Tree and Bread

Greetings on this the Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Readings: Gn 3:9-24; Ps 90:2, 3-4abc, 5-6, 12-13; Mk 8:1-10
Notes: The remedy to the necessity to withholding access to the tree of life is to give Jesus, the bread of life.

First reading
Then he [the Lord] asked [Adam], “Who told you that you were naked?
The LORD God then asked the woman [Eve], “Why did you do such a thing?”

The Lord wants to know who we are talking to and what are they saying.
Why do you suppose that is?

Because like Adam and Eve we are capable of deliberately misleading ourselves.

• Perspective.
• Bias.
• Ignorance of will.

How to do understand this? The LORD God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden,
to till the ground from which he had been taken.

Without this:

1. Man has condemned himself death due to the disobedience.
2. Man has eaten the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
3. Man will be tempted and likely to eat from the tree of life.
4. If he is allowed to eat from the tree of life where he has already been condemned to death, he will make permanent his situation into a perpetual life-of-death.

The fruit of the Tree of Life would not be the benefit to him as he would (perspective, bias, willful ignorance) want to make for himself. It would be a perpetual hell.

Therefore, he must not be allowed to put out his hand to take fruit from the tree of life also, and thus eat of it and live forever.” The LORD God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he had been taken. When he expelled the man, he settled him east of the garden of Eden; and he stationed the cherubim and the fiery revolving sword, to guard the way to the tree of life.

Responsorial Psalm
In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.

Alleluia Verse
One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.

Gospel Portion
The Feeding of the Four Thousand.
Prefigures the Bread of Life (the Eucharist).
Feeding of the Gentiles (the second feeding 4,000/7. The first was for the Jews 5,000/12).

[Jesus] said, “My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat.

Still he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” “Seven,” they replied.

They ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over—seven baskets.

Stop listiening to the evil one.

• God banished from the Garden of Eden to save us from a far worse fate – an eternal, living death.
• God then gives himself as bread to bring us the very life the tree of life contains – an eternal, living life.

Peace be with you,
Deacon Gerry