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The greatest expression of the love of God
St. Philip Neri said that the Eucharist needed three eternities: one eternity to prepare for it, one eternity to receive it, and one eternity to give thanks. St. Teresa of Jesus said, for her part, that “if we fully understood the value of the Eucharist, we would die of love.”
These are just a few expressions that try to describe the indescribable: the incredible gift of the love of God contained in the Eucharist. What simply looks like a small, white piece of bread contains the greatest and most wonderful mystery of Christian life.
That is why the Compendium of the Catechism of the Church tells us that “The Eucharist is the very sacrifice of the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus which he instituted to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until his return in glory. Thus he entrusted to his church this memorial of his death and resurrection. It is a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a paschal banquet, in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us.” (Compendium, 271)
The institution of the Eucharist by Jesus Christ cannot be more convincing and indisputable in the Bible. He said: “Take and eat you all of it, because this is my body.”
In this way, Jesus remains with us under the eucharistic species of bread and of wine, as the source and summit of all Christian life, in which is contained every spiritual good of the church; because the Eucharist is neither a symbol nor a sign, but a reality. In it, Jesus Christ is present in a unique and incomparable way; he is present with his body, his blood, his soul and divinity.
That is why the Catholic Church “guards with the greatest care Hosts that have been consecrated. She brings them to the sick and to other persons who find it impossible to participate at Mass. She also presents them for the solemn adoration of the faithful and she bears them in processions. The church encourages the faithful to make frequent visits to adore the Blessed Sacrament reserved in the tabernacle.” (Compendium, 286)
The life of the church revolves around the Eucharist. And that is why it is a precept of the church to participate in the holy Mass every Sunday and days of obligation. Sunday is the “Dies Domini,” the “Day of the Lord,” as the Servant of God John Paul II liked to call it. It is the central day of the week. And the Mass is, for us Catholics, the heart of Sunday.
But we can also attend daily Mass when possible. It helps us to grow in closeness, reverence and love towards Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament. In our country, there is an old tradition of attending daily Mass particularly in special liturgical times such as Lent, which will begin in a few days.
The church recommends to the faithful who participate in the holy Mass to receive holy Communion; but precisely because it is not a symbol or a mere memento, but a sacred reality, the reception of Communion requires of us some basic dispositions: to have the certainty that we are in the state of grace and to be in communion with the Catholic Church.
The United States bishops in our recent document about the necessary dispositions to receive Communion worthily, stress the importance of having an active eucharistic life, especially the frequent reception of holy Communion and the need to be very well prepared, including our personal dispositions and our unity with the ecclesial community. In the document we point out that “if a Catholic in his or her personal or professional life were knowingly and obstinately to reject the defined doctrines of the church, or knowingly and obstinately to repudiate her definitive teaching on moral issues, however, he or she would seriously diminish his or her communion with the church. Reception of holy Communion in such a situation would not accord with the nature of the Eucharist celebration, so that he or she should refrain.”
Because of the greatness of this sacrament, it is also important that we develop “a spirit of recollection and prayer, observance of the fast prescribed by the church (at least one hour before Communion), and an appropriate disposition of the body (gestures and dress) as a sign of respect for Christ.” (Compendium, 291)
In a world where we are gradually losing reverence for the sacred, it is important that our renewal in the faith as Catholics in our archdiocese be centered on the Eucharist.
I pray that proper personal and communitarian preparation, frequent Communion and eucharistic adoration continue to be the cornerstone of our personal and community life.
The Servant of God Pope John Paul II called Mary “a woman of the Eucharist in her whole life.” When Jesus on the cross said “Behold your mother,” he gave Mary to the beloved disciple, and in him, to all of us. So in the Eucharist, every time we celebrate the memorial of Christ’s death, we are continually accepting this gift of Mary as our mother.
In our daily lives, and especially during this time of Lent that is about to begin, let us strive to imitate Mary in her relationship with this most holy mystery, and let us ask her, who had a profound relationship with the Eucharist, to guide us toward his most holy sacrament.
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