Sacramental Ecclesiology in the Loaves and Fishes https://www.hprweb.com/2016/09/sacramental-ecclesiology-in-the-loaves-and-fishes/ Excerpt: Now, let us return to the miraculous feedings. Firstly, it turns out that there were only two occasions in Christ’s ministry that he miraculously fed large crowds with the multiplication of loaves and fishes—already looks good, since there are only two forms of rift. Specifically, we saw that on the one occasion (recounted four times in the Gospels), Christ fed 5,000 persons with 5 loaves and 2 fish, and that on the other occasion (recounted two times in the Gospels), Christ fed 4,000 persons with 7 loaves and a “few” fish. Now, again, the sacraments feed us sanctifying grace, hence, the loaves and fishes can prefigure the sacraments, especially since there are seven—like the explicit numbers, or their conglomerate—in the loaves and fishes (7, or 5 and 2). In addition, we can observe how loaves are made from barley, which is grown in the earth, a place of relative stability, whereas fish come from the sea, a place of chaos or lack of stability. Consequently, since the sea and earth are contrasted in the degree of stability, feeding on loaves could symbolize stability of doctrine, and feeding on fish could symbolize instability of doctrine. For example, Peter and Jesus are the rock of truth (Mt 16:18), the Church is the pillar and “ground” of the truth (1Tim 3:15), but heretics are tossed “to and fro by every wave of doctrine” (Eph 4:14 and James 1:6). Again, what is the source of stability of truth in Christendom? It is none other than, first, Apostolic Succession in general and then, in supreme form, Peter. Why? Because from that formal authoritative Succession comes Sacred Tradition, or the inspired Word of God, which provides the stability for the proper interpretation of the Written Word, Scripture, a more sure foundation to discern the true doctrines of the Apostles. Without them, there is only the “waves of chaos” in attempting to ascertain Scripture apart from Tradition, the lot of Protestants, who are all over the map doctrinally. Therefore, the earth is a good metaphor for general Apostolic Succession, Peter is already the Rock in Mt 16:18, and the sea is a good metaphor for sola Scriptura, the doctrine of Scripture alone without Tradition. Is it any wonder, then, that heretics, who, as we have seen, lack the very stability of doctrine, the “earth” of Apostolic Succession, lose the 5 sacraments that require the “earth”, that is, 5 loaves—Confession, Eucharist, Confirmation, Holy Orders and Anointing of the Sick–and retain only 2 sacraments, Baptism and Marriage—2 fish, seeing as they can only “fish” in their instability of doctrine.
