Week of August 19, 2018

Week of August 19, 2018

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Dear Parishioners,

I just wanted to write today about what a great gift the Eucharist is for us in the Church. We believe that the Eucharist is more than just a symbolic presence of Christ, but His very body, blood, soul and divinity. We believe this because He said so Himself. Such a mysterious teaching is something we should ponder every time we come to Mass.

The Eucharist is a great mystery. That is why at every Mass the priest says after the consecration, “The Mystery of Faith.” The Eucharist is something that we cannot quite wrap our minds around because it goes beyond what we can sense and touch. We are not equipped to understand how the power of God can cause miracles in the first place, let alone the greatest miracle of His presence. But, even if we could understand how God works, we could not comprehend the depth of God’s love for each one of us.

The Eucharist is a sign of God’s love because it is God Himself given for all of us. Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross to save us from our sin. We do not deserve Him nor do we deserve to be saved by Him, nor do we always live up to the graces given to us. But, He loves us anyway and died knowing all the sins all humans would do throughout time. For us, it is hard to love someone if they are annoying or unlikable and next to impossible if they have betrayed us. Yet, Christ freely loves all people and would die for even the worst of us.

Jesus proclaims in His discourse that we read today in Mass that whoever eats His body will live forever. He is not talking about a mere physical nourishment that can be derived by earthly food. He is talking about spiritual life that is meant to take us to heaven. There is no other source of spiritual food than Himself and He gives it freely. The Eucharist is the source of all our spiritual strength and it enables us to live the type of life He desires for us. For we are all called to pray, and to love, and to share the faith with the world. And when we fail to do that, He is there to forgive us.

When God created the world, He knew everything that would happen. Though we can lose hope in ourselves, we are called to Hope in Him who redeems us. Trust in God and stay close to the Blessed Sacrament.

God bless,

Father Carter