Daily Gospel Reflection
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April 24, 2026
The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying,
“How can this man give us his Flesh to eat?”
Jesus said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink his Blood,
you do not have life within you.
Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood
has eternal life,
and I will raise him on the last day.
For my Flesh is true food,
and my Blood is true drink.
Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood
remains in me and I in him.
Just as the living Father sent me
and I have life because of the Father,
so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven.
Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died,
whoever eats this bread will live forever.”
These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. The full readings of the day from the Lectionary are available here.
Reflection
This is an utterly remarkable passage. Consider where these strong words from Jesus sit within the broader context of chapter six of John’s Gospel: It opens with the feeding of the 5,000 on the other side of the Sea of Galilee. This impressed the people so much that they wanted to make Jesus a king, with an eagerness which caused him to withdraw “to the hills.”
On the disciples’ subsequent stormy voyage back to Capernaum, Jesus walked on water and brought them safely the rest of the way, but on noticing Jesus and the disciples missing, the crowds followed them all the way back. When Jesus points out that they seem to be more preoccupied with getting free bread instead of seeking eternal life, the people have the boldness to start asking for a real sign, and pointing out that he is simply Joseph and Mary’s son—not the bread of life come down from heaven.
Immediately after the words in today’s passage, many of the people stop following Jesus, because “this is a hard saying, who can listen to it?” What a fast transition from wanting to make Jesus a king to considering his words too difficult to handle.
However, when reading these words, I realize how fickle I can be as well in whether I take Jesus at his own words. In this Easter season, it is especially important to realize that Jesus’ resurrection doesn’t mean some vague, disembodied, or figurative union with God. Jesus doubles, then triples, then quadruples down in this passage: this is my flesh and blood, and eating it is what leads to eternal life, both body and soul, with God in heaven.
It is at today’s point in John’s Gospel that Jesus switches to the Greek word for “gnaw” or “chew” to emphasize precisely that he means what he says. How often are we confident in this as we approach this wonderful gift in the Eucharist?
Prayer
Lord, your Son Jesus gives us his body and his Blood in the Eucharist. His love is real, total, and unconditional. Remove our feelings of unworthiness, anger, hurt, and revenge so we may allow you to feed our lives and quench our thirsts. Set us on fire to feed the hungers and thirsts of our world. We ask this through Jesus, the Bread of Life and the Cup of Love. Amen.
Saint of the Day
As a lawyer, St. Fidelis gave special attention to the plight of the oppressed—in fact, he became known as The Poor Man’s Lawyer.
He was born as Mark Rey in Germany in 1577. The more he practiced law, however, the more disenchanted and disgusted he became with the lengths to which his colleagues would go in order to win a case. He decided to leave his life as a lawyer and dedicate his life to God in a religious community.
His brother was a Capuchin Franciscan, so he joined that order, took the name Fidelis, and was ordained a priest. He was zealous in his practice and proclamation of the faith, and once declared, “Woe to me if I should prove myself but a half-hearted soldier in the service of my thorn-crowned captain!”
He was sent to minister in several different regions of Germany, where he reformed whole cities with his preaching. He also cared for the sick, especially during a severe outbreak of disease. Because of his effectiveness, he was chosen to head a party of Capuchins to go to Switzerland to convert people back to the Catholic faith there.
His preaching was enhanced by his own witness and the hours he would spend in prayer, and many people were inspired by his example. Opponents threatened his life and tried to rouse people against him by claiming that he was a spy.
One night, his adversaries even shot at him when he was in the pulpit, and tried to storm the church. Friends offered to shelter him, but he declared that his life was in God’s hands, and while he was walking on the road home, he was attacked by a mob of armed men. He asked God to forgive the attackers as they killed him.
The relics of St. Fidelis rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Notre Dame's campus.
St. Fidelis, the “Poor Man’s Lawyer” who became a priest and was martyred for preaching the faith—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen is in the public domain. Modified from the original. Last accessed February 21, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
