My brothers and sisters, we have a big problem! Catastrophe! Epidemic! Crisis! Major, serious problem in this Gospel! The apostles and crowd (in weeks to come) have NO opportunity to eat!!!

As you know, I have studied in Rome for the past 4 years and will be returning for one more year. I am looking forward to returning for many reasons, but the food is a big reason! The Italians take their eating seriously! That’s why, having no opportunity to eat would be a serious problem in Italy! Let me explain a typical Italian meal for you to show you how serious they take eating!

First they begin with an antipasto. This is designed to wet the appetite and get ready for the first course or primo. The primo is designed to prepare for the main dish. The primo is usually a pasta or rice. ( I prefer the pasta!). Then we move onto the main dish. This is the central part of the meal. This is where we really sink our teeth in! A salad follows the main course to help settle things. Finally, we have the dolce! That little sweet something, dessert, that brings a fitting end to the meal.

Now, we as Americans our foreign to the idea of sitting down for 3-5 hours like the Italians. Nonetheless, we do alright when it comes to eating. We have hunger problems but as a whole, we are better off than most third world countries. However, while we are doing well with physical eating, we are in need of spiritual eating. Spiritually we are in need to be fed. The apostles and crowds had physical hunger, but spiritually they were alright. They were at the Master’s feet and being fed spiritually. We are in need to be spiritually fed!

So, let’s take our Italian meal and figure out how we can be fed spiritually. Let’s begin with our antipasto. As I said earlier...this wets the appetite! What better way to wet the appetite than to read the Word of God. Sacred Scripture is the very words of God and will wet our appetite. The lives of the saints and martyrs will inspire us as well. To read the lives of those who followed the Lord and sometimes to death will wet our appetite. Good Catholic literature will wet the appetite as well.

Next we move to the primo. We need to prepare for the main dish, so what better way to prepare than with confession. Prepare the soul for communion by making sure it is pure. That is why the Church asks us to go to confession before we receive the Eucharist if we are aware of serious sin. I recently went to a youth conference and heard confessions for five hours one night. If the teenagers can discern sin we certainly can look at our own lives and prepare for the main dish.

The main dish is obvious. The Eucharist is the center of our faith. The very Body and Blood of Jesus is offered here at Mass weekly, even daily if your schedule permits. Imagine if you were invited to a dinner that your friend put a lot of time and energy into. Your friend labored all day and put lots of preparation into the meal, and you don’t show up. Imagine what your friend would feel like! Why do we think it is any different with God. He sent his only son to die for us and then remain with us in the Eucharist. He said if we eat his body and drink his blood we will have eternal life. We still, despite all the preparation, have Catholics who don’t show up!

The salad and dessert I will combine here. (We don’t so that when we eat though!). The salad helps settle things and the dessert leaves that sweet taste. That’s prayer! Prayer of thanksgiving after we have received all these great graces helps settle it all. Prayer of adoration helps put that sweet taste three in the end. How blessed we are to be able to spend time and "get away and rest awhile" with our Lord in the tabernacle. Prayer helps settle and digest all we have received in hearing the Word of God, confession, and the Eucharist.