Included in the July 26 weekly bulletin from St. Michael's Catholic Church in Duluth was a Gospel Meditation that encouraged parishioners to feed their hunger for God's love through a deeper understanding of scripture. 

The meditation explains that hunger in humans goes far beyond the physical craving for nourishment and may include hunger for for security, spiritual hunger and more. 

“People live with relationships that actually starve them,” the meditation reads. “They are abused, exploited, disrespected, laughed at and marginalized. There is a lot of confusion and inner pain that needs to be acknowledged and expressed.”

| https://www.stmichaelsduluth.org/

At the end of the day, however, everyone wants to be loved and understood. While we can respond to the physical desires we have, there are deeper desires that only God can quench. 

“Much more needs to be done,” the meditation continues. “With all that God's Earth can provide, nobody ought to face sleep at night with a belly that’s empty. It’s sinful. It’s unjust. But isn’t all hunger unjust? It doesn't need to be, and it should not be. Just as no one ought to be physically hungry and thirsty, there is really no need to be emotionally or spiritually deficient either.”

In the holy scriptures, however, we see that when the hungry crowds look to Christ, all of their hungers and desires are satiated. 

“It doesn’t take much,” the meditation says. “Five loaves and two fish provided for a huge crowd. With God, all things are possible. Our faith provides the direction for where God’s children must go to find the nourishment they seek. It also tells us how to structure life so that justice and equality can be a reality for all.”

As followers of Christ, the scriptures provide us with the wisdom we need to see where we can find the nourishment that we need to follow our Lord.