A pastor went out one Saturday to visit his church members. At one house it was obvious that someone was home, but nobody came to the door even though the pastor knocked several times. Finally, the pastor took out his card and wrote "Revelation 3:20" on the back of it, and stuck it in the door.
{Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and him with me.}
The next day, the card turned up in the collection plate. Below the pastor's message was the notation "Genesis 3:10".
{I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself}
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True story of mine:
Six years ago*, I saw God! With my own eyes. It is the main reason I want to be a priest. I was on a golf trip in Ireland with some buddies, one of whom was a priest, Fr. Wells. One morning, Fr. Wells invited all of us to start our day with prayer in our room at the B & B which we agreed to (with half-open eyes). A few minutes later, there He was: God! In the flesh**. Before my very (at this point, wide- open) eyes. We were in the 2nd half of Mass!
It is amazing and AWESOME that God comes to us in the flesh (the Eucharist) at every Mass for each of us to see Him
a) on the altar and then
b) about 6" from our faces just before He is placed on our tongues in Holy Communion...
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Statistics have said that 70% of Catholics believe the Eucharist is only a symbol of Jesus' body and blood.
1. What have you been taught?
2. What do you believe?
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* It has happened that day and thousands of others when God has visibly appeared to me (and all others present at Mass) under the signs of bread and wine.
** The Holy Eucharist. Please see responses made to the 11/30 post.
2 comments:
Thank you very much, Shannon. To the GW students, Shannon and I are good friends who go way back. I invited her to check out this site, but didn't know she was posting a comment. Glad she did! It is a beautiful reflection on the Eucharist and of her incredible faith. A living inspiration for many reasons, Shannon is just a few years out of college and has leaned heavily on her faith in the midst of tremendous tragedy. God the Father is very proud of His courageous daughter.
Great reflection, Derek. It is no fluke that when we receive Jesus in the Eucharist, we act and speak more like Him. In fact, this is one of the main reasons He gives us the Blessed Sacrament. "He who dwells in me and I in Him will bear much fruit" (Jn 15:5).
An even stronger point is what Christ says in John 6:56. "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him." In the Eucharist, we are truly one with Christ. Anyone who has ever been away from God gets a sense of how incredible this is. Sin separates us from God; the Eucharist (and all the sacraments) unites us with Him. Literally.
Christ wishes to be so close to us that He is inside of us. It is the very life of Christ dwelling within us that is life itself. In this world and in the next: "whoever feeds on me will live because of me" (Jn 6:57).
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