Pope at Angelus: Savour God's everyday miracles

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Savour, every day, the 'miracles' of God's grace...

Pope Francis gave this comforting recommendation during his Angelus address on Sunday in the Vatican, as he took his cue from Sunday's Gospel reading according to Saint John, which recounts the miracle of the loaves and the fishes.

The Pope pointed out that the protagonists of the episode performed three gestures that Jesus would repeat at the Last Supper, namely offering, giving thanks, and sharing, which, before reflecting on each, reminded are all actions carried out in the Eucharistic Celebration.

Offering, giving thanks, and sharing

Turning first to "offering," the Pope said this element acknowledges that we have something good to give, and that we say respond with "our 'yes', even if what we have, is too little compared to what is needed."

This, the Holy Father noted, is emphasized, during the Mass, when the priest offers the bread and wine on the altar, and each person offers himself, his own life.

While it is a gesture "that may seem small when we think of the immense needs of humanity, just like the five loaves and two fish in front of a crowd of thousands," the Pope recognized, "God makes it the material for the greatest miracle there is," namely the Lord making He Himself present among us, for the salvation of the world.

'Our feeble love'

Then turning to the gesture of "giving thanks," the Pope said we must rejoice in how God has blessed us.

"Namely," he suggested, "we are to say to the Lord humbly and with joy that 'All I have is Your gift, and to thank You I can only give back to you what You gave me first, together with your Son Jesus, adding what I can: 'my feeble love.'"

The Pope recognized that this marks the moment of 'the blessing,' with which we give praise to God for His goodness, "while He sanctifies, consecrates and multiples the 'two copper coins' of our fragile efforts."

Lastly, the Pope turned to the third gesture of "sharing," recalling that during Mass, when together we approach the altar to receive the Body and Blood of Christ, "that the the fruit of everyone’s gift transformed by the Lord into food for all."

This, the Pope said, "is a beautiful moment," which teaches us "to live every gesture of love as a gift of grace, both for those who give and those who receive an occasion to grow together as brothers and sisters, ever more joined in charity."

Some questions to ponder

With this in mind, the Holy Father invited the faithful to join him in asking themselves some questions.

"Do I truly believe that, by the grace of God, I have something unique to give to my brothers and sisters," he asked, "or do I feel anonymously 'one among many'?"

Also, "Am I grateful to the Lord," he continued, "for the gifts with which He continuously manifests His love?"

And lastly, he said, "do I live sharing with others as a moment of encounter and mutual enrichment?"

Pope Francis concluded by imploring the Blessed Mother to help us live every Eucharistic celebration with faith, and to recognize and, every day, "savour" the “miracles” of God’s grace.