This passage logically follows last week’s. The story of the beheading of John the Baptist (6:14-29) is an interlude which helps to emphasize the new phase of Jesus’ mission, independent now of the Baptist’s preparatory work.

Jesus recognizes the necessity of reflection upon the experience of mission for the disciples’ growth, and makes plans to take them aside for a time of quiet. However, the best-laid plans of even the God-man cannot always be fulfilled, and try as they might, they cannot escape the ravenous crowds (v 33). Although Jesus responds completely to their emptiness (vv 34-44), he could not survive without "getting away" — and he makes certain arrangements to do so (vv 45-46). The disciples, however, still are caught up in the turmoil of events and emotions (v 52), and are hindered from reflection and prayer as much by inner darkness as by force of circumstances.

The last of the kings of Davidic ancestry, Zedekiah, was reigning and proving himself as false as his predecessors (v 30). He had sacrificed the good of the people for a nationalistic foreign policy based on a compromising alliance with Egypt against the stronger Babylonian power. It was a sticky political situation, and Jeremiah realized it was a no-win struggle no matter which way the political leaders went. While he saw no earthly possibility other than yielding to superior forces, he also maintained a vision of God’s rule transcending nationalistic political ambitions. This image of God’s Messiah as the true shepherd of his people, promising justice for the faithful remnant rather than victory for the nation, provides a healthy lesson for us when we are tempted to try to put God on "our side" in the arena of politics and international relations.

This familiar psalm expresses affirmation and acceptance of God’s personal lordship, placing confidence in his rule rather than in one’s own means. Response: "The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want."

Christ fulfilled God’s reign spoken of in the reading from Jeremiah. Only because of the perfect union between God and humanity accomplished in himself can the inner resources come forth for us to overcome deep-seated political, social, racial, and personal divisions. Thus the peace that all seek can be found only in him, not as if by magic or as an automatic result, but simply by living the mystery of the cross in the power of the Spirit.

1. Why are times of quiet reflection and creative leisure important? How is this different from the type of rest that is an exhausted collapse into numbness? How can you achieve true leisure?

2. What is the individual Christian’s, and the Church’s, role in politics and the quest for the world peace and justice?