Angelus Pope Francis comments on the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves

Pope Francis invited this Sunday July 25, the liturgical memory of Saint James the Apostle, to believe in the power of gratuity to encourage himself to generously give “the little that I know we have” to make it available to ” Jesus and the brothers “. “because” if you share, God multiplies “.

“Courage, give what little you have, your talents and your goods, put them at the disposal of Jesus and the brothers. Do not be afraid, nothing will be lost, for, if you share, God is multiplied. Cast out the false modesty of feeling inadequate, have confidence in yourself. Believe in love, in the power of service, in the power of gratuity», Encouraged the Holy Father in front of many faithful gathered in Saint Peter’s Square to pray to the Angelus.

Before leading the recitation of the Marian prayer, the Pope reflected on the passage from the Gospel of Saint John which describes the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves.

The Holy Father recognized that “even today the multiplication of goods does not solve problems without a fair distribution” and deplored “the drama of hunger, which particularly affects children”.

“It has been calculated that around 6,000 children under the age of five die every day in the world because of malnutrition”, declared the Pope who added that “in the face of such scandals Jesus also sends us an invitation, an invitation similar to that probably received by the boy of the Gospel, who has no name and in which we can all see each other ”.

In this sense, the Holy Father focused on the boy who offered what he had – five barley loaves and two fish – that “it is little, it is nothing, but it is enough for Jesus “since”, thanks to this free and therefore heroic little gift, Jesus can satisfy everyone ”.

“It’s a big lesson for us. tells us that the Lord can do a lot with the little we put at his disposal. It would be good to ask yourself every day, “What do I bring to Jesus today?” He can do a lot with our prayers, with our gesture of charity towards others, even with our misery given to his mercy, ”he said.

The Pope later admitted that “this seems like a meaningless proposition. Why deprive someone, especially a boy, of what they brought from home and have the right to keep it for themselves? Why take from one that which is not enough to satisfy everyone anyway? Humanly it’s illogical. But not for God. Indeed, thanks to this small free and therefore heroic gift, Jesus can satisfy everyone ”.

“God likes to act like this: He does great things out of small ones and for free», Underlined the pope.

In this sense, the Holy Father explained that “all the great protagonists of the Bible, from Abraham to Mary and to the boy of today, manifest this logic of smallness and of gift” and added that “the logic of the gift is very different from ours“Because” we try to accumulate and increase what we have; Jesus, on the contrary, asks to give, to decrease. We love to add, we love to add; Jesus loves subtractions, taking something away to give to others. We want to multiply; Jesus appreciates when we share with others, when we share ”.

Therefore, Pope Francis concluded that “the real miraclesaid Jesus, it is not a multiplication which produces pride and power, but the division, sharing, which increases love and allows God to do wonders”.

“May the Virgin Mary, who said ‘yes’ to God’s unprecedented proposal, help us to open our hearts to the invitations of God and to the needs of others,” prayed the Holy Father.

Then, the Gospel commented on by Pope Francis:

Saint John 6,1-15
¹ After that, Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of ​​Galilee, the Sea of ​​Tiberias, ² and many people followed him because they saw the signs he performed on the sick.
³ Jesus climbed the mountain and sat there with his disciples. ⁴ The Passover, the feast of the Jews, was approaching.
⁵ When Jesus looked up and saw that many people were coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where are we going to buy loaves of bread so that they can eat them? ⁶ I told him to test it because he knew what he was going to do.
⁷ Philippe replied: “Two hundred denarii of bread is not enough for everyone to take a little.”

⁸ One of his disciples, André, brother of Simon Peter, said to him: ⁹ “Here is a boy who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what is it for so many people? ” ^ten Jesus said, “Make the people sit down. There was a lot of grass there. Then the men went to bed, numbering about 5,000.
¹¹ Then Jesus took the loaves and, after giving thanks, distributed them to those who were lying down and the fish, as many as they wanted. ¹² When they were satisfied, he said to his disciples, “Gather the remaining pieces so that nothing is lost.
¹³ So they gathered them together and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves that were left of those who had eaten.
¹⁴ When the people saw the sign that he had performed, they said, “It is truly the prophet who was to come into the world. ¹⁵ Realizing that Jesus was trying to come and take him by force to make him king, he fled again alone into the mountain.