Thought of the Day June 12, 2020 Reality of the Eucharist
At the Last Supper, Jesus
actualized this teaching on the Eucharist when he took bread, blessed, broke
it. He then gave it to those at table with him saying: “Take and eat. This is
my Body.” Then he took the chalice of wine and gave thanks. Handing it to those
at table, he said: “Drink from this, all of you. For this is my blood of the
new covenant, which shall be shed for many as a remission of sins.” (Mt
26:27-28) At the time, without understanding what was happening, the disciples
acted in faith. Their faith was in the person of Jesus. Probably only after
Pentecost with the gift of the Spirit did they began to connect the dots
between the gift of Manna in the desert, then what Jesus revealed in John 6 and
finally the event of the Last Supper.
We believe that at the words of
Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit bread and wine are substantially
changed into the real Body and Blood of Jesus. We call this
transubstantiation. This means that,
after the words of consecration, what appears as bread and wine is now in
actuality the real Body and Blood of Jesus. It is not a symbol of a reality, or
a reminder of a past reality, but the reality itself.
As Jesus made it clear, in
recognizing his Body and Blood in faith and receiving it in full awareness of
our unworthiness, we are sharing in the Divine Life of God in a fresh new
way—the life given to us in Baptism . God in us and we in God! Mystery! In silent awe and gratitude we
worship God, who chooses to make our bodies living tabernacles for his
glorified Body and Blood. Like St Thomas, the Apostle, we acclaim: “My Lord and
my God.”
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