Immediately following John's rendition of the feeding the 5000, Jesus withdraws from both the crowd and his disciples for a time of peace and prayer. Considering his next encounter with the crowds following him, as related in this week's gospel text, it is a good thing he did! Seldom has a more ungrateful, obstreperous, and pathetically ignorant lot been more clearly portrayed than by John in this chapter.

On the day after the miracle of the loaves, the throng wakes to find Jesus and his disciples had crossed the sea to Capernaum. (John's geography does not agree with Mark's or Luke's, but it is of little consequence.) Conveniently (for both the crowd and the gospel writer) some boats appear and ferry the people over to Jesus. Though anxious to re-establish their relationship with the one …