This week’s Letter to the Ephesians, though probably not composed by Paul, captures his spirit and his consistent call for unity: One body, spirit, hope, faith, baptism, and God of all. But, Paul warns, true Christian unity can only be achieved by living the threefold virtues of faith, hope, and love with humility, gentleness, and patience.

They were going to carry him off and make him king; Jesus came that close to being King of the Jews the day he fed the crowds. But what good would that do? Israel had had many kings. Kings never brought Israel together, and kings never proved to be the messiahs they were anointed to be.

Chicago State University graduate Tiffany Richmond came from a background of poverty. She joined the U.S. Army after high school and then attended the South Side Chicago college thanks to the G.I. bill and by working while going to school.

Like the crowds who followed Jesus, we seek him and ask him for forgiveness and healing.

Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them. The stories of Jesus’ multiplication of food and feeding of large numbers of people are told six times in the gospels, and readers therefore would be correct not only to note their importance but also to hear in them overtones of the Eucharistic celebration.

According to AmpleHarvest.org, one out of eight Americans needs food assistance but can’t get fresh produce from local food pantries. Meanwhile, an estimated 100 billion pounds of food is thrown away annually in the United States. The website provides a way for food pantries and gardeners with extra produce to find each other.

The love Paul requires of us is no common love, but that which . . . effects as great and as perfect a union as though it were between limb and limb.  —Saint John Chryostom (c. 347–407), Homily XI