June 2022

Jason grew up in a good Catholic family in Texas. He went to Mass regularly with his parents. He attended religious education in his vibrant local parish. He got confirmed with his classmates. He began to question his faith in his last years in high school but was renewed in his faith once he went to college. He considered himself to be a faithful, committed Christian.

When he went to college at Texas A&M University, he became increasingly active at the local campus ministry parish where I served as pastor – St. Mary’s Catholic Center. One night, at a fraternity party, Jason struck up a casual conversation with a fellow Catholic student. They got to talking about their faith, and she just happened to mention something that took Jason by complete surprise. She said that, in the Mass, the bread and wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

Jason was astounded by her claim. He said, “I’ve been a Catholic all my life, and I’ve never heard such a thing. It’s just a symbol of Jesus; it doesn’t actually become his body and blood.” She calmly smiled and suggested that he look it up himself. That conversation marked a turning point in Jason’s faith life.

He started to study more about his Catholic faith and to attend some classes and Bible studies in our church. His understanding of the faith grew by leaps and bounds. He developed a strong, personal relationship with Jesus Christ, which was nourished by the Eucharist and put into action through service to others. After college, he served as a NET missionary and entered the seminary to become a Catholic priest, and now he is a wonderful pastor of one of the largest Catholic parishes in the state of Texas, where he helps thousands of people get closer to Jesus.

The trajectory of Jason’s life was profoundly impacted by that friendly conversation at a frat party in college. When that young woman opened his eyes to the truth of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, Jason set out on a journey of faith that is now bringing many souls to heaven.

Why do I share this story? Because when a person realizes the truth of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, it is a life-changing discovery. This month, our Catholic Church in the United States begins a three-year Eucharistic Revival, seeking to help more people to have an encounter with Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and to respond to him boldly.

The Gift
The Catholic Mass is a participation in the saving sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. What we receive looks and tastes like a little wafer of bread and a sip of regular wine, but it has been transformed into the real body and blood of Christ. When the bread and wine are consecrated by a validly ordained priest, the body, blood, humanity, and divinity of Jesus Christ become really and truly present, while retaining the appearance of bread and wine.

The reality of the Eucharist is revealed in Scripture. Jesus says in the Gospel of John, chapter 6: “The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. … Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. … For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him” (Jn 6:51, 53, 55-56).

At the Last Supper, on the night before he died on the cross for us, Jesus offered the first Eucharist. He showed the bread and wine to his apostles and said, “This is my Body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me. … This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you” (Lk 22:19-20).

Belief in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist has been the constant teaching of the church since the time of Christ. The early patristic writers give clear testimony to this belief, and the saints have echoed it throughout the centuries. For example, St. John Vianney said, “Upon receiving Holy Communion, the adorable blood of Jesus Christ really flows in our veins, and his flesh is really blended with ours.”

Past, Present, and Future
Each Mass is a sharing in the one sacrifice of Jesus Christ when he offered his life on the cross in Jerusalem in A.D. 33. His sacrifice completes all the sacrifices of the old covenant, and it surpasses all the sacrifices of all the religions of the world. On the cross, God offered himself as a sacrifice to wipe away the sins of all the human race. There is no need for any other sacrifice after that.

Each Mass is not a new sacrifice distinct from the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. This is because, in God, there are no limits of space or time. In God there is no past and no future. All is now for God, whether we look at it as happening in 2022, or A.D. 33, or A.D. 6000. It is all in the present for God. So, what happens to God in any one moment is happening always, eternally.

In our concept of time, we look back and say that the death on the cross happened to Jesus in A.D. 33. But from God’s perspective, that sacrifice is always happening right now. In the Mass, we are plugging into that eternal dynamic in God. This means that, in the sacrifice of the Mass, God continues to give himself in a perpetual sacrifice of love. Furthermore, the Mass is a foretaste of the eternal banquet feast that awaits us in heaven.

When we are in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, we need to acknowledge, “This is Jesus Christ, who gives his life for me. He pours out his blood for me. I need to live my life in a way that appreciates that.”

The Response
There is an intimate connection between receiving Jesus Christ in the eucharistic liturgy and responding to him by serving our fellow human beings in love. The Eucharist is the source and summit of the entire Christian life. Our daily activity in the world leads up to the Eucharist and then flows from it. There is a dynamic interchange in the life of a Catholic Christian, going from life to liturgy and from liturgy to life. Each one feeds into the other. The Eucharist should spill over into the rest of our lives.

Jesus Christ is present in the Blessed Sacrament in a more powerful way than in anything else we do. We come to the liturgy to receive his presence, and then we are commissioned to carry his presence with us as we walk out the door into our world that is so much in need of him. From the Mass, we are sent forth into the world as disciples on a mission, filled with new life in the Spirit. Holy Communion equips us to express in our lives the mystery of Christ, and to show it to others by the way we live and work.

After recognizing Our Lord in Holy Communion, we must also be willing to recognize him in our neighbor in need. The same faith that allows us to recognize the true presence of Christ in the consecrated bread and wine of the Eucharist also allows us to recognize Christ in our neighbor, in the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the immigrant, the abused, the incarcerated, the sick, the elderly, and in the members of our own families.

Intentions
When we celebrate the Mass, we bring to the altar all the needs of our family, our friends, and our brothers and sisters around the world. It is spiritually beneficial for each person at Mass to offer their participation in the Mass for the spiritual support of someone who needs prayers. The priest also offers the Mass for a particular intention, applying the saving grace of the sacrifice of Christ to the needs of people today. Anyone is welcome to contact their local parish office and request that a Mass be celebrated for a particular intention. The Mass is the most powerful prayer we can offer.

Inviting Others to Mass
When we realize the truth of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, we will naturally want to share this good news, and bring others into this situation where they can fall in love with Jesus who makes himself present to us. This includes inviting people to come to Mass with us from time to time. Jesus Christ, the host of the sacred meal, appreciates it when we think enough of him to bring others to meet him there.

Our Altar Call
When members of some other Christian churches have revivals, there is a moment in the service when they have an altar call. Those who wish to make a new spiritual commitment to Jesus Christ are invited to come forward publicly. In our Catholic Mass, we can also look upon the communion procession as an altar call. When we come forward to the altar to receive Jesus in the Eucharist, we can renew our union with the Lord, make a new commitment to Christ, and say in the silence of our hearts that we are not satisfied with a lukewarm, mediocre Christianity. We want to follow Jesus completely, and we want to be saints.

When the minister gives us Holy Communion and says, “The body of Christ,” our response is a bold statement of faith. The Greek word “Amen” literally means “truly” or “it is true.” Thus, when we say “Amen,” we are making a personal statement of faith in the truth of what the minister just said. This truly is the body of Christ.

Conclusion
I look forward to kicking off the Eucharistic Revival in the Diocese of San Angelo with the Mass of the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ at Sacred Heart Cathedral in San Angelo at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 18, 2022. After Mass we will process with the Eucharist through the streets of downtown as a public proclamation of our Eucharistic faith. After the procession, Father Ryan Rojo will offer a reflection on the Eucharist in the parish hall of the cathedral, followed by Eucharistic Adoration through the night.

The first year of our Eucharistic Revival, from June 2022 until June 2023, will be a diocesan year. The second year, from June 2023 to July 2024, will be the parish year. The final year, from July 2024 until Pentecost 2025, will focus on outreach to the unchurched.

The gift of the Holy Eucharist is at the core of being a Catholic Christian. It is a precious treasure, and we should never take it for granted. As we live our Eucharistic Revival over the next three years, may God help us to share this great gift with confidence, passion, and joy.