The “bread of life” discourse in John 6 is a familiar chapter for most Catholics. Earlier in the chapter, Jesus performed the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves (John 6:1-13) and crossed the sea to Capernaum. Later, some of those who partook of the loaves followed him to the other side, hoping for more bread. As the chapter progresses, Jesus will talk about giving his flesh for the life of the world (John 6:51), stating that “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you” (John 6:53). But before Jesus says this, he says something else most people read and never give a second thought. In John 6:35, he says:

“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

What did Jesus mean about coming to him and never being hungry or thirsty? He certainly didn’t mean physical hunger and thirst, since those who do come and believe in him still need to eat and drink. Our Lord seems to be saying something more here than meets the eye, but what? When we dig behind this passage to its Old Testament roots, we find something surprising.

In Sirach 24:18-22, the Scriptures say something similar and yet very different:

“Come to me, all you that yearn for me, and be filled with my fruits; You will remember me as sweeter than honey, better to have than the honeycomb. He who eats of me will hunger still, he who drinks of me will thirst for more; He who obeys me will not be put to shame, he who serves me will never fail. All this is true of the book of the Most High’s covenant, the law which Moses commanded us as an inheritance for the community of Jacob.”

When the people come and learn God’s wisdom in the Torah (the book of the Most High’s covenant), it will be so delightful that they desire to learn more and more. What they’ve tasted will not be enough; they will be even more hungry and thirsty. For those who study Scripture, we’ve experienced the same thing: The more we know about God, the more we love Him, and the more we love Him, the more we want to learn about Him.

Jesus takes this idea and changes it. Unlike those who learn God’s wisdom by coming to the Torah, whoever comes to Jesus and believes in him will be totally satisfied; they will never hunger and never thirst for more. The implication is obvious. Unlike Scripture that contains the wisdom of God, Jesus is himself the “power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24). Jesus is the living Torah “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3).

This same insight was unwittingly made in an article written by the well-known, non-religious Jew and former mayor of New York, Ed Koch. Although Koch certainly didn’t share the same views as Catholics, he was moved by the examples of Pope St. John XXIII and Pope St. John Paul II to do what they could to strengthen the bond between Catholics and Jews. In the article, Koch wrote about how emotionally moved he was during the High Holiday service in the synagogue where the Torah scrolls were carried from the altar through the synagogue and the people would move forward, kiss their prayer shawls (tallises) and touch them to the Torah. He wrote, “The delight and emotions of the faithful who touch the Torahs is palpable.” In fact, Koch himself — who admitted that he was not religious — was moved to tears during it. He also noted that Catholics feel similarly moved when they receive Communion: “... the communicants ... hold their hands together and walk off with an aura of purity and in a state of grace for those few moments of the Mass. Their eyes convey the same rapture that I see in the eyes of Jews kissing the Torah.”

What Koch observed with his eyes is what Jesus taught: We consume the living Torah.

Gary Michuta is an apologist, author and speaker and a member of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Livonia. Visit his website at www.handsonapologetics.com.