Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

by Rev. Kilian McCaffrey  |  08/15/2024  |  Pastor's Letter

Jesus continue our short retreat this weekend with the end of the mysterious Bread of Life Discourse.

Our readings are at once inspiring and challenging. Jesus had just very directly declared:

“Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.”

These words would have caused consternation and confusion among the Jewish disciples mainly due to their very strict dietary laws; and this led in turn to the showdown we witness today in our Gospel.

It is exactly like the ongoing standoff we have in the Church at the present time regarding the worthy reception of the Body of Christ. If a person or a group is in serious or mortal sin, they must realize that there is only One, Jesus Christ, who has the words of everlasting life and we need to turn back to God if we want to inherit eternal life, and to be raised Him on the last day.

Jesus said to the crowd: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life….”

Yes, I don’t blame the crowd for their shock at this statement. Eating Jesus’ Flesh and drinking His Blood of our Lord should cause us a bit of a shock. And yet how easy it is to show up at Mass Sunday after Sunday, receiving the Eucharist as simply part of a weekly routine.

If we really spent prayer time contemplating the gift our Lord is offering us in this sacrament, we would be awestruck at the love and power in this gift. Through it, our Lord is giving us the very best He has to give — Himself.

Not even the greatest theological scholar or the holiest of saints can fully understand this incredible mystery.

“The Eucharist bathes the tormented soul in light and love. The soul appreciates these words: ‘Come all you who are sick, I will restore your health.’” - The Words of St. Bernadette Soubirous

Thankfully we don’t need to be a saint or bible scholar to understand this gift. Yet we should do our best to receive the Eucharist with grace, dignity and gratitude. Today’s readings help us to glean two fundamental principles for becoming better Christian stewards.

  1. The Eucharist is the foundation for a stewardship way of life. Through His gift of the Eucharist, God fills us with His love and strength. This love and strength empower us to live as generous stewards — to be faithful to the ministries we serve in, joyful in material giving, and offer our very best to our families and secular work.
  2. The Eucharist is the example for a stewardship way of life. When we contemplate this gift of God, what Jesus did for us, we will want to make a joyful return to Him. Mass will become anything but routine and we will live every day as His passionate disciples (The Catholic Steward).

Our Final Summer Movie Night: Restless Heart: The Life of St. Augustine is at 6:00pm on Monday, August 19, in the Parish Hall East.

Fr. Kilian, Fr. Samuel, our Deacons and our Parish Staff and Volunteers.

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