Presentation: Br Fabio Inacio, ofm Head of Capernaum "When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake. From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him." Mt 4, 12. 17-21 The first thing we can learn from this text is that prayer comes before any proclamation and any work. Jesus starts to pray and then his prayer becomes the proclamation of the kingdom of heaven. Further on the text says: "At once they left everything to follow Jesus". Jesus here called his disciples to become fishers of men. This is the call that Jesus makes to each one of us to get out of our usual life, out of our reality and go beyond it to do something new. Here from the Sea of Galilee the call was made to the first Apostles and today he is addressing us. Jesus said: follow me, come! But are you willing to let Christ change the course of your life? Are you willing to leave the net of complacency, of inner turmoil to join this call, this new life? The Sea of Galilee is still alive today. It is probably not the same water that Jesus touched, or walked on. But it is the same place, the same lake! The landscape of this land is the same as it was in Jesus' time! In Capernaum we also find the recently discovered house of Peter. We recall the episode of the healing of the paralytic in this church. The paralytic healed in the house of Peter "A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, 'Son, your sins are forgiven.' " Mk 2, 1-5 They brought him a paralytic, carried by four men, but as they approached because of the crowd they uncovered the roof over the place where he was and, having made an opening, they passed him through... Then they brought a paralytic, how? Carried by four other men, and as there was no way into the house, they uncovered the roof, made it of straw, and lowered the paralytic exactly where Jesus was standing. And how did the healing take place? How did the miracle happen to this paralytic man? "Son, your sins are forgiven". Jesus is the only one capable of liberating the human person once and for all. And he liberates not only the physical, but also the spirit, the soul. And that man who arrived here carried by the others was able to walk away, in front of everyone. Everyone saw and witnessed the miracle of Jesus! His presence and His forgiveness of sins set that man free. And today it is the many 'paralyses' that prevent us from living as a person, from improving, from being a better father or a better son. But today we can ask the Lord: heal me Lord, deliver me from this evil, from this paralysis! We are in Capernaum, the city where Jesus performed so many miracles. And to heal this evil of paralysis in our lives, we can ask: Heal me, deliver me Lord. We here in Peter's house, you in your house, from where you are watching us, from where you are listening to us, beg the Lord: 'Deliver me from this paralysis, from this situation that is paralysing my life'. And even today, many pilgrims have the wonderful experience of touching this holy place, with the help of the Franciscan friars who watch over and care for Capernaum, the city of Jesus. Another important archaeological find worth mentioning is the monumental synagogue, witness to numerous preaching and wonders. Jesus preached, healed, spoke and advised here. It is where he often came, especially on Saturdays, as the Gospel tells us. "They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”. “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!”. The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee." Mk 1, 21- 28 The first miracle of Jesus is to be able to amaze people with his words because he spoke with authority and not like the words of the scribes, the religious authorities of his time, so why so much admiration? What did Jesus speak about? What were these words? Jesus spoke of his personal experience with the Father. Jesus did not repeat the words of the scribes or religious authorities, whereas the scribes spoke of themselves. When we proclaim, we bear witness to our personal experience with the Lord: Are your words credible? Do they matter? When you are in the family, among friends. How are your words received? Do you feel welcomed or rejected by the people you live with, work with? Do your words express who you are, your experience, or are they just repetitions of many arguments taken from social media, gossip and chat groups? How do we make our word, a word as authoritative as Jesus'? Here in this synagogue, in this place, I invite you, starting with the biblical text, to speak about yourself and your experience with the Father. Here in this synagogue of Capernaum, we really have the privilege, as Franciscans, of caring for this place, of coming here each time and reliving the story of Christ who preached and healed here. The presence is still very real. The presence of Jesus is continually spoken of in this place. We can say that the stones speak to us. It is a presence of two thousand years ago but it is a living, real, present presence that is realised every day with the presence of countless pilgrims who come here. Come and pray, come and welcome these words of Jesus, the seeds have been sown here and from here we will continue to discover this beautiful place. This experience of walking in Capernaum, the city of Jesus! The life and miracles of Jesus in Capernaum lift our spirits, dispel the darkness in our lives and testify that He is the way, the truth and the life. The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”. Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” Jn. 6, 22-40 How can it be said that the body is flesh to be eaten? Many interpretations have been made about Jesus, but Jesus speaks of Himself as the bread descended from heaven. We hear in the Gospel that the bread He gives us is the bread that came down from heaven. It is not the bread that our fathers ate in the wilderness but then went hungry again. Jesus gives us the true bread that satiates our hunger, hunger for love, hunger for hope and hunger for justice. This is the Bread of Eternal Life! The bread he gives us is the bread he offers us here. And it is interesting to remember that the multiplication of the loaves happened very close to us. Jesus satiated a multitude of people and many kept walking behind him, thinking not of spiritual bread but of material bread. But Jesus says today: Follow me not because you want another food, you want the food that will satiate your immediate hunger, but because I want to satiate your hunger for love, for hope. Following the steps of Jesus in Capernaum, we are invited to actualise this discourse, this sermon of Jesus. And to accept Jesus' word today: I want to satisfy your hunger. What do you want Jesus to satisfy in you? Is it your hunger for relationships, for human relations, between brothers, in your community? What bread of life do you need today. Certainly not material bread, because thanks be to God we have daily food. But what is your hunger? What is the bread of life that you need in your life today? This is what Jesus can give you and offer you, and you will never be hungry again. I am the bread of life, Jesus told us! Today the invitation is to welcome Jesus as a person in the Word and in the Eucharist, in order to receive from him the gift of the Spirit, because it is the Spirit, as it says in Chapter 6, who is the Lord and gives life!