Sunday Mass is the greatest miracle in the world: the Eucharist. God speaks through the Scriptures. The Church offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving. The Holy Spirit transforms bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. The faithful share Holy Communion with one another and God, and then go nourished into the world to preach and live the demands of the Gospel. God speaks and does something miraculous, and the people respond and receive personally through their unity in the communal prayer which is the Mass.
In my nearly thirty-two years as a priest, I have celebrated Mass thousands of times. And even though it has become a very familiar part of my routine, sometimes in presiding at Mass new insights, or at least important reminders, come to me.
That has happened recently as I’ve become more aware of the fact that every time I hold the host and say, “This is my body” and hold the chalice and say “This is the chalice of my blood,” I am united in a very real way to every other priest of the Archdiocese who has said or will say those same words the same day. I am comforted by that insight.
The reality of Eucharistic unity goes beyond the priests of our Archdiocese, however. I’ve come to recognize that when I celebrate Mass and receive Holy Communion, I am spiritually united with all of the Catholics of our Archdiocese and with Catholics all over the world who hear those words of consecration. As we recently celebrated All Saints and All Souls, it reminded me again that I am even united with the saints, who have been nourished by the Holy Eucharist from the very beginning.
But what is true for me in the Holy Eucharist is true for you as well. Eucharistic unity is a unity of faith; it is also a unity of charity and human affection. Receiving Holy Communion unites you to Jesus, to be sure. But it also unites you to your fellow parishioners, members of our Archdiocese, and Catholics all over the world who are receiving Holy Communion that day. The Eucharist calls you to be aware of and to share in the hopes and dreams, the joys and sorrows, the blessings and the challenges of Christians everywhere. It should remind all of you that the Mass is a communal prayer and not a time for personal forms of piety that can disrupt or portray dis-unity. The rubrics and guidelines of the USCCB and the General Instruction of the Roman Missal are meant to bring about unity as we should be reminded to be in communion with one another in our communal prayer of the Mass. I will write more specifically about some of those actions and signs in next week’s Forum.
Eucharistic unity transcends time. The Holy Mass unites you to all of the saints who have gone before you and have done what you are doing. In receiving Holy Communion, you are “coheirs to eternal life with those who have pleased the Lord throughout the ages.” (2nd Eucharistic Prayer)
The concept of Eucharistic unity is certainly not new. St. Augustine put it this way: “When you hear the words ‘the Body of Christ’ and respond, ‘Amen,’ be then a member of the Body of Christ so that your ‘Amen’ may be true!”
Something to think about: The next time you receive Holy Communion, try to be attuned to all other members of the Church, in our parish, and around the world, who are receiving Holy Communion that day. It is not a time for you to separate yourself physically, emotionally, or spiritually, but a time to be in communion – in union with the Church.
God Bless,
