The unique thing about the Catholic Church is the taking of Jesus’ words at the Last Supper, consecrating the bread and wine, as literal. He said they DID become His body and blood. This week I heard a radio program mention something I had not heard before. While the Gospel of John, Chapter 6, is most vehement that the consecrated bread and wine becomes Jesus’ body and blood of which we can partake, I was not aware that St. Ignatius was a student of St. John. About 30 years after St. John’s death St. Ignatius wrote a letter to one of the faith communities and stressed very strongly how the Eucharist is the food of life, because it is Life itself, and he also described it as the heart of the Catholic faith. It is a clear indication that early Church believers DID believe the words of Jesus (or St. John) were literal and how they worshipped the Eucharist as being Jesus truly present, even as I do each day.
As Catholic, I believe the words Jesus spoke, and then bread and wine became His Body and Blood --- and still does, which is why I am called to spend time in the Adoration Chapel each evening, talking to Him, because He is there. But, as I was recently reminded, the essence of life is bread and water, as was given to the Jews in the desert to keep them alive. These are usually described as the basic foods of life. So, why did Jesus consecrate bread and wine to be His Body and Blood instead of bread and water?
The answer, I was recently reminded, can be found in the wedding feast at Cana. Jesus provided a huge amount of wine, made from water. Wine isn’t a basic food of life as water is, but wine is used in a celebration of life. That’s what Jesus was giving us in the Eucharist, something to celebrate. He/God is not just some basic person, He is one to be celebrated in love, and when we see Him that way in the Eucharistic bread we have truly found Him, and so it is right to worship Him there.
I’ve written before about Eucharistic miracles and the scientific tests proving it was true heart flesh and true blood, but that is just science proving what I believed. Seeing how the earliest Church members all believed this is Jesus’ Body and Blood is a re-enforcement for me; this is not just some recent interpretation. It was this way from the beginning of the Church. And that is something to be celebrated.
- - - - - - - - - -
You know I don’t believe in coincidences, so I thought I’d document a couple of recent events.
A Bible study group met last night, and we were talking about how to grow in faith, making it a real relationship with Jesus, not just a Sunday event (or some texts we study in a Bible study group). And I showed them a book I had just minutes before found in my mail. It was sent to me by the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, Fr. Benedict Groeschel’s order, which I’ve supported for years. Those monks live in the poorest neighborhoods of the Bronx and London where they try to help their neighbors grow in faith. The book they sent me: Habits for Holiness, by Fr. Mark-Mary Ames. Not only was that the topic the one we were speaking about, but I noticed it was published by Ascension Press, which published the Bible Study text and videos we were using for that Bible study group. I suspect that book might be very interesting.
I was tempted to sleep in, but I got up. Then this Friday morning’s (Protestant) men’s bible study group found itself reflecting on Matthew 10:34, where Jesus says you must put Me first, putting all others aside. And similar to the previous night’s conversation, they were asking: how do you do that, get that close of a relationship? I participated in that meeting via Zoom, and after it ended one of the men asked me to stay on to talk to him. So, all the others left the Zoom meeting and we spoke. The man used to be Catholic and found the faith didn’t seem relevant to his life. Very intelligent, he became very rich, had high friends, and a beautiful wife. He spent many hours at work and received many promotions. Oh, and he went to church and found it entertaining. He didn’t pay enough attention to her, and his wife left. His jobs didn’t seem as satisfying to him, and he moved between companies. And last night he told me he realized all those things of the world didn’t matter. He offered his life to God, first, and he was now seeking His will. He felt compelled to go to a Catholic mass last Sunday, and he told me he cried a lot. “It was so beautiful; God was there with me.” He is now looking to take steps so that he can marry his present girlfriend in the Catholic Church. He didn’t want to speak to me because he knew I was the only Catholic in that Bible Study group; he saw something else: that I would understand his journey because it was not too dissimilar from mine.
I don’t preach my Catholic faith; I try to live it. Others will see. My Bible study friend wants to make God the key friend in his life. He wants a closer relationship, giving up everything else. I pray for him.
You could call all these events coincidences, if you wish. I guess I have lots of them in my life.
No comments:
Post a Comment