This weekend we consider one of the most beautiful truths of our faith…the “Real Presence” of Jesus in the Eucharist. The Holy Eucharist is our “spiritual food.” We used to call this feast day “Corpus Christi” which is Latin for “Body of Christ.” In the Eucharist we celebrate the abiding presence of our loving God as “God with us.” On this feast day of “Corpus Christi” we give thanks together to our Lord for “living with us” in the Eucharist. We use occasions like this to learn more about the importance and value of the “Real Presence of Jesus” so that we may appreciate the Sacrament of the Eucharist better. We believe in the “Real Presence” of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist and this is unlike many Christian traditions that believe that the bread and wine are merely “symbols” of the Body and Blood of Jesus. Why do we believe as we do? We believe it on the word of Jesus in the Holy Gospel…Jesus promised it after miraculously feeding the 5000…Jesus instituted the Holy Eucharist during his Last Supper and commanded his disciples to repeat it. HIS word is good for us! So…let us endeavor to appreciate the “Real Presence” of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, by receiving His Body and Blood with true repentance for our sins and great reverence (e.g. not chewing gum up the aisle, focusing on what we are doing as we receive the Eucharist from the Eucharistic Minister, fasting for the required one hour before the Eucharist, taking time after receiving the Eucharist to contemplate on this wonderful sacrament and not using the time after communion for talking to our neighbor or walking out of Church waving goodbyes!!!). And let us offer our lives on the altar along with Jesus’ sacrifice, asking pardon for our sins, expressing gratitude for the blessings we have received and presenting our needs to Jesus. AND, let us be Christ-bearers. Think about it…when we receive the Eucharist, we become Christ-bearers as Mary was, with the responsibility of bringing Christ to others at home and in the workplace, through love, mercy, forgiveness and concern. Our participation in the Eucharist concretizes and energizes our relationships with Christ and one another. Remember that Jesus promised us… “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood will have life everlasting.” I’m banking on this promise. How about you? One of the seminarians who gives tours of St. Peter’s tells of an interesting incident. He was leading a group of Japanese tourists who knew absolutely nothing of our faith. With particular care he explained the great masterpieces of art, sculpture and architecture. He finally concluded at the Blessed Sacrament Chapel trying his best to explain quickly what it was. As the group dispersed, an elderly man, who had been particularly attentive stayed behind, and said, ‘Pardon me. Would you explain again this Blessed Sacrament?’ The student did, after which the man exclaimed, ‘Ah, if this is so, what is in this chapel is a greater work of art than anything else in this basilica.’ GOSPEL QUESTION FOR THE WEEK: Do you think about what you are doing when you receive the Eucharist?