St. John Paul II and the Eucharist

My favorite quotes from Ecclesia de Eucharistia

On April 17, 2003, Holy Thursday in the Year of the Rosary, Saint John Paul II wrote for the universal Church his Encyclical Letter “Ecclesia de Eucharistia,” which reflected on the Eucharist in its relationship to the Church. Here is the beginning of the letter:
 
“The Church draws her life from the Eucharist. This truth does not simply express a daily experience of faith but recapitulates the heart of the mystery of the Church. In a variety of ways she joyfully experiences the constant fulfilment of the promise: ‘Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age’ (Mt 28:20), but in the Holy Eucharist, through the changing of bread and wine into the body and blood of the Lord, she rejoices in this presence with unique intensity. Ever since Pentecost, when the Church, the People of the New Covenant, began her pilgrim journey toward her heavenly homeland, the Divine Sacrament has continued to mark the passing of her days, filling them with confident hope. … The Second Vatican Council rightly proclaimed that the Eucharistic sacrifice is ‘the source and summit of the Christian life. For the most holy Eucharist contains the Church's entire spiritual wealth: Christ himself, our passover and living bread. Through his own flesh, now made living and life-giving by the Holy Spirit, he offers life to men.’ Consequently, the gaze of the Church is constantly turned to her Lord, present in the Sacrament of the Altar in which she discovers the full manifestation of his boundless love.”
 
The Eucharist is someone not something, it is someone. The Eucharist is Jesus truly present before us. He feeds us with himself and in this nourishment, he loves us and he gives us life. Jesus, our loving Lord, never leaves us alone. Jesus calls on us, invites us to be with him. This is why the worship of the Eucharist outside of the Mass is of immeasurable and incalculable value for the life of the Church. We receive him at Communion and adore him always.
 
When we receive the Body of Christ, we are united to him and everyone else that is one with him. This unity is not something we can see with our eyes, we can see its fruits, but it is an invisible unity that is true and real. Almost like invisible handcuffs that make us now inseparable from Christ and each other. Saint John Paul II said something about this in section 36 of this letter. I have left the biblical quotes so you can see how he ties this truth to scripture…
 
“Invisible communion, though by its nature always growing, presupposes the life of grace, by which we become ‘partakers of the divine nature’ (2 Pet 1:4), and the practice of the virtues of faith, hope and love. Only in this way do we have true communion with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Nor is faith sufficient; we must persevere in sanctifying grace and love, remaining within the Church ‘bodily’ as well as ‘in our heart;’ what is required, in the words of Saint Paul, is ‘faith working through love’” (Gal 5:6).
 
Jesus always is present in the tabernacle, just look for the sanctuary lamp. And, we are blessed with special occasions when Jesus Christ is brought out of the tabernacle and solemnly exposed in the monstrance for our worship and adoration. Adoration of Jesus Christ is essential for every disciple. Eucharistic adoration is our special time to be with Christ. He loves us and we love him back during every Holy Hour.
 
Saint John Paul II speaks of this is a section of paragraph 25…
 
“It is pleasant to spend time with him, to lie close to his breast like the Beloved Disciple and to feel the infinite love present in his heart. If in our time Christians must be distinguished above all by the ‘art of prayer,’ how can we not feel a renewed need to spend time in spiritual converse, in silent adoration, in heartfelt love before Christ present in the Most Holy Sacrament? How often, dear brother and sisters, have I experienced this, and drawn from it strength, consolation and support!”
 
Another paragraph that guides us in our service to others is No. 60 that begins in this way…
 
“Every commitment to holiness, every activity aimed at carrying out the Church's mission, every work of pastoral planning, must draw the strength it needs from the Eucharistic mystery and in turn be directed to that mystery as its culmination. In the Eucharist we have Jesus, we have his redemptive sacrifice, we have his resurrection, we have the gift of the Holy Spirit, we have adoration, obedience and love of the Father. Were we to disregard the Eucharist, how could we overcome our own deficiency?”
 
I would like to end this column inviting you to quietly reflect on these words while visiting our Lord in the tabernacle.
 
These are the final words of Saint John Paul II in his letter…
 
“In the humble signs of bread and wine, changed into his body and blood, Christ walks beside us as our strength and our food for the journey, and he enables us to become, for everyone, witnesses of hope. If, in the presence of this mystery, reason experiences its limits, the heart, enlightened by the grace of the Holy Spirit, clearly sees the response that is demanded, and bows low in adoration and unbounded love.”