By Father Rich Tomkosky
This past weekend in the Catholic Church in America, we celebrated the Solemnity of Corpus Christi or the Body and Blood of Christ – a good reminder not to take the miracle of the Eucharist for granted.
As Catholics we believe the Eucharist in substance is truly the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus under the Sacramental signs of bread and wine. It takes much faith to believe this most holy mystery.
Troubling statistics over a couple of decades of surveys show that many Catholics do not believe in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist! How tragic, for Jesus cannot help us if we don’t believe in Him.
I do think the faith here is stronger than most places, but we can always grow more in reverence and love for the Lord. May we never take this gift of the Eucharist for granted!
Every day let us humbly ask God in prayer to increase our faith in the Real Presence of our Lord Jesus in the Holy Eucharist and try to come to daily Mass if at all possible.
Also read about Saint Tarcisius, especially to your children and grandchildren. He is the patron saint of altar boys and was the young boy who died protecting the Blessed Sacrament in the early Church.
So, what can we practically do to grow in love for the Holy Eucharist, where Jesus and in fact the whole Blessed Trinity is present?
Frequent reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is a troubling dynamic in the Church at least in America, where almost all Catholics come up for Communion, yet the Confession lines on Saturday at a typical parish church, are almost non-existent. Lack of Confession ties-in to the lack of belief among many Catholics in the Real Presence as cited above.
What do you mean, Father? What does Confession have to do with our belief in the Real Presence and our reception of the Lord Jesus in Holy Communion? Well Saint Paul says in his first letter to the Corinthians that before receiving the Lord Jesus in the Eucharist we MUST examine our consciences to ensure that we are not in grave or mortal sin.
As he puts it, “whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily sins against the Body and Blood of the Lord. A man should examine himself first (to make sure one is not subjectively in mortal sin); only then should he eat of the bread and drink of the cup. He who eats and drinks without recognizing the Body (and Blood) eats and drinks a judgment on himself. That is why many among you are sick and infirm and why so many are dying. If we were to examine ourselves, we would not be falling under judgment in this way; but since it is the Lord who judges us, He chastens us to keep us from being condemned with the rest of the world.” (1 Corth 11: 27-32).
Thus, it behooves us to learn what the Church teaches is mortal sin and to avoid it at all costs! Probably the most common mortal sins in the modern world are skipping out on Sunday and Holy Day Mass and committing sins against holy purity, sexual sins of various sorts which are always objectively grave since our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit.
Frequent Confession prepares our hearts and strengthens our wills to avoid mortal sin and even the venial sins that damage our relationship with the Lord and weakens our faith.
Remember also prior to Communion we are also called to keep the one-hour fast: no gum, candy, food, or drink (water and medicine are allowed). Spiritual Communions also are very helpful when we can’t receive Holy Communion.
Another very important aid to growing in our faith in this sublime gift of the Holy Eucharist, which is the primary means in this life that God wants to use to draw us into Triune love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is the pious practice of coming to Eucharistic adoration. This has always been such an important part of my own life since my spiritual awakening at 17 that I can’t recommend it more highly.
Like coming to Daily Mass, it is one of those things that doesn’t make sense in the abstract; you have to actually come to Eucharistic adoration to see its true value. The proof is in the doing. Who better to pour out your heart to and to sit quietly in His Presence and be filled with His peace amidst all the troubles of daily life?!
Please don’t let these opportunities pass you by. There are people, especially some of our young people, who maybe have never been to Benediction! Make a resolution to come sometime this summer. And get in the habit when passing the Church to make the sign of the Cross as the Lord who in LOVE remains with us in the Tabernacle. Also always remember to dress modesty out of respect/love for Jesus.
Finally, if we truly want to grow in the likeness of Christ and to grow closer to Him through the gift of His Body and Blood in the Holy Eucharist, we need to do our best to cultivate a “spirit of recollection.”
The spirit of recollection or being able to remain focused spiritually in our hearts and minds is a gift of the Holy Spirit that we must beseech Him in love to bestow on us increasingly each day. However, we can prepare our hearts for this gift by trying our best to pull back from our noisy culture which even sometimes enters the doors of the church (try to be quieter in church).
And try to be more silent interiorly and exteriorly, and you will soon discover that God dwells within, in the mystery of the Divine Indwelling, which is deepened each time we receive Holy Communion with faith and devotion in the state of grace; as when we receive the Body and Blood of Christ we also mysteriously receive the gift of the Father and the Holy Spirit, for the three persons of the Blessed Trinity can never be separated! This will lead us to want to make a profound Thanksgiving after receiving the Body and Blood of the Lord; the saints recommend at least 15-30 minutes.
What a transformative effect these three spiritual practices will have on our souls over time if we are open to the graces:
1. Frequent Confession.
2. Eucharistic adoration.
3. And cultivating a daily sense of recollection of the Divine Indwelling in our souls which leads to wanting to make a more profound Thanksgiving after receiving Holy Communion.
Then we will be drawn into deeper union with the Lord of Life, which is why He gave us the Eucharist in the first place (see John 6), as He didn’t want us to feel abandoned when He returned to Heaven (told to various saints). God bless you.
Recommended reading:
1. From the Eucharist to the Trinity by Marie Vincent Bernadot, O.P.(Cluny Media).
2. In the Presence of Our Lord: The History, Theology, and Psychology of Eucharistic Devotion by Father Benedict Groeschel, C.F.R., and James Monti (Our Sunday Visitor Press).
3. Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraphs 1322-1419.
Father Rich Tomkosky is the Pastor of Saint Thomas the Apostle Parish in Bedford and the Pastor of Seven Dolors of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Beans Cove.
