The Happy Priest - God is With Us: The Gift of the Holy Eucharist
The Eucharist is the most visible miracle known to the human person
Thousands anxiously seek strange devotions and apparent extraordinary phenomena. But Jesus is really with us. Why don't we go to Mass every day? Why don't we make visits to the Blessed Sacrament? It is because we really don't believe. We believe that God is a distant God. But, he is not distant. He is really with us. Close to the tabernacle a candle burns brightly as a permanent reminder that God is with us. God is truly present and he reveals himself to all those who believe.
PrintCORPUS CHRISTI, TX (Catholic Online) - As we continue our consideration on the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John, the Catholic liturgy reminds us that we possess an immense treasure. When a Catholic priest takes a little piece of unleavened bread and repeats the words that Jesus spoke at the Last Supper, "This is my body," and when he takes a small of amount of wine in a chalice and says, "This is my blood," the bread is no longer bread and the wine is no longer wine.
"I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world" (John 6: 51).
Once again, let us review something that is so fundamental: at every Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we participate in a marvelous miracle, the miracle called Transubstantiation. Transubstantiation means "change of substance," or "change of reality." When the priest repeats the words that Jesus spoke at the Last Supper, the bread is no longer bread, and the wine is no longer wine. Instead, the entire substance of the bread and the entire substance of the wine have been changed into the substance of The Body and Blood of Christ.
Transubstantiation occurs only by the power of God, and in a way that we cannot empirically detect. We know that transubstantiation takes place through the certainty of faith. Jesus, the Son of God; Jesus the Messiah; Jesus the Lord and Savior of the universe said: "This is my body;" "This is my blood."
Faith is a vision superior to reason, but it does not contradict reason, precisely because faith relies upon the authority of God who does not deceive, nor can be deceived. Jesus is the truth and thus is incapable of lying.
When we consider the sixth chapter of John's Gospel, we are faced with a dilemma. As C.S. Lewis put it so clearly, either Jesus is a liar, a lunatic, or he is who he says that he is: the one true God.
"The Jews murmured about Jesus because he said, 'I am the bread that came down from heaven', and they said, 'Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? Do we not know his father and mother? Then how can he say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" (John 6: 41-42).
The crowd could not grasp and accept Jesus' teaching on the Eucharist because of their lack of faith. They could not see Jesus for who he really is.
In our modern times it is commonly understood that among Catholics there is an alarming loss of faith in the Real Presence.
This massive loss of faith is expressed in the loss of reverence in our parishes. Sloppy dress, loud talking in church, cell phones going off, lack of Sunday attendance at Mass, and few people going to Confession, are all signs of a terrible loss of faith in something so fundamental to Catholicism.
What is the cause of this disturbing apostasy?
Every Sunday during the Profession of Faith, we affirm our belief in eternal life. "We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come."
Do we really believe this?
How many times do we ever hear convincing homilies about the eschatological teachings of the Catholic Church?
Rather than being an affirmation of the realities of eternity, many funeral homilies tend to be a humanistic celebration of the person who has died.
In our modern day culture we are continually bombarded by secularism and we need to be continually reminded of the most basic fundamentals of our Catholic Faith
"Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life" (John 6: 47).
God and eternity are not things that are distant from us. When we truly believe, we already participate in eternity.
"Life shared with God, eternal life within temporal life, is possible because of God living with us: Christ is God being here with us. In him God has time for us; he is God's time for us and thus at the same time the opening of time into eternity. God is no longer the distant and indeterminate God to whom no bridge will reach; he is the God at hand: the Body of the Son is the bridge for our souls" (Joseph Ratzinger, God is Near Us, 144).
Close to the tabernacle a candle burns brightly as a permanent reminder that God is with us. God is truly present and he reveals himself to all those who believe.
What is it that keeps us from really believing in eternal life?
If our sight is set on the things of this world alone, we will eventually no longer seek the world to come. The loss of seeking eternity is rooted in our loss of faith in God.
The only way that we can truly believe in the Real Presence is if we truly believe: believe that God is alive and ...
"I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world" (John 6: 51).
Once again, let us review something that is so fundamental: at every Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we participate in a marvelous miracle, the miracle called Transubstantiation. Transubstantiation means "change of substance," or "change of reality." When the priest repeats the words that Jesus spoke at the Last Supper, the bread is no longer bread, and the wine is no longer wine. Instead, the entire substance of the bread and the entire substance of the wine have been changed into the substance of The Body and Blood of Christ.
Transubstantiation occurs only by the power of God, and in a way that we cannot empirically detect. We know that transubstantiation takes place through the certainty of faith. Jesus, the Son of God; Jesus the Messiah; Jesus the Lord and Savior of the universe said: "This is my body;" "This is my blood."
Faith is a vision superior to reason, but it does not contradict reason, precisely because faith relies upon the authority of God who does not deceive, nor can be deceived. Jesus is the truth and thus is incapable of lying.
When we consider the sixth chapter of John's Gospel, we are faced with a dilemma. As C.S. Lewis put it so clearly, either Jesus is a liar, a lunatic, or he is who he says that he is: the one true God.
"The Jews murmured about Jesus because he said, 'I am the bread that came down from heaven', and they said, 'Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? Do we not know his father and mother? Then how can he say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" (John 6: 41-42).
The crowd could not grasp and accept Jesus' teaching on the Eucharist because of their lack of faith. They could not see Jesus for who he really is.
In our modern times it is commonly understood that among Catholics there is an alarming loss of faith in the Real Presence.
This massive loss of faith is expressed in the loss of reverence in our parishes. Sloppy dress, loud talking in church, cell phones going off, lack of Sunday attendance at Mass, and few people going to Confession, are all signs of a terrible loss of faith in something so fundamental to Catholicism.
What is the cause of this disturbing apostasy?
Every Sunday during the Profession of Faith, we affirm our belief in eternal life. "We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come."
Do we really believe this?
How many times do we ever hear convincing homilies about the eschatological teachings of the Catholic Church?
Rather than being an affirmation of the realities of eternity, many funeral homilies tend to be a humanistic celebration of the person who has died.
In our modern day culture we are continually bombarded by secularism and we need to be continually reminded of the most basic fundamentals of our Catholic Faith
"Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life" (John 6: 47).
God and eternity are not things that are distant from us. When we truly believe, we already participate in eternity.
"Life shared with God, eternal life within temporal life, is possible because of God living with us: Christ is God being here with us. In him God has time for us; he is God's time for us and thus at the same time the opening of time into eternity. God is no longer the distant and indeterminate God to whom no bridge will reach; he is the God at hand: the Body of the Son is the bridge for our souls" (Joseph Ratzinger, God is Near Us, 144).
Close to the tabernacle a candle burns brightly as a permanent reminder that God is with us. God is truly present and he reveals himself to all those who believe.
What is it that keeps us from really believing in eternal life?
If our sight is set on the things of this world alone, we will eventually no longer seek the world to come. The loss of seeking eternity is rooted in our loss of faith in God.
The only way that we can truly believe in the Real Presence is if we truly believe: believe that God is alive and ...
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Dear Father,
I made a comment sometime back on another article you wrote on the Eucharist but it was not published, I was not out of line nor out of topic just an observation yet it was rejected I wonder why? Do I touch a nerve when I make a comparison of the old Latin Mass versus the New Mass.
I always wondered why the Latin Mass was done away with if there was nothing wrong with it & a new prostestant mass was introduced claiming to be Catholic. Why fix something that isn't broken? We go to church to worship & please God & the mass is the sacrifice of our Lord yet when I attend my church it feels as if I'm at a rock concert, people are chatting af if we're at the market No respect!!! I can't help but wonder why people are behaving this way now & they weren't during the old Latin mass. Something to do with Vatican Council II ????
Doesn't look like good fruit to me but bad!!
Dear Father, Excellent article! I am sending it to my adult children. I also agree with Tom McGuire. Not only was there disbelief and scandal, but lives that were broken fall, and continue falling to this day like a domino effect. And Yes, there is the Big Bad world of Secularism.
"Sacred Heart Of Jesus, Have Mercy On Us". Blessings...
Thank you Father. This is a truly much needed homily. May God be with you always and our Blessed Mother protect you. We need priests like you for our turbulent era.
Just how do we increase our faith? Paragraph 2518 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church gives us clue, quoting St. Augustine "by believing they may obey God, by obeying may live well, by living well may purify their hearts, and with pure hearts may understand what they believe." Confession is one of the best ways to purify ones heart though sadly neglected by Catholics and priests. I wish we had more John Vianneys and Padre Pios as priests who would sit for hours at the confessional box waiting for penitents. As for communion, many Catholics are not aware that we can always receive communion every hour if we want through spiritual communion by simply praying and asking Jesus to give us His body, blood and divinity spiritually. Remember, nothing is impossible to God and our God is a father who gives generously especially to those who sincerely believe in Him.
Yes, Father, I know exactly what you mean by the irrevence at Mass, before, during and after. Many people go to Mass out of habit, afraid that if they are not seen in Church, they will be chastised by their friends. People walk out of the Church right after receiving communion, or engage in conversation with those sitting next to them while the rest of the congregation is receiving communion. It makes me angry sometimes and then I have to ask forgiveness from the Lord but it hurts more when the celebrant does nothing to stop the practices. We just have to continue praying that the Holy Spirit will open the eyes of the Church.
A response to Michael - Michael you are missing the whole point of the homily.
Dear Father...you write that "The Eucharist is the most visible miracle known to the human person." Wrong, dear father...the Mystery of the Blessed Sacrament lacks that essential element of a miracle, namely, that it strikes the senses with wonderment. But as St. Thomas Aquinas states. "what our senses fail to fathom, Faith must serve to compensate." Yes, there are Eucharistic miracles where actual human flesh miraculously appears or Sacred Hosts begin to bleed, but these are rare indeed. At Holy Mass there is truly the tremendous act and mystery known as Transubstantion, but it is not noticed by the senses at all making it not a miracle, but an object of Faith.
Yes people do seek strange devotions. That says to me they are looking for the meaning of life which includes life after death. Maybe one of the problems is the witness of so many leaders of the Church who celebrate Mass everyday, but harmed children or allowed children to be harmed. This contributed at least in some to why many catholics have turned away from Eucharist as a summit and source of life.
Wow! God was making sure I understood Him loud and clear this weekend. I experienced a healing through the Eucharist on Saturday and this morning I am privileged to read your inspiring words. Thank you for speaking Truth and reminding us that Christ is indeed the Living God.
Like a child joined in its parents cannot be Biologically separated, so also is Apostle Paul saying of the manner "Nothing can separate us (the Apostles)from the love of Christ Jesus" & if by faith that can be said then what would it be when we become Joined by Him to be in Him as Him, in the Spirit & the body to the fulness which is in the holiness, unto God.