April 14, 2024, 12:00 PM
Mechanics say oil is the lifeblood of a car. Without oil the car no longer functions as intended. It dies. In many languages the words life and blood share the same root, the same meaning. Without blood we no longer function as intended. We die. Throughout the Bible blood is sacred. It is essential to life. When accepting the Ten Commandments the people were sealed into the Covenant by the sprinkling of blood on the altar, representing God, and on the people. The people bound by the Covenant would rather die than break the bond. Because of a sinful nature, man repeatedly broke the bond. But God in His mercy continually renewed it until He made the eternal covenant between Jesus and mankind. The Bible tells us Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to His disciples. The Eucharist is our lifeblood.
When the oil light comes on in our car, we need to get to a mechanic to make repairs. We also need to determine the cause and take corrective action. Maybe we didn’t check the oil regularly or properly follow the operating instructions. When our spiritual blood low light comes on we need to do two things. First, we need to go to our ace mechanic, the priest, to receive the Sacrament of Penance and make repairs, to get us back into good working order. Second, we need to determine if we have not been operating properly, not following the “rules of the road,” the Commandments. The Eucharist helps us do this and so much more. The Eucharist is the lifeblood of the Church, the Body of Christ, each one of us. Now you know!
