May 8, 2022, 12:00 PM
Congratulations to all our youth who received Jesus Christ in Holy Communion for the first time this weekend. They spent many hours in their Religious Education classes learning about how Jesus is really and truly present in the bread and wine. A special thanks to the catechists and parents who taught them.
What an awesome mystery it is for us to look at the Host and say, “This is REALLY Jesus, the Son of God, our Savior!” From a rational point of view, it would seem to be just a wild fantasy. Then why believe it? The only answer is faith. If we accept Jesus as Son of God, the Word made Flesh, and if He promised to give Himself to us as the Living Bread come down from Heaven, then it makes sense for us to believe that He fulfilled His promise. In a miraculous way, the Crucified and Risen Jesus is present in the Eucharist. He is not just a symbol or reminder of events past. What we look at the Host it is not just a “thing;” it is a Person, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. How can that be? St. Ambrose gives one answer. He says, “Surely, the God who made the universe out of nothing can change something into something else, in this case, SomeONE Else.”
Have you noticed that our youth who have received their First Holy Communion in the past few years still receive the Lord with the same excitement as they had the first time they received Jesus? They are very reverent and truly believe in the Real Presence of Jesus. Are our faith and actions as simple and unquestioning as theirs? I really hope so! Now you know!
What an awesome mystery it is for us to look at the Host and say, “This is REALLY Jesus, the Son of God, our Savior!” From a rational point of view, it would seem to be just a wild fantasy. Then why believe it? The only answer is faith. If we accept Jesus as Son of God, the Word made Flesh, and if He promised to give Himself to us as the Living Bread come down from Heaven, then it makes sense for us to believe that He fulfilled His promise. In a miraculous way, the Crucified and Risen Jesus is present in the Eucharist. He is not just a symbol or reminder of events past. What we look at the Host it is not just a “thing;” it is a Person, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. How can that be? St. Ambrose gives one answer. He says, “Surely, the God who made the universe out of nothing can change something into something else, in this case, SomeONE Else.”
Have you noticed that our youth who have received their First Holy Communion in the past few years still receive the Lord with the same excitement as they had the first time they received Jesus? They are very reverent and truly believe in the Real Presence of Jesus. Are our faith and actions as simple and unquestioning as theirs? I really hope so! Now you know!
