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Gospel: John 6:30-35
The crowd said to Jesus:
“What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you?
What can you do?
Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written:
He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”
So Jesus said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven;
my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.”
So they said to Jesus,
“Sir, give us this bread always.”
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger.”
This is, perhaps, one of the best verses to describe the spirituality of Catholics.
We believe Christ gives himself to us – his very own Body and Blood – in the Eucharist. Receiving the Risen Christ becomes the promise of our own resurrection.
This is partially what has made this pandemic so difficult to bear. Many Catholics have gone over a year without receiving communion. I hear it often, “Father, I just want to receive Jesus again.”
Has this last year been an entire loss? Or can God bring something good out of it?
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Taking those words, “I just want to receive Jesus,” already demonstrates spiritual growth.
Too often in life, we take people or things for granted, even the Eucharist. But being denied access to it for over a year has made some Catholics appreciate this Sacrament even more.
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We’ve also learned to be creative. When unable to attend Mass, many have looked for the Lord through private prayer, reading scripture, adoration, or spiritual communion by attending Mass virtually.
This extended period of isolation reminds us that God can give us his grace in a variety of ways.
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This pandemic can also bring about a greater sense of solidarity with other Catholics around the world. It’s a matter of mindfulness.
I spent a summer in El Salvador some years ago. The priest I stayed with was responsible for three parishes and ninety different communities, some several hours away. Because of the distance, many Catholics only saw a priest once a year.
Going without communion for a time can help us draw closer to our brothers and sisters who longed for the Lord before this pandemic and who will long for him well after.
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For those of us who can receive Jesus today, may we offer this grace for those who go without. This helps satisfy the prayer of Jesus, “That we may be one,” just as he and his Father are one.
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Image credits: (1) Faith Magazine (2) Opus Dei (3) The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix
Dear Father,
In the times Maria spent in the hospital, EucharisticMinisters and you and other priests from OLMV brought the Eucharist to her, and sometimes, to me as well. I believe she began to realize that the Cancer was going to take her from us, in the last 3 to 4 months of 2019. The prayers, the anointing and the Eucharist were the sources of her courage she showed as her death approached. She is resting in the Peace of our Lord.
Our Lord is with me in my home as I keep busy to keep our home as it was when she was with me. I have plenty of things to do, thanks to our Lord. It is often said that If our Lord brings you to some challenge in your life, He will bring you through it. I pray every day, but not enough. I offer my daily work at home, as a kind of prayer for Maria and for myself , that I someday will attain Heaven.
Michael, that’s beautiful. Thank you for sharing. Will remember you both at the altar. God bless you