Holy Thursday 2024 - Three Indispensable Gifts

 Knowing that within hours his passion would soon begin, Jesus celebrated the Last Supper with his disciples.  Within hours, he would be sweating blood in the garden of gethsemane, and his disciples would abandon him. Within hours, he would be arrested, falsely accused, tortured and mocked, and before long he would be carrying his cross up the hill of Calvary where he would hang in anguish, and die.

Jesus, at his last supper knew he was about to die, and yet,  in the face of indescribable suffering, the Lord in his goodness bestowed upon His Church three precious gifts: the gift of the Eucharist, the Gift of the Priesthood, and the Commandment of Charity. 

These gifts were not arbitrary; they were given with profound purpose—that his mission would continue—the mission of the Church might succeed through the centuries. Together, these three gifts embody the Church's sacramental, hierarchical, and moral dimensions, guiding our mission to evangelize, sanctify, and serve in the name of Christ.

Let’s reflect upon these three gifts. First, the Eucharist. The Eucharist is the Lord’s gift of his body and blood—through which the Lord remains with his Church really and sacramentally until his glorious return. Through the Eucharist, Jesus transforms our altars into Calvary from which the blood of salvation flows throughout the whole earth.

The Eucharist is indispensable to the life of the Church. It would be easier for the earth to survive without the sun, than for the Church to survive without the Eucharist. It is indispensable to our identity, our mission, and our spiritual life. Without the Eucharist, the Church would lose its most profound connection to Christ, the source of our unity, and its sanctifying power in the world. On Holy Thursday, we thank God for the gift of his body and blood in the Eucharist.

Secondly, at the Last Supper, the Lord gave us the gift of the priesthood. And the sacramental priesthood is indispensable to the Catholic Church. 

Priests are the only ones who through sacramental orders are capable of consecrating bread and wine so that they may become the Body and Blood of Christ. Similarly, only priests can absolve sins in the name of Christ through the Sacrament of Confession. Priests have also been tasked by the Lord to ensure that the liturgy is celebrated properly and reverently, fostering the active participation of the faithful and enabling them to encounter God in the sacraments.

Priests, too, have the divine mandate to teach the faith. Through the preaching, teaching, and pastoral guidance of priests, the Lord Jesus helps his flock understand the Gospel and the Church's teachings, and to live out the Gospel in daily life. When priests are lax in their duties, the mission, identity, worship, and sanctification of the church suffers.

So on Holy Thursday, the we thank God for the gift of the priesthood, and we pray for our priests.

Thirdly, at the Last Supper, the Lord gave us the commandment of Charity. "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another" And of course, the commandment of Charity is indispensable for the Church. 

The commandment of charity encapsulates the essence of being a follower of Christ. It defines the Christian identity not by doctrines or rituals alone but by love—a love that is sacrificial, unconditional, and mirrors the love of Christ for humanity. This love is a visible mark of Christian discipleship, as Jesus Himself said, "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another"

Charity, as commanded by Christ, is the foundation upon which Christian community is built. It fosters unity, mutual care, and the sharing of goods and burdens within the Church. This love is not merely an ideal but a lived reality that is witnessed in the acts of service, kindness, and generosity among the members of the Church.

The commandment of charity is indispensable to the Church's mission in the world. The witness of love is perhaps the most powerful evangelizing tool, as it reflects the very nature of God, who is Love (1 John 4:8). Through acts of love, especially towards the "least of these" (Matthew 25:40), the Church makes visible the Kingdom of God and draws people towards Christ.

Tthe Lord's commandment of charity is indispensable to the Catholic Church because it animates our life, directs our mission, shapes our community, and witnesses to the reality of God's love for the world. Without this commandment, the Church would lose her distinctive character as the community of love that reflects the very heart of the Gospel.

As we reflect on these gifts, we are called to respond to them and cherish them. To receive the Eucharist is to welcome Jesus into our hearts and to be transformed by His love. To honor the Priesthood is to recognize Christ's presence among us, guiding, sanctifying, and teaching through His ordained ministers. To live the commandment of love is to see Christ in every person and to serve Him in them, especially the least of our brothers and sisters.

Tonight, as we commemorate the Last Supper, let us deepen our appreciation for these divine gifts. Let us pray for the grace to live them out more fully, so that, united with Christ in His sacrifice, we may share in the glory of His Resurrection.

As the Lord rose from supper and began to wash the feet of his disciples as an example to follow, I now invite those who have been chosen to come forward for the washing of their feet. In this beautiful ritual ponder the presence of the Lord in the gifts he has left the Church, in the Eucharist, in the priesthood, and in the command to love one another for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. 

First Friday Holy Hour - February 2024 - O Luminous Eucharist

 Forty days have passed since we celebrated the joyful Feast of the Nativity of the Lord. The Liturgy itself tells us that today, the Feast of the Presentation, we celebrate that blessed day when Jesus was presented in the Temple by Mary and Joseph. Outwardly he was fulfilling the law, but in reality he was coming to meet his believing people. Prompted by the Holy Spirit, Simeon and Anna came to the temple. Enlightened by the same Spirit, they recognized the Lord and confessed him with exultation. 

Light. This feast has many references to light. The Gospel reading speaks of light. Jesus is the light of revelation—revealing to the nations of the world—that God has come to save all of us.

Candles are blessed and lit at the beginning of mass for the presentation, they are signal flares to the world, that all those who are looking for salvation can find it, in Christ. 

What a fitting day for us to kneel in the light of the Eucharist. Devotees of the rosary know that the institution of the Eucharist—the eucharist which we kneel before this evening—is the fifth and final mystery of light. When Pope St. John Paul II gave us the luminous mysteries of the rosary—he wrote how the Eucharist is a light—it reveals, it testifies, it sheds light that Christ is with us till the end. He is with his Church. And he loves his church. 

The Eucharist reveals the heart of Christ which is given in love to us, to save us, to separate us from sin and unite us to God. We kneel before the Eucharist to bask in the glow of the light of Christ’s love. And we do so, that when we present ourselves to receive the Eucharist, we may be filled with that same light, that his light may be detected in us, and radiate from us.

St. Peter Julian Eymard, that great saint of the Eucharist writes: “The Eucharist is the sacrament of love par excellence. Certainly the other sacraments are proofs of God’s love for us; they are gifts of God. But in the Eucharist, we receive the Author of every gift, God Himself. So it is in Communion especially that we learn to know the law of love that our Lord came to reveal. There we receive the special grace of love. There, finally, more than anywhere else, we acquire the practice, the virtue, of love.”

“O lumunious Euharist, may this time with you truly enlighten us, in the way of God’s love, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.”

25th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2023 - Distribution of Holy Communion under both species

 Last week, I mentioned that we will be preaching about the distribution and reception of Holy Communion. We are in the midst of a Eucharistic Revival, and so, it is certainly fitting to reflect upon how and why we receive the eucharist. 

“On the night before he died, Christ gathered his Apostles in the upper room to celebrate the Last Supper and to give us the inestimable gift of his Body and Blood. "He did this in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout the centuries until He should come again, and so to entrust to His beloved spouse, the Church, a memorial of His death and resurrection. . . ." Thus, in the Eucharistic Celebration of the Mass we are joined with Christ on the altar of the cross and at the table of the upper room in "the sacrificial memorial in which the sacrifice of the cross is perpetuated and [in] the sacred banquet of communion with the Lord's body and blood."

The eyes of faith enable Christians to recognize that in the Eucharist we celebrate and receive “Christ Himself, our Passover and living bread." The Eucharist is the "Sacrament of Sacraments." Through it "the work of our redemption is accomplished." He who is the "living bread that came down from heaven" (Jn 6:51) assures us, "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink" (Jn 6:54-55).

While the heart of the celebration of the Eucharist is the Eucharistic Prayer, in which bread and wine are truly transformed into the Body and Blood of our Savior who offers himself as a sacrifice for our redemption to the Father, the consummation of the Mass is found in Holy Communion, whereby the people purchased for the Father by his beloved Son, eat and drink the Body and Blood of Christ…In the great sacrament of the altar, communicants are joined to Christ Jesus and to one another.

It is God’s Holy Will that this sacrament be received as the soul's spiritual food to sustain and build up those who receive it, as he said, "He who eats of me, he also shall live because of me" (Jn 6:57). This sacrament is also to be a remedy to free us from our daily defects and to keep us from mortal sin. Moreover, the Eucharist is the promise and pledge of our future glory and our everlasting happiness—again, “he who eats my flesh will live forever.”

Church historians tell us that from the first days of the Church's celebration of the Eucharist, Holy Communion consisted of the reception of both the bread and wine that had been placed on an altar and transformed into the Lord’s Body and Blood. Both were received by members of the faithful in fulfillment of the Lord's command to "take and eat . . . take and drink." The distribution of Holy Communion to the faithful under both kinds was thus the norm for more than 1000 years. 

The practice of Holy Communion under both kinds at Mass continued until the late eleventh century, when the custom of distributing the Eucharist to the faithful under the form of bread alone began to grow. By the twelfth century theologians such as Peter Cantor speak of Communion under one kind as a "custom" of the Church. This practice spread until the Council of Constance in 1415 decreed that Holy Communion under the form of bread alone would be distributed to the faithful.

In 1963, the Pope, of course having the authority to do so, authorized the distribution of both species to the faithful at the discretion of the diocesan bishops. And some of our elders here might remember when we here in Cleveland began to distribute Holy Communion under both species. And up until the COVID lockdown in 2020 we were distributing both the consecrated host and precious blood here at St. Ignatius of Antioch. 

Now three years later, at the recommendation of several parishioners and the support of parish council, we will be returning to distributing both species at weekend masses here at St. Ignatius. 

So, as normal, we will form two lines down the aisle for the Communion Procession. And those who are disposed to receive Holy Communion may receive in the prescribed way.

To receive the host, you may receive on the tongue, as is the ancient custom, or receive in the hands. As a reminder, you must have both hands completely free, so you cannot be carrying a phone, a child, a purse, cane or handkerchief. When receiving in the hand, your dominant hand goes under your other hand, so that the host can be placed carefully in the palm—so you are not to form a cup, but a throne. Then your dominant hand places the host in your mouth carefully, taking care that no part or particle of the host is dropped or lost. 

When receiving the cup, after responding “Amen” to the minister, you are to take the cup with two hands, take a sip, and return it to the minster, who will wipe the cup with a clean portion of the purificator. 

If you are not receiving from the cup out of health concerns or for whatever reason, you should still make a small sign of reverence to acknowledge your belief, that the cup truly contains Christ. And be assured that to receive the host is still to receive both the body and blood of Christ, as has been clearly taught through the centuries.  

Recall, too, that to receive holy communion, one must be in a state of grace, having confessed one’s serious sins in the sacrament of confession. To do so otherwise is sacrilege. 

As St. Paul instructs the Christians at Corinth, “Examine yourselves, and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For all who eat and drink without discerning the body eat and drink judgment against themselves. For this reason many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.” In other words, many Christians are spiritually weak or spiritually dead because they have failed to confess mortal sins before receiving holy communion. 

I’d like to thank all of our Eucharistic Ministers stepping up to fulfill this service to the parish. We could certainly use a few more Eucharistic Ministers to ensure we have enough at each mass with a few substitutes. So please let me know if you'd be willing to serve in this liturgical ministry.

The Eucharist is strength for those who journey in hope through this life and who desire to dwell with God in the life to come. May our worship and reception of the Body and Blood of the Lord help us to experience the salvation he won for us, and the peace of God’s kingdom, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.