Pope Benedict XVI consecrating the Blessed Sacrament.
(AP Photo/ Bernat Armangue)

Unless you are Catholic, you will probably find it strange that we actually worship a consecrated host [unleavened wheat bread], for after the priest has consecrated it, it has become the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ - the Risen Lord Himself under the physical appearance of bread. 

I have friends who consider this strange.  I always say that partial proof of its authenticity is that no human would have possibly thought of this!  Joke aside, I don't mean disrespect because this is a very sacred aspect of our faith.  Actually, I take that back - this is THE most sacred and essential aspect of our faith!

Out of all things that make us Catholic, this faith...this worship, is definitely the one most dear and intrinsic to our Catholic identity. Nothing else even comes close, in my humble opinion, to the holiness and sacredness of the Eucharist for us.  It is usually this aspect that I try to impress upon my non-Catholic Christian friends, when they look for a church with the right fellowship, the right music, the right youth pastor/ministry, the right 'up-lifting' sermons, and many other things that even when bundled together don't amount to much when placed on a scale alongside the Eucharist, even all by itself! [Himself]

I always get this long-winded explanation that it wasn't until a couple of centuries ago [or four, or five, or so] that the Catholic Church sort of 'came up' with this 'doctrine,' which the 'original' Church never believed in.  I honestly have no clue what the basis for this theory is, just that it is quite widespread among some Protestant traditions and the Evangelical denominations.  On the other hand, in my humble opinion, this is one of the very few aspects of Christianity that Jesus Himself seems to have made perfectly clear, not once at the Last Supper, but even from before.  

John 6:40-69 narrates Jesus and the Apostles going over this 'hard teaching.'  It was 'hard' then, it still is now, for some at least.  Even way before it was time for His death, He announced the need for His followers to eat His flesh and to drink His blood.

'Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, How can this man give us His flesh to eat? So Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves.'  [John 6:52-53]

He even let many disciples leave Him because they could simply not accept this teaching.  
'Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?' [John 6:60]  Yes, it was difficult for them to believe this literally, even back then.

'As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.' [John 6:66]

He just let them walk away, without trying to 'dilute' or to 'soften' the teaching. He did not call them back to explain He only meant it symbolically, or that it was somehow 'optional.'  He could have done that.  He could have said, 'I only meant it as a parable - one of my teaching stories - don't take it so hard!' Instead, I can't believe what He did say! He simply turned to the Apostles, who only by the grace of God were still there.

'So Jesus said to the twelve, You do not want to go away also, do you?' [John 6:67]

Basically, He let them know they could leave, if they could not take this statement. Then, Peter Simon had one of those great one-liners that probably made him the right man for the job.

'Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.
We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.' [John 6:68-69]

Well, it was actually two lines, I guess.  Simon Peter humbly accepted that despite not liking the sound of this teaching, he did acknowledge that Jesus was the Lord sent from above. Things would have to be His way, or not at all.

Of all the Sacraments, which give us grace from Jesus, the Eucharist gives us His Self - Himself! We received His Love into ourselves, at once individually and in community, making us more than we are, into His Body. Catholics not only commune with the Lord by the consumption of the Blessed Sacrament, but we also adore Him as the Wise Kings did at His birth.

As one of the most beloved Doctors of our Church, St. Augustine puts it:

'No one eats that flesh without first adoring it; we should sin were we not to adore it' (St Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos 98,9).
 

In Pope Benedict XVI's words,

'We cannot live, we cannot look at the truth about ourselves without letting ourselves be looked at and generated by Christ in daily Eucharistic Adoration.'

In contemplating Him, all came to understand the truth and to know themselves. It happened to so many - the woman at the well, the adulteress, the fishermen who became His followers, His mother, His unborn cousin [John the Baptist] within Elizabeth's womb, Lazarus, the blind men, the lame, the woman who touched the hem of his tunic for healing, the centurion who only needed His Word for the healing of his servant, Mary Magdalene. 

They all came to know themselves when they came to know Him. And, they understood the Truth; they saw the Light. That still happens when we adore Him in the Real Presence of the Blessed Sacrament. He fulfilled His promise to remain with us - until the end of time.

Is there an Adoration Chapel near you?  Go adore Him, as the shepherds did, and the three Wise Kings/Magi, and even the angels. Try it!
 

For more information:

On Pope Benedict XVI exhortation to Adoration of the Eucharist:
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cclergy/documents/rc_con_cclergy_doc_20080530_santificazione-sacerdotale_en.html

Click here to return to my webpage.                                             

Get notified as articles get posted! Click on the "Subscribe to Email" button next to my photo on my main page to be notified by email.