GOSPEL: John 6:51-58
I am the living bread which has come down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world.' Then the Jews started arguing among themselves, 'How can this man give us his flesh to eat?' Jesus replied to them: In all truth I tell you, if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood has eternal life, and I shall raise that person up on the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in that person. As the living Father sent me and I draw life from the Father, so whoever eats me will also draw life from me. This is the bread which has come down from heaven; it is not like the bread our ancestors ate: they are dead, but anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.

REFLECTION
This week Jesus tells his disciples: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever.” However, he doesn’t stop there. Jesus continues: “The bread that I give is my flesh for the life of the world.” Each of these statements of Jesus must have been pretty outlandish to the people of his day. Today if an individual told us that they would live forever, most likely we would consider them a bit off their rocker!

 Yet Jesus then expands this analogy of flesh and blood. He tells his listeners: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.” He also promises them that if they eat his flesh and drink his blood, they will have eternal life. And they will be “raised up” on the last day. Imagine how they reacted to this statement! Yet, what a wondrous promise, far-fetched though it sounds.

When we receive the Body and Blood of Christ at Eucharist, are we truly aware of whom (Jesus) we are receiving? Or are we simply going through the motions? Jesus came to earth for us. Jesus gave his life for us. And Jesus gives himself to us every time we celebrate Eucharist and receive the Body and Blood of Christ. Do we appreciate this wondrous gift? Do we give thanks to Jesus for giving his life to save us?

The miracle is that Jesus is still in our midst! He walks on this earth and is present to us. However, we have to have open eyes and an expanded heart to “see” him. Be awake today! He is in your midst! (Sr Kristine Anne Harpenau) 

MASS SERVICES
Mass services at St Augustine's Church have recommenced. The following information has been provided by the Presbytery.

A Vigil Mass will be held at 6pm and Sunday morning at 10:15am, both held in St. Augustine’s. These masses will be limited to all parishioners, so for further information, please check with the parish office. Weekday Mass will be celebrated on Wednesday 5:30pm, Thursday 7:30pm and Friday 12noon. Mass at Gunning will be at the usual time, 8:30am Sunday.

VINNIES CEO SLEEPOUT
Everyone deserves a safe place to call home. That’s why Vinnies is raising money to provide people experiencing homelessness and people at risk of homelessness with vital access to food and accommodation. They also provide education, counselling, employment and health services to help people overcome poverty in the long term.

To support this worthy cause, our own principal, Michael Green, will be participating by spending a night outdoors to raise funds for those more needy people in our community. Last week we all wore beanies in exchange for a donation and together raised $460 to support Mr Green. If you were unable to contribute last week and would still like to donate to the cause, you are able to use the following link. https://www.ceosleepout.org.au/fundraisers/michaelgreen/canberra

With temperatures set to drop to 3 degrees, we wish Mr Green the best!

God Bless,
Warren Ziebowski
Religious Education Coordinator