On this Friday in the third week of the
Easter season, we celebrate the risen Lord in our Gospel reading from the 6th
chapter of John, in which Jesus explains to us how he is truly present in us in
his body and his blood in the Eucharist we share together in the breaking of
the bread and in the sharing of the cup.
I think of how in the summer of 2011 we started our diocesan celebration
of the Year of the Eucharist, a celebration of the real presence of Christ that
we have in our Church. Tomorrow, we
celebrate First Holy Communion in a special mass in the afternoon where more
than 30 children will be receiving Christ in the Eucharist for the first time
in their lives. I know that it is a very
exciting time for them and for their families.
The word “Eucharist” comes from the
Greek word for “thanksgiving,” for each time we celebrate the Eucharist today,
each time we receive the Body and Blood of Christ as nourishment for us, we
give thanks for this freely given gift from God. As I look out at our masses here at St James
and see people from many different walks of life and many different
backgrounds, I think about this Body and Blood of Christ that unites us as we
ourselves become his Body here on earth.
As we receive Jesus in the Eucharist, we it continuously affect a change
in us.
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