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May 7, 2023As we receive the Real Presence of Christ . . .
During this beautiful time of year, this Easter Season, in the month of May, we are reminded of the first one who bore Christ to the world, Our Lady. We praise her and thank her for her role model as mother, as disciple and as one who deeply loved Our Lord. Our Dear 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 Christ as He lives with and within us.
We speak of the presence of Christ under the appearances of bread and wine as "real" in order to emphasize the special nature of His presence. What appears to be bread and wine is in its very substance the Body and Blood of Christ. In Our Catholic Faith, it is our belief, as sacred doctrine of the Church, that the elements of the Eucharist, the whole substance of the bread is changed into the Body, and the whole substance of the wine is changed into the Blood, of Jesus. These elements of the earth are substantially transformed into the Divine yet remain in the appearances of the bread and wine. This transformation is called transubstantiation. The bread and wine changes in substance into the whole being of Jesus and remains this way. We place the hosts not consumed at Mass in the tabernacle to preserve His Real Presence among us. [The sacrament of Holy Communion] contains the whole actual being of Our Lord, as God and Human.” (Mysterium Fidei, no. 39). This weekend as we celebrate with the children who receive Our Lord’s Real Presence for the Frist Time – let us proclaim for them and us all— Praise be to God!
Our Blessed Mother Mary knew our Lord so deeply and bore Him to the world. As we imitate His first beloved disciple, His Mother, our dear Mother Mary, let us bring Him to the world. During this time of celebrating those who receive First Holy Communion, with Our Lady, 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
