Taller than Everest
You probably know that the world’s tallest mountain is Mt. Everest. Located on the border of China and Nepal, the summit measures 29,029 feet above sea level! That’s huge! Everest attracts a lot of attention because of what an important site it is for the whole world.
Source and Summit
Everest reminds me of something that Catholics believe about the Eucharist. We believe that “the Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life” (Lumen Gentium 11). That means that everything we believe comes from the Eucharist and everything we do points us back to the Eucharist. Just like the slope of this mountain points to the very top of the mountain, everything that we believe directs us back into relationship with Jesus in the Eucharist.
At the Last Supper, Jesus celebrated the Passover meal with his disciples, took bread, broke it, and gave it to them and said, “‘This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me. And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you’” (Luke 22:19-20). Protestant Christians read this and interpret it symbolically. They believe that Jesus didn’t truly mean that this bread and wine were becoming his actual body, but that it was just a representation of his body. Catholics believe that Jesus meant this literally.
Just a Symbol?
One reason why we believe this comes from John 6. Jesus is talking to a large group of his disciples and he says this: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us [his] flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, 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” (John 6: 51-54). After this, a ton of Jesus’ followers stop following him because they can’t handle this teaching. They walk away. The interesting thing is that Jesus doesn’t stop them. He lets them leave. If he was speaking symbolically, Jesus would have clarified his teaching in order to prevent these people from leaving him. But, the fact is that he didn’t say, “Oh guys, did you think I meant that literally? No, no, I was speaking symbolically.” He said what he meant and he meant what he said.
This has always been a difficult teaching for people to understand. But, the Catholic Church has always maintained that the Eucharist is the true Body and Blood of Christ. Jesus’ Presence in the Eucharist is the center of our faith. That’s why Mass is so important. It’s why we have Eucharistic Adoration 24/7 at our parish! We get to receive and adore Jesus every time we come to Mass! That’s crazy!
Your Source and Summit
If the Eucharist is the source and summit of the whole Christian life, it also needs to be the source and summit of our own individual relationship with Christ. But, let’s be real. How many Sunday mornings do we sit in our pews thinking about playing Xbox or the project we have to do for school later on? How often do we walk forward to receive the Eucharist and we don’t even realize that we are taking God into our very bodies? Probably more often that we would like to admit. So, how can we make the Eucharist more central in our lives? Here’s a few tips.
Weekly Mass. It’s so important that we get to Mass every Sunday to receive the Eucharist. Try to get to Mass 10 minutes early to prepare yourself to participate fully in the liturgy. After receiving the Eucharist, we should sincerely pray and invite Jesus into our lives.
If you haven’t received your first communion, talk to your youth minister to find out what you need to do to prepare to receive the Eucharist.
Don’t receive the Eucharist if you are in a state of serious sin. If we are in serious sin, we need to go to Confession before we take Jesus into our bodies.
Come to daily Mass. Coming to daily Mass before or after school is a great way to draw closer to Jesus in the Eucharist and make him the center of your life. Check out our mass schedule here!
Go to Adoration regularly. Find a time in your week when you can go to the chapel and spend time with Jesus in the Eucharist.
This Thursday, we are celebrating the institution of the Eucharist at 7:00 PM. Come join us to remember the night when Jesus gave us this Sacrament.
Be Blessed
When we seek Jesus in the Eucharist, we not only fulfill his command to “do this in remembrance of me,” but we also open ourselves up to receiving so many blessings from him. God always wants to bless us, but we often don’t take the time to let him do it. St. Angela of Foligno said, "If we but paused for a moment to consider attentively what takes place in this Sacrament, I am sure that the thought of Christ's love for us would transform the coldness of our hearts into a fire of love and gratitude." Let’s take time this week to seek Jesus in the Eucharist and let him pour out his love on us.
“The Eucharist is the secret of my day. It gives strength and meaning to all my activities of service to the Church and to the whole world… . Let Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament speak to your hearts. It is he who is the true answer of life that you seek. He stays here with us: he is God with us. Seek him without tiring, welcome him without reserve, love him without interruption: today, tomorrow, forever” (Pope St. John Paul II).
About the Author
Jake Stanley
I enjoy playing the guitar, the great outdoors, and any sport that involves a ball (except water polo). I firmly believe that Pluto will always be a planet. Jesus completely changed my life when I was in high school so I’m a big fan of His. I strive to be more like Him every day. Follow me on twitter @moderncatholic1.
