Last week, the
I am the bread of life . . . I am
the bread that came down from heaven . . . Unless you eat the flesh
of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you do not have life within you . .
. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will
raise him on the last day . . . My flesh is true food, and my blood is true
drink . . . .
Bread is indeed a staple of life
for many people throughout history. In Jesus’ time it was part of
the everyday meal as was table wine. He used both of these common
elements in an extraordinary way when He was at table with his disciples before
His death—the Last Supper.
Bread also had some spiritual
significance throughout history for the Jewish and later Christian
peoples. The Jewish people eat unleavened
bread to commemorate their freedom from Egypt when they had to flee
before they had time for the bread to rise (Ex. 34:18). When the Jews were wandering
in the desert after their exodus from Egypt, God gave them manna to eat—mysterious “bread from
heaven.” (Ex. 16) The
Jews also kept showbread or bread
of presence—twelve loaves representing the twelve tribes of Israel—before God
in the sanctuary of the Temple. Later, Jesus famously multiplied the
loaves and fish, to feed the hungry multitudes (Mt. 14:15-21, Mk. 6:34-42, Lk. 9:16-17, Jn. 6:9-13). The
use of bread comes to a spiritual summit in Jesus’ designation of it as His body at the Last Supper (Mt. 26: 26, Mk. 14:22, Lk. 22:19, 1
Cor. 11:23-24).
However, in the Gospel of St. John, Chapter 6, as we read what is referred to as Jesus’ Bread of Life Discourse, Jesus makes
some very profound and perhaps, disturbing, statements. Some people
found His teaching hard to take and walked away from Him (see Jn. 6:66). This passage is seen as an essential
commentary on the significance and value of the Most Holy
Eucharist. We hear some of the most definitive statements of Jesus
regarding the Holy Eucharist. The Real Presence of Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament is one of
the core teachings of the Catholic faith. We do not believe
in some mere symbolic presence, but take Jesus literally—at His word—in our
understanding of this divine mystery. Over the centuries, the term transubstantiation—a
change in substance (but not in appearance)—has been used to
explain this essential dogma.
When we approach the Most Holy
Eucharist, we approach Jesus—our
Lord, God and Savior. He deserves our love, reverence and
respect. Reverence and awe cannot be overstated or over-emphasized. Like the people in the Gospel, our attitude
toward the Holy Eucharist should be one of desire, anticipation, thanksgiving
and joy: “Sir, give us this bread
always.” (John 6: 34)
Please realize Whom we are privileged
to have on our altar and to receive: Jesus, the Son of God.
Fr. Ed Namiotka
Pastor
No comments:
Post a Comment