[Jesus] took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, gave it to them, and said,
"Take it; this is my body."
Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them,
and they all drank from it.
He said to them,
"This is my blood of the covenant,
which will be shed for many..."
Mark 14:22-24
broke it, gave it to them, and said,
"Take it; this is my body."
Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them,
and they all drank from it.
He said to them,
"This is my blood of the covenant,
which will be shed for many..."
Mark 14:22-24
Our story of redemption is a constant unfolding and deepening of God's presence and self-gift to us. It begins with the sprinkling of the blood of bulls on the Israelites as a sign of their acceptance of the covenant that Moses brought from the Lord, as we hear in the first reading. For hundreds of years God then reveals himself to the Hebrew people in many ways. In today's Gospel, we hear of this new covenant which is shown through the blood of Jesus. For us, by consuming the body and blood of Jesus we accept this covenant of divine self-gift and personal presence. The catch is, it doesn't end there. We are asked to be that presence for the world, giving of ourselves in the way Jesus did.
Eucharist is more than a gift for us; it is a gift through us for others. It sends us forth to a life of self-giving, modeled by Jesus. We are to bring the presence of the risen Christ to others. Anything less than this is to lessen the mystery of it's depth - if we eat and drink Christ's true Body and Blood we should become what we eat and be Christ for others.
In reflecting on today's readings I have been thinking about former Archbishop Oscar Romero. In 1977 he was installed as the Archbishop of San Salvador and from that point on spent his life trying to bring hope to the poor and vulnerable of his country. This meant challenging both the government and the people of the Church to care for the least among them. Many, many people died a martyrs death in this fight, including Oscar Romero. On March 24, 1980, as he was saying Mass, he said these words: "That this immolated Body and this Blood sacrificed for humankind, may nourish our bodies and our blood in suffering and in pain, like Christ, not for its own sake, but rather to give the concepts of justice and peace to our people. Let us join together then, intimately in faith and hope in this moment of prayer for Dona Sarita [the person for whom the Mass was being offered] and for ourselves..." at that moment, as he lifted the Precious Elements, a single shot was fired and Oscar Romero died. In his lifetime Oscar Romero strived to become what he received - to be Christ for others. How do you do the same?
Please share your thoughts with us by posting a comment.
Eucharist is more than a gift for us; it is a gift through us for others. It sends us forth to a life of self-giving, modeled by Jesus. We are to bring the presence of the risen Christ to others. Anything less than this is to lessen the mystery of it's depth - if we eat and drink Christ's true Body and Blood we should become what we eat and be Christ for others.
In reflecting on today's readings I have been thinking about former Archbishop Oscar Romero. In 1977 he was installed as the Archbishop of San Salvador and from that point on spent his life trying to bring hope to the poor and vulnerable of his country. This meant challenging both the government and the people of the Church to care for the least among them. Many, many people died a martyrs death in this fight, including Oscar Romero. On March 24, 1980, as he was saying Mass, he said these words: "That this immolated Body and this Blood sacrificed for humankind, may nourish our bodies and our blood in suffering and in pain, like Christ, not for its own sake, but rather to give the concepts of justice and peace to our people. Let us join together then, intimately in faith and hope in this moment of prayer for Dona Sarita [the person for whom the Mass was being offered] and for ourselves..." at that moment, as he lifted the Precious Elements, a single shot was fired and Oscar Romero died. In his lifetime Oscar Romero strived to become what he received - to be Christ for others. How do you do the same?
Please share your thoughts with us by posting a comment.
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