Pastor's Spiritual Reflections |
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By Fr. Leo Schneider (5/25/2008)Dear People of Holy Name, Brothers and sisters: We are the body of Christ. Celebrating Eucharist claims our oneness in Christ and inspires us to pour out our lives for one another as Christ poured out his life for us. To participate in the Eucharist is to participate in the body and blood of the living Christ today. In receiving the Eucharist, we receive the gift we are called to give to others in selfsacrificing love. The grace of the Eucharist makes us people of compassion. No longer living for ourselves, we become genuinely concerned and active for the good of others. To do so is a profound gift for giver and receiver alike. In the last few weeks the gift of being a priest has born this out over and over. Monday I spent the afternoon visiting a good number of dying and terminally ill people. Two stand out. One was a young man who served six years in the military and has been married for nine months. A man of deep faith, he became a Eucharistic Minister so that Eucharist would be available when no chaplain was with them in the submarine. He prayed so reverently with his wife at his side and his family around him. And in his weakened state, he roused himself on my last visit to put out his hand and welcome me to his room. To be in such a place is to walk on holy ground, an experience of the Body of Christ in its fullness. The second was a terminally ill man away from the Church for many years. He just happened to see me in the hallway and asked his nurse to invite me in. I sat at his side and we had a long chat and celebrated real faith in a God, who has transformed death into a doorway to eternal life. How privileged I was to journey with a man who makes faith so real. We broke the bread of our lives together and Christ was present, blessing us both. As a priest, the privilege of hearing people’s stories is constant and inspiring, whether it is my auto mechanic, a guy in the sauna at the gym, or someone at the next table in a restaurant. I am privileged to hear people’s stories and be present to them in the telling, and support them by my presence and my gift as priest. Last week I met a young man who served for two years in combat. Through our brief conversation, I started to become aware of how such an experience changes a person forever, and how much I had to learn about that experience to be able to be present to our young men and women who have experienced the same. I need to be changed by their story to be able to journey with them and work to make a better world for all. Such is the grace of Eucharist in our lives. As a priestly people we are all called to share our stories with each other and be moved to become a part of others lives. To hear the words of consecration at mass reminds us to live deliberately and consciously the reality we celebrate. In Christ, we are forgiven and freed from selfabsorption. We can live in the confidence of God’s love for us and enjoy the sharing of his compassion with others. In so doing, we the body of Christ, become more like Christ and grow in his love and joy. Today we celebrate the Feast of the Body of Christ. Let us remember who God has made us to be, and in receiving him in the Eucharist, strive to live as he lived in pouring ourselves out for others, even those who have sinned against us. May the Lord bless us in his love and by the power of the Holy Spirit fill us with the fullness of his life! In Christ’s peace, Fr. Leo |