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Genesis 14:18-20 Psalm 109 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Luke 9:11-17
Today's feast focuses our attention on the Eucharist and the offering of bread and wine. In the book of Genesis the priest Melchizedek, king of Salem (Jerusalem), set bread and wine before Abraham who made powerful by God, had just defeated five armies. Melchizedek blesses Abraham and Abraham acknowledges the blessing by giving a tithe or tenth of the booty.
In accordance with Jewish tradition Jesus blessed bread and wine at the beginning of the last meal with his disciples. Paul tells the Corinthians that after thanking God for the bread and wine Jesus said, "This is my body…this is my blood," He commanded his followers to do likewise as a memorial of him, thus instituting the practice of the Eucharist. Whenever Christians do this they are making present the death of Jesus, his act of total love.
Luke's gospel tells the story of the feeding of the five thousand when Jesus blessed bread and fish. When everyone had eaten there was a superabundance of scraps left over - a picture of the kingdom of God. Today we are called to make the kingdom a reality. Let us pray that our participation in the Eucharist strengthen us as we take God's love to others.