In today’s gospel, our Lord rebukes Judas and tells him to stop complaining and be joyful of His presence because you will not always have me…..How appropriate is that statement for what we are going through today. For now, we do not have our Lord through the miracle of the Eucharist.
As a daily communicant, I miss being able to partake in the Lord through the Eucharist. Last Sunday, for the first time in 15 days, I was blessed to be able to serve at Mass and consumed the Eucharist. As I held Him in my hand, I promised our Lord I would never take the Eucharist for granted. It was a very emotional moment to hold Him in my hands again and I prayed for those that do not have that opportunity.
A few years back there was a popular song titled “I can only imagine” by Mercy Me. The song asks what would we do if we had the Risen Lord standing in front of us. Would we dance, would we cry, would we kneel or yell hallelujah! It is a very emotional song and really makes us think what would we do. Except…..we have the opportunity to not only see the Lord but to partake in the Lord every time with the Eucharist!
Our Lord left us the miracle of the Eucharist. He did not say, do this if you want, or maybe this is my body or make-believe it is my body or sometimes it is my body….
He said this is My Body. No if, or, but, maybe. This is My Body.
The priest, in Persona Cristi, takes the bread and wine, and through the miracle of transubstantiation, the substance of the bread and wine is converted into the body and blood at the consecration.
Wow! We do not have to imagine what would we do if Jesus Christ appeared to us. We can experience it in person, every day. How can we not be transformed into a new life in Him knowing we are taking in His Body?
This pandemic has temporarily taken away from us partaking in the miracle of the Eucharist. The song “I can only imagine” now takes on a new meaning. Because now we can only imagine what we would do next time we partake in the miracle of the Eucharist. Will we dance, will we cry, will we say hallelujah, or will do all these!
My brothers and sisters in Christ, we will again, praying sooner rather than later, have the gift of the Eucharist. I invite all of you to meditate on what you will do next time you have Him in your hands. Will we dance, will we cry, will we say hallelujah, or will we do all these!
Video, music, and Lyrics to “I can only imagine”:
A Catholic Man 