Reflections on the Eucharist - the Year of the Eucharist in the Diocese of Jackson

      As we have just finished Lent and Holy Week, as we journey through the Octave of Easter this week and reflect upon the presence of the resurrected Christ with us, I cannot help but think about the gift of the Eucharist that we partake of each time we go to Mass. With the pandemic having ceased in-person attendance at Mass and the reception of the Eucharist for a while, and with many restrictions in places for many months, Pope Francis was inspired to talk about the importance of the Eucharist in the midst of this challenging reality. As we encourage parishioners to come back to in-person Masses and liturgies after they had stayed away during the pandemic, it is important for us to talk about the importance of the Eucharist in our lives as Catholics. The Diocese of Jackson and many of the neighboring Dioceses around us in the Southeastern region and in the Deep South have declared a Year of the Eucharist for the faithful.

     Jesus accompanies us in many different ways on our journey through life, but none of these is as profound as our encounter with him in the Eucharist. Through the Eucharist, Christ nourishes us with his very self. When the founder of the Catholic Worker Movement Dorothy Day (1897 - 1980) was told by a friend that she no longer saw the point of going to daily Mass, Day responded with these words: “We go to eat of this fruit of the tree of life because Jesus told us to….He took upon himself our humanity that we might share in his divinity. We are nourished by his flesh that we may grow to be other Christs. I believe this literally, just as I believe the child is nourished by the milk from his mother…”

      I remember how as a lay missionary and as a teacher in the Mississippi Teacher Corps, receiving the Eucharist was an important part of giving me strength and courage on my journey. Just as Mother Teresa of Calcutta has said that she could not have done her missionary work and her ministry without the Eucharist, I could not endure as a missionary or as a priest without the Eucharist.

      It amazes me how studies say that so many Catholics do not understand the meaning of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. With all the ways we priests emphasize the presence of Christ in the Eucharist, I just don’t understand the results of these studies. Below is a great video by Robert Barron, the Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles. He makes so many good comments about the importance of the Eucharist. Blessings to all of you - have a blessed week. Father Lincoln