Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings

Reflection on Scripture

The bread becomes the Body of Jesus, and the wine becomes the Blood of Christ. Jesus’ Body and Blood poured out for the forgiveness of sin and to reconcile us to the Father and invite us to become one with the community of the Blessed Trinity.

So, few words to describe the unfathomable. A few short sentences and the greatest miracle we will ever witness becomes reality before our eyes through the working of the Holy Spirit.

Yet, you and I witness starving people every day of our lives. These people roam the world looking for something, anything that will give purpose and meaning to their lives. Many are Catholics, baptized into the faith, who are offered the bread of eternal life, and turn away in search of something other than the God of all creation.

The Most Holy Eucharist is the very presence of God in a tangible object, the bread and wine, because God has decided that His dwelling place would in the hearts of the faithful.

Does this transubstantiation does not take place with the sounding of trumpets, the shouts of the people, the skies aglow with the brilliance of it all. No, just as Elijah did not experience God in the wind, the fire, or the earthquake, but only as a gentle whisper, so too, we experience this miracle in the quiet depths of our hearts.

However, there is a danger there for all of us. The danger is that the divine miracle takes place without us being able to see anything happen and nothing changes. I correct myself because something does change.

Each time the Eucharist is celebrated, a wave of love flows forth through the universe. Not for just that moment, but the love flows forever and for all eternity. In our hands, we hold the author of life, the creator of the universe, the very essence of love, and divinity. The unbloody sacrifice we witness is the continuation of the salvation that Jesus won for us on Good Friday.

Paul instructs us, that if we truly believe and enter the mystery of the Eucharist and fully participate with all our hearts, all our minds, and all of our very being, then all sin, especially sin of hatred and division and separation from our brothers and sisters should not be present in our hearts. If we truly believe and take part in the Eucharist, we will weep for those who abandon the faith and all those who reject Jesus and His presence in the Blessed Sacrament. We will be saddened by all forms of blasphemy and lies and anything that lacks love, compassion, understanding, harmony, and forgiveness. And when a brother or sister is called by the Lord and they ignore the calling or are distracted by the alure of the world, it should be the believer, embodied with the Body and Blood of Christ, who steps forward and takes the place of the weaker soul asking the Lord, to take me and let me do your will.

The Eucharist is not about storing graces and building a savings account for heaven. We cannot possess what we never owned. Instead, the grace of the Eucharist is meant to be given away in building the Body of Christ and leading more and more people in a loving relationship with the Lord so, more and more people come to love Him more.

Today, and for the past several weeks, we have heard the Eucharistic narrative. Today, is the day that we awaken to sound in our hearts, that we listen attentively to the simple breeze that blow upon our souls, and we allow ourselves to grow in holiness and become the very image of Christ living in us.

Can you remember the day that the Lord claimed yoou for His own and you willingly accepted? Can you remember the day, when in a form of despair, the Holy Spirit came upon you, forgave your sins, and made you a sanctuary of the Most Blessed Trinity? Can you remember the day that you gave all that you are, broken and afraid and unsure of the unknown, to the Lord because in your heart you knew that all your trust was in Him? If you cannot remember, than make today the day to remember. Let us give ourselves wholly to God for our sakes and the sakes of all humankind. The Lord is calling.

Deacon Phil