THE MYSTERY OF THE EUCHARIST IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH (Part-6)
What the Church commemorates with great festivity and solemn rites on Holy Thursday night, she does at every Mass. For through the Eucharistic Sacrifice, offered at every Mass, she ‘makes present’ Christ’s unique sacrifice on the Cross so that we can join ourselves to it! Today I’ll reflect on Eucharist as ‘Gift.’ In the Nicene Creed, we are directed to bow as we profess these awesome underlined words, “For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.” Many say the most wondrous moment in human history was when our Blessed Mother agreed to conceive God’s Son in her womb, “And the Word became flesh.” [John 1:14a] At that very moment, God and humanity were united like never before – for God came to dwell among us in the flesh. Everything after was ‘the icing on the cake:’ Christ’s birth and earthly life, His teachings and miracles, His redeeming Passion, Death and glorious Resurrection by which He revealed what awaits us after our earthly journey. And yet, as they say, “there’s still more!” Through the mystery of the Eucharist, God continues to dwell with us – and literally lives with us! (to be continued…)