Over the last few weeks now, we have been hearing Jesus speak to His disciples about the Eucharist in the Bread of Life Discourse. Today, we hear the culmination of that teaching. And what we see is that the disciples have a difficult time believing it. They don’t completely understand what Jesus is saying and they can’t wrap their minds around it. But it has come to the moment of decision. Are they going to embrace this teaching and continue following the Lord? Or are they going to leave, walking away saying that this teaching is too hard?
And we see what happens. We see that many of the disciples cannot come to terms with what Jesus is saying. They do not understand. And, in a sense, they don’t want to try to grow in that understanding. As often is the case with we humans, if something is too hard, we just give up and walk away. That’s exactly what takes place with these disciples. Rather than trusting that Jesus is speaking the Truth, rather than believing that Jesus will continue to help them grow in this understanding, they simply reject it outright and, in doing so, completely reject the Lord. What about us? What do we believe?
Every Sunday…for some of us every day…we come to Mass; we sit in the pews; we listen to the words being proclaimed in the Scriptures; we sing along with the music; maybe we’re fully awake, maybe not; maybe we’re attentive, maybe we’re just here because we have to be – but when it comes time for the Eucharistic Prayer, do we truly recognize what takes place here?
One of our parishioners recently reminded me of a video I saw a few years ago called “The Veil Removed.” It shows what takes place during the Eucharistic Prayer, the holiest part of the Mass. Over the last few days, my prayer has been that the Lord would just give us a glimpse of the heavenly reality that we so often miss. Because if people truly understood what happens at this altar, if people were able to see how this is the place where heaven and earth meet, our churches, our Masses would be bursting at the seams. So, what takes place?
During the Sanctus, the Holy Holy, all of the angels, all of the saints in heaven, gather around the altar. And this is the only time that our guardian angels leave our side. It is a moment where the Church on earth unites with the heavenly chorus, praising God in a timeless act of worship because the angels and saints know what’s about to happen. In this sacred moment, the entire Church – militant, suffering, and triumphant – gathers as one, participating in the eternal sacrifice of Christ made present once more.
As the priest prays on behalf of the congregation, invoking the Holy Spirit to sanctify the gifts of bread and wine, these elements are transformed into the Body and Blood of Christ. In fact, in that moment, it is not the priest praying those words, it is actually Jesus Himself praying those words. We are taken back to the Last Supper. We witness the crucifixion here and now. Jesus is showing us what He was willing to do and what He continues to be willing to do for our salvation. Y’all, this is the moment that Jesus in our midst! And we so often miss it. We miss it! And how do I know that we miss it? Because of how we receive the Lord when we receive Communion.
Those who truly know, receive Him well. Some receive on the tongue, often kneeling. I have witnessed some of you come forward with tears in your eyes because you know that it is Jesus you are receiving. Some choose to receive on the hand, but do so by making a throne for the King of the Universe to be placed on. And then we have others who come up nonchalantly, walking up the aisle as if they could care less, some chewing gum, put their hands up quickly, as the priest or minister says “The Body of Christ.” Some say “Amen!”, some don’t. They’re just here to get their cracker. We have others who receive with the claw, grabbing at Jesus rather than truly receiving Him as a gift.
What are we doing? This is the Body of Christ. This is the Lord. This is Jesus Himself. The least we can do is receive Him reverently. And if we struggle to believe that this is Jesus, we have to ask the Lord to come into our hearts to help us change that reality. We have to ask Him to help lead us and guide us to a deeper understanding of the Eucharist, a deeper appreciation for it. The Lord desires that for all of us, for all of us to receive Him into our very hearts, that we might be continually transformed by His presence. He simply wants to be within us, to be with us, to journey with us…that’s the greatest desire of His heart.
So, it’s decision time. It’s time to make a choice. What are we going to believe? Do we believe that Jesus is present in the Eucharist, are we going to continue following Him? Or if we struggle to believe this teaching, are we going to ask Him to walk with us in growing our understanding? Or is this teaching, is this truth of our faith too hard to understand and are we going to walk away? The choice is yours.
Photo Credit: Nathalie Emmanuel
Fr. Tom Pringle 