523 OUR SPIRITUAL HUNGER

AVE MARIA

YOUCAT Lesson 523

YOUCAT the catechism for Catholic youth

523  Why does man not live on bread alone?

“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4, citing Deuteronomy 8:3).  [2835]

Christ of the Eucharist by Juan Juanes. This 16th-century painting depicts the Valencia Chalice. …..523

This passage of Scripture reminds us that men have a spiritual hunger that cannot be satisfied by material means.  One can die for lack of bread, but one can also die because one has received bread alone.  In a profound sense we are nourished by the one who has “the words of eternal life” (John 6:68) and a food that does not perish (John 6:27): the Holy Eucharist.

 “(God) desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”  1 Timothy 2:4

 “Complete self-renunciation means accepting with a smile whatever he gives and whatever he takes away…Giving whatever is demanded—even if it is your good name or your health—that is self-renunciation and then you are free.”  Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

 [2835]

 "GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD"

 2835 This petition, with the responsibility it involves, also applies to another hunger from which men are perishing: "Man does not live by bread alone, but . . . by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,( Deutonomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4.)¹²³ that is, by the Word he speaks and the Spirit he breathes forth. Christians must make every effort "to proclaim the good news to the poor." There is a famine on earth, "not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD."( Amos 8:11.)¹²⁴ For this reason the specifically Christian sense of this fourth petition concerns the Bread of Life: The Word of God accepted in faith, the Body of Christ received in the Eucharist.( Comparw John 6:26-58.)¹²⁵ –Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition