Testament.  When this happens, one must think in terms of "fulfillment" in the sense of Christ's saying, "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill" (Matthew 5:17).  And it follows in as extention of feeding the multitude by teaching them many things.  It figuratively places the Eucharist, by extension, into the place of filling us with good things, including the fullness of Christ which incorporates His word and teachings, as well as Himself as the Word or Logos.  It's important that we don't lose sight of all of these realities, and especially that to be filled and given the good things we need isn't simply to have our physical needs met.  Our very human needs consist also of that which feeds soul and spirit, and especially our communion with God, for without that our worldly lives are empty in ways we will search to fulfill until we find the true food of the shepherd for the sheep.  He is that food, the living bread of life, the food for everlasting life.