Short Summary: A cook prayed for St. Juan Macías’s intercession when only three cups of rice remained, and miraculously, the rice pot overflowed, feeding nearly 200 people.
Details
Location: Ribera de Fresno, Spain
Year: 1949
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Through the intercession of Your servant Juan Macías, You provided for the needs of the poor and hungry in an astonishing way. Just as You multiplied the rice to feed all who came, we ask that You continue to provide for us, spiritually and materially. Grant us the grace to trust in Your divine providence in times of need. Help us to remember that Your blessings have no limits. May we serve those in need with the same faith and generosity. Amen.
Verse: A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing food from the firstfruits to the man of God: twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. Elisha said, “Give it to the people and let them eat.” But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred people?” So he repeated, “Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’” He set it before them, they ate, and had some left, according to the word of the Lord. -2 Kings 4:42-44
Full Story
Every evening, children from a nearby orphanage would come to the Ribera del Fresno parish hall for their meal, along with over one hundred poor families who came seeking food. One night, however, there was an unfortunate finding: only three cups of rice remained in the kitchen—barely enough for the fifty-nine orphans, with nothing left for the poor families who would soon arrive. The cook, realizing the dire situation, knelt down and began praying for the intercession of the town’s local saint, Juan Macías, a Dominican lay brother known for his humility and deep faith. As the cook began to prepare the little rice they had, an astonishing thing occurred. The rice pot, which started with just three cups, began to overflow. The kitchen staff scrambled to find additional pots, eventually using two more to catch the abundant rice that seemed to have no end. For four hours, the pot miraculously continued to produce rice, feeding not only the fifty-nine orphans but all the poor who came that night—nearly 200 people in total. What was even more remarkable was that the last serving of rice was as fresh and fluffy as the first, despite the extended cooking time. Witnessing the event, the pastor and his mother were called to the kitchen, where they observed the miracle firsthand. In the subsequent investigation, twenty-two people testified under oath to having seen the multiplication. To commemorate the event, a portion of the rice was saved as a relic of the evening’s abundance.
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