Jesus said, “Throw your lot in with the One that God has sent. That kind of commitment gets you in on God’s works.” They waffled: “Why don’t you give us a clue about who you are, just a hint of what’s going on? When we see what’s up, we’ll commit ourselves. Show us what you can do. Moses fed our ancestors with bread in the desert. It says so in the Scriptures: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” (John 6: 29 – 31)

There are many different diet plans. Bookstore shelves are filled with diets that say eat only this type of food or that. Some diets tell people to skip a particular food. Some concentrate on removing entire food groups out of your diet.

Most books come with recipes but more important with testimonials and pictures of those who succeeded in dropping a significant amount of weight over a short period of time.

In reality, a majority of these diets work because they all include two common elements usually found in small print on the very last page of the book. The dieter is told to reduce food intake and begin moderate exercise. Ultimately these two factors, which most dieters reject, are what will bring about the real weight loss.

Most popular these days are the diets that are based on restricting or eliminating carbohydrates. Some people swear by these diets while others give up on such an approach almost instantly. For many, a meal is not a meal without a loaf of bread on the table. In reality as well as symbolically, bread is the food of life for many people.

Jesus proclaims that he is the bread of life. God’s presence in bread goes back to Moses in the desert and continues today in the Eucharist. We can deny ourselves many things in life, but why deny ourselves spiritual nourishment so necessary for the health of our soul? And so we should always eagerly gather around the altar.