Sharing the Real Presence of Christ

Sharing the Real  Presence of Christ ...
“I am the Bread of Life . . .”        
 “I am the living Bread . .."
 John  6
 
During this beautiful time of year, during this Easter Season, in the month of May, we are reminded of the first one who bore Christ to the world, Our Dear Lady, the Mother of God. We praise her and thank her for her role model as mother, as disciple and as one who deeply loved Our Lord.  We ask the Lord to embrace all of our earthly mothers – our Moms, Grandmothers, Godmothers, and those who have shown motherly tenderness and love in our lives. Happy Mother’s Day to all of our mothers here on earth and in heaven.
Our Blessed Mother experienced the real presence of the Lord in her life in an intimate and close manner as she lived life on earth with Him. We also are blessed and graced to experience the real presence of Jesus. Specifically, Catholic teaching says that the true presence of Christ exists most fully when the assembly, and the priest, (all of us, are together at the Eucharist. Jesus exists in the Word (Sacred Scripture) and the Sacrament (the changing of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of    Jesus). Yes. Christ is present during the Eucharist in four ways. He is present in the person of the priest (1) who offers the sacrifice of the Mass. He is also present in the assembled people (2)  as they pray and sing, "for he has promised ‘where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them' (Mt 18:20)" (Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 7). According to the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of the    Second Vatican Council, Christ is present in his Word (3) "since it is he himself who speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church." Furthermore, we speak of the presence of Christ under the appearances of bread and wine as "real" in order to emphasize the special nature of that presence. And, what appears to be the earthly forms of bread and wine is in its very substance the divine presence of the Body and Blood of Christ (4). Even though Christ is most fully present when all four elements of the Eucharist are enacted, Christ is entirely present . . .  and [we say real presence in the Sacrament] to indicate “presence par excellence,” because it is substantial and through it Christ becomes present whole and entire, God and man" ( Mysterium Fidei, no. 39).
It is important to know that we all make up the Mystical Body of Christ and we are all needed to bring forth the presence of Christ to the world around us. However, the sacrament Holy Eucharist contains the whole actual being of Our Lord, as Human being and God.  Praise be to Our Lord, Jesus Christ!
Our Blessed Mother Mary knew our Lord so deeply and bore Him to the world. As part of His mystical Body, we are also part of the mission to bring Him to the world. During this time of celebrating those who are receiving First Holy Communion, and as we look forward to receiving the Holy Spirit so deeply in our lives (May 22^nd and 23^rd) and as we will come to celebrate the Most Holy Body and Blood of Our Lord (Corpus Christi) June 5th and 6th), with Our Lady, during this month of May, let us adore Him, let us be part of Him, let us share Him:
O Mary, give us a heart as beautiful, pure, and spotless as yours. A heart like yours, so full of love and humility. May we be able to receive Jesus as bread of life, to love him as you loved him, to serve him under the mistreated face of the [vulnerable]. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.                          --       St. Teresa of Calcutta

Fr. John