The multiplication of the five loaves and the two fish – Father Gavril Galev
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At the manifestation of the multiplication of five loaves and two fish and, with which, more than 5000 souls were fed, the Lord Jesus Christ shows that He is the true God and Creator of everything, and the One who arrangesand maintains the universe and man in it as its centre.
In view of the act that the apostles told Jesus to disperse the people because it was getting dark and they were far from any inhabited place, being worried for them not to go hungry, they showed lack of faith and insolence before Him. It seems to be that they care more about the people than Jesus Himself does. However, God taught them an even greater lesson by showing them that He is the true God and Creator of everything, and the One who arranges and maintains the universe with man in it.
Everything that happens, happens according to His will or forbearance, and when we are with Him, the physical laws of nature are overcome. That is why He says to them: “You give them something to eat!” Indirectly refuting them, whilst at the same time reminding them of another moment, emphasizing the role of the clergy. The priesthood is a special order in the Church, to whom it has been given, by the grace of God to guide people spiritually and to heal them spiritually and physically.
In order to be able to lead the people and heal them, first of all they themselves (clergy) need to be healed, cleansed of sin and enlightened in mind. That is, not to serve the devil and sin and not to be slaves to passions, to have passed the three stages of spiritual growth or at least to be at the second stage of enlightenment.
The priest, especially the Bishop, is an icon of God, a mediator between God and the people. However, he should be a worthy icon of Christ, not a disfigured one. It means to possess the same traits and qualities as Christ, before all, and most of all, self-sacrificing love. Through him, God distributes His gifts in the Church. That is why the bread and fish multiplied in the hands of the apostles and they fed so many people. Everyone was satisfied and received enough from their offering, and even twelve full baskets were left over. Twelve, one for each Apostle, in order all them equally to participate in this mystery.
The miracle, from another perspective, was made possible by the humble obedience of the Apostles. For everything that God does with us, He requires cooperation. According to the Law of logic, it is impossible to feed so many people with so little food, but the apostles submitted themselves and believed His words and obeyed Him. The Apostles were obedient to God, and the people to the Apostles, and all were content. And so that they would not think highly of themselves, that they performed the miracle, the All-Knowing God immediately sent them into a boat.
Through this miracle, God teaches us to live catholic (congregational, together) life and to show us the strength of the community. When we are gathered in the name of God, according to the words of God, then He is there among us. Only in that community is God, and that community is fruitful and produces good fruits. The multiplication of loaves and the feeding of the people is also an image of the Holy Eucharist, in which we all feed from the one bread, which is “always eaten and never completely consumed,” and that is the body of Christ.
Therefore, community is a very important thing in our life in which we humbly serve and love one another. Our salvation, and the content, and quality of our life, depends on the community.
Fr. Gavril Galev
Abbot of the monastery “St. Clement of Ohrid”,
Kinglake, Melbourne, Australia
