The Bread King

Lent has a sober tone. In it, we hear about sin, repentance, and the suffering that will lead Christ to the cross. While this is generally true, here in the middle of Lent there is a small break in the tone of the season. This Sunday is traditionally called Laetare, a Latin word that means “Rejoice.” The name comes from the ancient introit of the day: “Rejoice, O Jerusalem.” This temporary relaxation of the seriousness of Lent reminds us that there is joy even in the most serious of circumstances. Life, after all, is not so simple as to give us joy at one time and only sorrow at another. Funerals remind us of this with the mix of laughter and tears that accompany them.

So even during the somber, serious season of Lent, the Church pauses to rejoice.

The reason for that joy is what we see in our Gospel today: Christ provides abundantly for His people. The miracle of the feeding of the five thousand is one of the most well-known miracles in the entire New Testament. In fact, it is the only miracle of Jesus other than the resurrection that is recorded in all four Gospels. That alone tells us something important. The evangelists, that is to say, the writers of the four Gospels, want us to see that this miracle is not just a story about an abundance of bread. It reveals who Jesus is, what kind of King He is, and what kind of care He has for His people.