Rev. Shayna Appel – Five loaves of bread, two dead (and presumably smelly) fish…5,000 fed. That’s the story according to all three of the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke).

Today, most of us are likely to dismiss this story as a tale, folklore or propaganda. But if we do, we just might miss one of the most fascinating transformations of the masses from an attitude of poverty to abundance ever experienced. What does this story have to teach us in our own time and place about abundance and how we can serve one another.