Jesus does not abandon us.
Before His Ascension Christ told His Apostles to go and “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit… and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Mt. 28, 19 – 20). Jesus reminds us that He remains with us, even in the light of all the challenges and difficulties that we may face, He always wants to be close to us. Our Lord knew very well that our journey would be an arduous and difficult one, that we would encounter challenges beyond our strength. He knew that on this journey through the desert of life we would need a faithful love, a love which would give us the strength to climb to the top and the certainty that He would always be at our side. This is why he stayed with us in the Eucharist.
He also asks us that we not keep the Eucharist to ourselves but that we share the graces of this Sacrament with others. However, in order to bring others to the Eucharist we must be totally in love with the Eucharist ourselves. It’s very sad that more than 50% of Catholics do not believe that the Eucharist is truly the Body and Blood of Our Most Blessed Lord. Many think of the Eucharist as a mere symbol or a simple meal, but in fact the Eucharist has the totality of the presence of Christ in it, and whether we believe it or not this is a fact. Our faith helps us draw the graces that this Sacrament conveys.
This feast of Corpus Christi gives us a new opportunity to renew our love and devotion to the Eucharist, especially during this time of the pandemic, when so many of us have not been able to receive the Eucharist.
Next time you go to Holy Communion thank God for His presence in your heart and ask Him to enter more deeply into your
heart so that you may grow closer to Him and love Him more.
Here are some links to devotions and teachings we can use to grow our love and devotion to the Eucharist:
Article on Holy Communion, Holy Rosary Cathedral.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church on the Eucharist, Vatican website.
The Real Prescence of Christ in the Eucharist, US Catholic Bishop’s website.
Collection of Prayers for Perpetual Adoration
