Jesus in the Eucharist – Fr. Patrick Briscoe O.P.

Day 1: Eucharist – My Daily Visitor

At some point, when I was growing up, my mother began to insist that we attend Mass as a family on Thanksgiving Day. My father initially objected to her suggestion. As soon as he voiced his objection though, he realized going to Mass was about thanking God for all that had been done for us. In this instance, as in many others (for the record), my mother’s sensibilities won out. In fact, the word “Eucharist” is a Greek word meaning “thanksgiving.” Saint Paul provides the earliest record of this word, writing it in his Letter to the Corinthians. He describes the action of Jesus at the Last Supper saying, “and after he had given thanks [eucharisteō], broke it and said, ‘This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me’” (1 Cor 11:24). To gather for the Eucharist is to gather to give thanks. After all, we see in the blessed Host promises fulfilled and future graces contained. – Fr. Patrick Briscoe O.P.

LET US PRAY

Lord Jesus Christ, before offering bread and wine to become your body and blood, you set forth a pattern for your disciples. May we imitate you, faithfully giving thanks to the Father. Fill our hearts with gratitude always. Amen.

Day 2: Bread – My Daily Visitor

Saint Ignatius is one of the great martyrs of early Christianity. He died in Rome, tradition holds, from being fed to wild beasts. In his writings Ignatius expressed a desire to imitate Jesus in his sufferings; he longed to die for Christ. But the way Ignatius expressed this desire has a peculiarly Eucharistic connotation. He writes, “I am God’s grain, and I am being ground by the teeth of wild beasts in order that I may be found [to be] pure bread for Christ.” For Ignatius, imitation of Christ was not merely holding to Jesus’ moral teachings, or believing the truths that Jesus preached. It meant that he was to be so conformed to Jesus that he would make his life an offering to God, even unto death. Ignatius knew and firmly held the Christian view that the Bread of God is the Flesh of Jesus. He identifies the bread with the flesh of Jesus, understanding that before him was the Eucharistic Lord. This is the Lord who, out of his great love, feeds his sons and daughters with the bread that is his flesh and the wine that is his blood. – Fr. Patrick Briscoe O.P.

LET US PRAY

Lord Jesus, you are truly present under the form of bread. Give me the faith of the saints of old so that I may believe more fervently that this bread is your flesh. May I desire increasingly only this incorruptible food. Amen.

Day 3: Wine – My Daily Visitor

Notably in the Gospel, Jesus tells us, “I am the bread of life.” Bread stands in as the sign of sustenance, as bread is a basic, fundamental food. However, Our Lord also teaches, “I am the vine.” The matter of the Eucharist is not merely bread, but also wine. While we might think of bread as the quintessential food, food that sustains, wine points to another meaning of the Eucharist. Wine fills the spirit interiorly, refreshing and giving solace. “Wine, in the Scriptures,” says Bishop Robert Barron, “is a symbol of the exuberance and intoxication of the divine life. When God is in us, we are lifted up, rendered joyful, transfigured.” Unsurprisingly, then, at the end of the Jewish Passover meal, the offering of the “cup of blessing” suggests comfort, delight, even hope. The Eucharist — the Body and Blood of Christ — not only sustains us as food that gives strength from day to day, but also revives our weary hearts, giving us new strength and renewed joy. – Fr. Patrick Briscoe O.P.

LET US PRAY

Lord Jesus, you are truly present under the guise of wine. May your precious blood renew my soul, filling my heart with an abundance of hope and joy. May I be granted the grace to always delight in you. Amen.

Day 4: Real Presence – My Daily Visitor

A 2019 poll of US Catholics made headlines when it revealed just 31 percent of Catholics believe that “during Catholic Mass the bread and wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus.” The Eucharist is no mere symbol of Christ. The Eucharist is Jesus, plain and simple. Pope Paul VI taught that Christ is present in his Church in many ways: in the assembled people, in the Scriptures that are read, in the priest who offers the Mass. Explaining the Real Presence in the Eucharist, he said, “This presence is called ‘real’ not to exclude the idea that the others are ‘real’ too, but rather to indicate presence par excellence, because it is substantial and through it Christ becomes present whole and entire, God and man.” Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist is totally unique. St. Thomas Aquinas says, the Eucharist is “the perfection of the spiritual life and in a sense the goal of all the sacraments.” – Fr. Patrick Briscoe O.P.

LET US PRAY

Lord Jesus, I believe that the Eucharist is not a symbol, but truly your flesh and your blood. Give me the strength to center my spiritual life on spending time in prayer before you, truly present, in every tabernacle, in every Catholic church, throughout the world. Amen.