There is Hope in Alabama

Last Tuesday, I read Daniel Payne’s article, “Alabama Supreme Court rules that embryos are children under state law,” (2/20/24.  Catholic News Agency.  Accessed online on 2/27/24 at https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256891/alabama-supreme-court-rules-that-frozen-embryos-are-children-under-state-law).  In the very first line he reported, “The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled that frozen human embryos constitute children under state statute.”

I was overjoyed that a court has finally pronounced the embryos are children.  In their decision, Payne reports, the court even cited passages from the Bible. 

The court was responding to a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of embryos that were accidentally destroyed.  Since the court decided that embryos are children, that lawsuit can move forward.  The court decision made no comments on fertility treatments in general (Daniel Payne, “After Alabama Supreme Court’s Embryo Personhood ruling what comes next,” 2/23/24.  Catholic News Agency.  Accessed online on 2/27/24 at https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256907/after-alabama-supreme-court-s-embryo-personhood-ruling-what-comes-next.)

Since the court decision was announced, the news has reported that some IVF (in vitro fertilization) clinics in Alabama have either closed or temporarily ceased activity while they examine what this court decision means for their work and the embryos in storage.  I find it curious, but not surprising, that the secular news seems to assume IVF is a perfectly acceptable procedure.

I think some people might assume the Catholic Church would be in favor of IVF since the Catholic Church supports parents having children.  The Catholic Church does support treatments that help couples address fertility issues.  The following slide from Part II of my series, Treating Life With Dignity and Love, provides a quote from Humanae Vitae (Pope Paul VI, 7/25/1968), on the church’s position on medical efforts that actually address fertility issues.  The second part of the slide points to the St. Paul VI Institute that provides fertility treatments that are in accord with Catholic teaching.

Why does the Catholic Church disapprove of IVF? (see Donum Vitae by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, February 22, 1987).  Before answering this, I want to be clear that any child born through IVF is a child of God, loved by God, and has the same dignity as a child conceived naturally.  Again, these children are loved by God.

We need to understand that when a female decides to use IVF to become pregnant, the clinic creates not just one embryo but several.  So, because we see the embryo as a child, our Catholic faith is greatly concerned about the extra embryos that are created. 

When the procedure to implement the embryos in the mother’s womb is done, it is not just a single embryo that is implanted.  To increase the chances of successful implementation several embryos are inserted.  This can result in multiple pregnancies at once.  When this happens, abortions may be performed to reduce the number of children in their mother’s womb.  Abortion is never a good thing.

Any remaining embryos are frozen and placed in storage for future use.  They are not treated as children.  The lawsuit concerning the accidental death of some embryos demonstrates why storage of embryos is a moral problem.

Our Catholic faith is also concerned about the unnatural way in which the embryos are created.  An egg is obtained from either the woman who seeks to become a mother or, if she does not have healthy egg cells, from a “donor female.”  Sperm is obtained from either the man who seeks to become a father or a “sperm donor male.”  They are combined in a laboratory clinic.  Then embryos are inserted into the mother’s womb.  It is a laboratory procedure rather than a loving act of sexual intimacy between a married husband and wife.  In fact, there doesn’t even need to be a male involved except to donate the sperm.  In this case, IVF has nothing to do with fertility treatments. 

The following slide from Part I of my series, Treating Life with Dignity and Love shows on the biblical passages that shows that God gives life in the womb.

While the next slide quotes the Catechism as to God as the one who is the author of life.

As I said at the beginning of this article, I was overjoyed to hear that a court had decided that embryos are children.  While I have used this opportunity to write about what our Catholic faith teaches about IVF, my joy lies in the declaration for life.  The following slide from Part II of my series, Treating Life With Dignity and Love, shows what the Catholic Church teaches and what I believe, that life begins at conception.

With this in mind, I find it interesting that the news story I have seen do not argue the Alabama Supreme Court’s decision that embryos are children.  Could it be that they know the court is correct?

What does this mean for life in general?  I believe it has great significance beyond IVF.  Does it not mean that abortion kills a child?  From this, abortion is wrong (see Peter Pinedo, “Here’s what Trump, Biden, and the Catholic Church are saying about IVF,” 2/26/24.  Catholic News Agency.  Accessed online on 2/27/24 at https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256918/here-s-what-trump-biden-and-the-catholic-church-are-saying-about-ivf).

I do not know if this court decision that embryos are children will have any bearing on court decisions or new laws concerning abortion.  The second article I cited by Payne, “After Alabama Supreme Court’s Embro Personhood ruling what comes next,” explains while it is unlikely that this decision will be appealed to the federal courts. 

However, we can pray that those who support abortion hear the Alabama Supreme Court decision declaring embryos are children and come to realize the errors of their past. We also pray that every child, regardless if they were conceived naturally, through IVF, or other means is always loved and cherished by all people as they are loved by God.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff

2nd Sunday of Lent, Year B

God put Abraham to the test.

How would you fair with the same test?  Last week I spoke about our struggles to resist temptation.  Who you do any better with the test that Abraham faced when God told him, “Take your son Isaac, your only whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah.  There you shall offer him up as a holocaust” (first reading for today)?

Abraham had waited a long time for a son.  When Isaac was born, Abraham loved him dearly.  Yet, when God told him to sacrifice Isaac, Abraham was willing to do it.  He “built an altar there and arranged the wood on it.  Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.” 

Abraham was willing to make the sacrifice God commanded of him.

Would you have been willing to do the same?

Abraham loved Isaac but he also loved God and fully trusted God.  In his love and trust for God, he was willing to do whatever God asked of him. 

Are you willing to make a sacrifice for God? 

Where would you draw the line?

Of course, the good news is that God stopped Abraham before he killed Isaac.  God then provided a ram for that day’s sacrifice.  While Abraham did not have to sacrifice his son Isaac that day, the day would come when God would sacrifice his Son Jesus for us on the Cross.  God makes the ultimate sacrifice for us

Why?  “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:16-17).

Being a disciple of Jesus requires us to make sacrifices.  From the sacrifices can come blessings.  Remember God’s words to Abraham ” in our first reading, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly.”

Today’s responsorial psalm begins, “I believed, even when I said, “I am greatly afflicted.””  Suffering happens but it does not mean that God has abandoned us.  And we should not abandon God because we suffer.  As Paul writes, “If God is for us, who can be against us?  He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all…”  The world is full of suffering.  The devil tries to strike against us but we need not fear the suffering or the devil for God has made the ultimate sacrifice for us and will always be at our side as we make sacrifices and accept suffering throughout our lives.

Jesus knew that it would be hard for his disciples to see him suffer.  After He told them what was to come, He “took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves.”  Why?  So, they could see him transfigured into his glory to know his divinity.  He wanted them to see him with Elijah to know that He is the fulfillment of what the prophecies foretold.  He wanted them to see him with Moses so that they would know He is the fulfillment of the Law.  He wanted them to hear God’s voice say, “This is my beloved Son, Listen to him.”  Jesus is the Son of God.  We need to listen to him. 

Do you listen to Jesus?  Are you willing to make sacrifices for your faith?

Peace,

Fr. Jeff

New Video – Why Go to Confession?

Last night I offered a new presentation, Why Should I Go to Confession?. The recording of the video and the slides are now available on my website at http://www.renewaloffaith.org/whyconfession.

If you view the video in the next few days, you can complete an online evaluation at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfbK1iUzZZyaWRclzdeu_ocoU0Lowo9aBvbusvStjLLdDQ2yA/viewform?usp=sf_link.

My next presentation Why Should I Go to Mass (Weekly)? is Thursday, March 7, 2024 with the webinar beginning at 6:30 pm. You can register at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Pw77xX6RRGyPrUZAsNbrzw .

Peace,

Fr. Jeff

The Hidden Depths of the Mass #30

The Eucharistic Prayer – The Concluding Doxology

The Eucharistic Prayer ends with the priest saying, “Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.”

Everything that happens in the Mass happens through the Lord.  The bread and wine are transubstantiated into the Body and Blood of Jesus.  “We celebrate the memorial of the saving Passion of your Son, his wondrous Resurrection and Ascension into heaven, and as we look forward to his second coming, we offer you in thanksgiving this holy and living sacrifice” (Eucharistic Prayer III).

What we celebrate in the Eucharist is beyond “amazing.”  How do we respond?  With one word, “Amen.”  Amen means we believe what has been said and done.

Good News is Hard to Find

As I have said before, there are many people who choose not to watch the news because it is full of negativity.  I myself watch the news less than I used to because of the negativity along with seeing a bias in the news that is being reporting.  I still try to stay informed of what is going on in the world but it is not easy.

I would like to think that the news agencies aren’t deliberately being negative.  Rather, they are simply looking for eye-catching headlines that gets people’s attention.  If you look at the news on the internet, which headline would you be more likely to click on, “Police help at soup kitchen” or “Police kill wrong person in a raid”?   (The same may be asked about “gossip”.)

Of course, we can also look at how they portray a story.  We all have our own way of looking at things but we need to be careful how our personal “bias” influences what we look at.  For instance, I am very much pro-life.  That does not mean that I should “cancel” out everything said by anyone who is not pro-life.  We must listen for valid points they might say on other issues.  I might agree with one person on pro-life issues while taking a very different position than the same person on another issue like immigration.  Even on pro-life issues we need to be aware of their arguments such as concern for the woman’s health in a difficult pregnancy.  Abortion is never a good thing.  While working for an end to all abortions, we must be attentive to the mother’s health as well as the baby’s.

In his encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis talks about those who seek out news that agrees with them and declare that news to be right and do not listen to any other perspective.  I wrote four articles (see my page “Our Relationships With Others”) reflecting on Fratelli Tutti.  To my point today two of those articles, “Our Relationships with One Another” and “Seeking Real Dialogue”, are relevant and I encourage you to read them if you have not read them in the past. 

The “cancel culture” seen in many today where they simply tune out anyone who disagrees with them is not good.  In the articles I mentioned above I develop this more.  For today’s purpose I offer the following quote from Pope Francis in Fratelli Tutti

When individuals or groups are consistent in their thinking, defend their values and convictions, and develop their arguments, this surely benefits society. Yet, this can only occur to the extent that there is genuine dialogue and openness to others (203, emphasis added).

Before I drift any further from my original intent, I return to the idea of negativity in the news.  Sometimes, we have to keep paying attention to news that we don’t like to find hope.  For instance, I have been very disappointed of the Catholic Church in Germany has taken in the last couple of years in its ongoing synod (see Catholic News Agency “German Synodal Way”).  However, I find some hope in this week’s news that they have halted a vote on their next step at the Vatican’s request (see Jonathan Liedl, National Catholic Register as posted on Catholic News Agency, “German bishops halt move toward establishing a Synodal Council at Vatican’s request” February 17, 2024.  https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256878/german-bishops-halt-move-toward-establishing-a-synodal-council-at-vaticans-request.) 

Prayer does work if we pray in accord with God’s Will.  Fulfilling God’s Will requires us to realize that all people are children of God. There is good in each person.  There is always hope with God.

There are deceitful people.  Here I think of the recent news story of a LGBT activist’s funeral that was held in St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.  Other LGBT activists tried to seize this story to say the Catholic Church is finally changing it position on LGBT.  Meanwhile, Catholics who affirm Catholic teaching on LGBT issues were lamenting the news.  When the truth came out, the parish had no idea that the person was a LGBT person/activist.  They were asked to do a funeral and they did it in compassion.  The person who was in charge of the funeral arrangements admits they never said anything to the church about the person’s lifestyle choices.  Once the parish and the Archdiocese found out the truth, they clarified their agreement with Catholic teaching and offered a Mass of Reparation (see Daniel Payne, “St. Patrick’s Cathedral offers reparation Mass after ‘scandalous’ funeral for trans activist,” February 17, 2024 at https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256876/pastor-of-st-patricks-cathedral-responds-to-scandalous-funeral-for-transgender-activist and look for related stories.)

A funeral should never be about advancing an agenda, political or personal.  A Catholic funeral service is meant to recognize that Jesus Christ gave his life on the Cross so that all who believe in him as they way and the truth and the life will be welcomed into the heavenly kingdom.  There is hope when we set aside our own agendas in favor of God’s Will.  Catholics who hold to our Catholic teaching on LGBT issues may have been initially disheartened at the news of this funeral (I was) but we find hope in knowing the parish was trying to do the right thing, not advance an ideology contrary to Catholic teaching.

There are deceitful people in the world.  There are also good people.  We can struggle to know God’s Will and to actually do it.  However, it is possible when we turn our hearts to God.  Every time a saint is canonized, it shows that there are good people in this world.  Every time a saint is canonized, it is proof that miracles still happen because the canonization of a saint requires that two miracles have been proven through their intercession.

When you hear bad news that makes you cry, know that you do not cry alone.  God cries with you.  When you pray for God to make things better, ask him what He wants you to do to help.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff

P.S. My website has been undergoing a major redesign in its appearance that will be public any day now.  As that change happens, some of the links to my own website in this article may not work.  If you have any problems using the links, please use the comment link below to let me know.

1st Sunday of Lent, Year B – Homily

1st Sunday of Lent, Year B – Homily
Genesis 9:8-15
Psalm 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9, (10)
1 Peter 3:18-22
Mark 1:12-15

Repent and believe in the gospel.”

These are the words that were said as ashes were placed on the foreheads of people as we began Lent last Wednesday.

They are also among the first words Jesus said as He began his public ministry.  Jesus came to lead us to repentance.

Why do we need to repent? 

Because we have sinned. 

Satan has tempted us and we failed to resist the temptations.

Is it possible to resist temptation?

Sin is nothing new.  Humans have been sinning since the days of Adam and Eve.  There is something in our humanity that makes it difficult for us to resist sin.  (Here lies “original sin”).

In the days of Noah, sin had become so prevalent that God decided to cleanse the earth of sin by a great flood.  After the flood, God made a covenant with his people that He would never again destroy the creatures of the earth with a flood. 

As a sign of this covenant, God set a bow in the clouds, the rainbow.  The treasure at the end of a rainbow is not a pot of gold.  The treasure is something far more valuable, God’s covenant with us.

While God, in his great love, has promised not to destroy us with a flood again, we still struggle against temptation.  Sin is spreading even now.  If the world continues in its sin, God won’t have to destroy anything.  We will do it ourselves.

Is it possible to resist temptation?

Jesus spent 40 days in the desert tempted by Satan.  It was God’s Will for Jesus to face this temptation for “The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert” for this.

The desert is a place of isolation and little water and food.  How easy would it be to tempt you there? 

Jesus had to face his temptation himself, but He did not do so alone for “angels ministered to him.” 

God guided the Israelites during the Exodus by an angel.  Angels ministered to Jesus.  God gives each of us a guardian angel to guide us.  When we face temptation, do we listen to our guardian angel?

What tempts you?  The same thing is not a temptation to everyone.  A simple example is chocolate.  Many people are tempted to have chocolate but not everyone.  Some don’t care for it.  For me, some things with chocolate are very tempting while others I have no interest in.

What tempts you to mortal sin?  Money, power, lust?

God is concerned with the way we live our lives.  Jesus is the way and the truth and the life.  His way is love.  He offers us Truth.  Satan tempts us with lies.  Truth is a better way.  You can’t count on one who lies. 

At times we fail against temptation but do not lose hope.  For, as we read in Peter, “Christ suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God.

Jesus died for us.  He died for you.  He didn’t have to do this.  Jesus did not give into the temptation Satan placed before him.  Jesus chose to die for our sins.

Look at his love.  In John 15:13, Jesus said, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”  This is precisely what Jesus does for us on the Cross.   See his love and know you can trust him.

God has forgiven his people over and over.  Every time the people in the Old Testament repented and turned back to God’s ways, He forgave them. 

God wants us to come to him for forgiveness.  He gives us the Sacrament of Reconciliation to confess our sins and receive his forgiveness because He is eager to forgive us. 

God’s commandments are what is good for us.  Follow his way.  Seek God’s Word to guide you.  Listen to your guardian angel.  Seek the strength Jesus offers in the Eucharist as we receive his Body and Blood.

The Hidden Depths of the Mass #28

The Eucharistic Prayer – The Oblation

The greatest sacrifice ever offered is the sacrifice of Jesus freely giving his life for us on the Cross.  As Jesus says in John 15:13, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

The Eucharistic Prayers use both the terms “sacrifice” and “oblation.”  The sacrifice is the sacrifice of Jesus’ life.  We offer his sacrifice back to God our Father as an oblation.

What does Jesus’ Crucifixion have to do with the Eucharist?  Everything!  When Jesus instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper, He said, this is my Body which will be given up for you…this is my Blood which will be poured out for you.  By these words, Jesus makes our celebration of the Eucharist and his Crucifixion one.  Never forget that.

What Does Lent Mean to You?

Lent starts tomorrow (February 14, 2024).  What comes to mind when you hear the word “Lent”? 

Do you have feelings of dread or joy?  Why?

Is Lent just something “necessary to get to Easter and the Resurrection”?  We all want to make it to Heaven.  Thus, we look forward to the joy of Easter and the Resurrection.  However, we may not feel the same way about Lent.  We may dread what comes with Lent.

The world says suffering is something to be avoided.  Lent points us to suffering.  Many today ask, “What’s in it for me?” while Lent points us to the sacrifice of Jesus.  Lent calls us to share in the sufferings and sacrifice of Jesus so that we may share in the joy of Easter and the Resurrection. 

Lent is 40 days.  Why?  This Sunday we will hear the story of the temptation of Jesus as told in the Gospel of Mark.  Jesus is tempted by Satan for 40 days.  Remembering that, we celebrate Lent for 40 days.

We fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  The first reading for Ash Wednesday says, “proclaim fast.”  Fasting is one way of sacrificing.  We fast to prepare ourselves for what we celebrate at Easter in Jesus’ suffering and Resurrection.  In Matthew 9:14-15, Jesus says the time will come when his disciples will fast.  Tomorrow we fast.

On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, we also abstain from meat.  Fasting was not a new practice in Jesus’ days on earth.  I mentioned above the first reading for Ash Wednesday calls for fasting.  That reading is from the Book of Joel in the Old Testament.  Likewise, the practice of abstaining from meat can be found in the Old Testament in Daniel 10:2-3.  For us as Christians, our abstaining from meat recalls Jesus sacrificing his own flesh for us (see “Why Do Catholics Practice Fasting and Abstinence During Lent?”  Catholic Answers.  https://www.catholic.com/qa/why-do-catholics-practice-fasting-and-abstinence-during-lent.  Accessed 2/13/24).

When one thinks of Lent, the Stations of the Cross may come to mind.  It used to be that the Stations of the Cross were prayed together in parishes, most often on Friday evenings, and many people attended.  Now, the crowds are sparse, if the Stations of the Cross are even offered as a communal prayer.  Why are the Stations of the Cross a good practice for Lent?  When we participate with our hearts in the Stations, we are reflecting on the suffering that Jesus endured for us.  His suffering stands at the heart of Lent for us.

When one thinks of Lent, we may think of giving something up.  This should not be taken lightly for in what we give up, we are recalling that Jesus gave his life for us.  What are you willing to give up for Jesus?

Perhaps we give up something that takes time out of our day and give that time to Jesus.  Are you able to give up something to make the time to attend daily Mass at least once a week?  Are you able to make time to join in the Stations of the Cross?  How about Adoration?  If not, are you able to make some time to pray (more) at home each day? 

This can involve sacrifice.  In making the sacrifice, we unite ourselves to Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross.  Making the time to do this can also point us to conversion.  Conversion stands at the heart of Lent.  To see this we need to look no further than the first words of the first reading for Ash Wednesday for Lent, “Even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning; Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the LORD, your God.

Lent is a time for us to return our hearts to the Lord.  How have we drifted away from the Lord since last Easter? 

Asking ourselves how we have drifted away from the Lord leads us to two more practices that are associated with Lent.  The first is our reception of ashes on Ash Wednesday.  In the Old Testament, when people repented (for example see chapter 3 of the Book of Jonah for how they “sat in ashes”), people put on ashes as a sign of their repentance.  (We can also see in Jonah 3 how they fasted in repentance.)  This points us to the confession of our sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  Do you have sins you need to confess?

So, Lent begins tomorrow.  What are you going to do to return your heart to Jesus?

Peace,

Fr. Jeff

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Jesus had been healing many people.  In today’s gospel, “A leper came to Jesus.”  Given the number of people that were coming to Jesus one might think of the man with leprosy as one of many.  He knelt before Jesus and begged him “If you wish, you can make me clean.”  No surprise, right?

Well…, actually it would be a surprise.  In coming near Jesus, in coming near anyone, the man with leprosy is breaking the Levitical code found in our first reading.    It begins clearly, “If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch which appears to be the sore of leprosy,…the priest shall declare him unclean.” 

What was the significance of being declared unclean?

The reading continues, “The one who bears the sore of leprosy shall keep his garments rent and his head bare, and shall muffle his beard; he shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!…He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp.

Why?  So that everyone would know that the person had leprosy and stay away from them.  This helped prevent the spread of leprosy. 

It is the same thing we do today when a person has a contagious disease.  We isolate them for the health of other people.  There is one difference today.  When one isolates today with a contagious disease, it is generally for no more than a few days.  For people with leprosy, it could be forever.  Even in the 19th century, we were still sending people with leprosy to colonies like Molokai where St. Damien of Molokia and St. Marianne Cope cared for them.

Imagine the isolation.  You could not see your family or friends.  I wonder which was worse, the physical effects of leprosy or the isolation?

Jesus was “moved with pity” for the man leprosy.  He “touched him.”  This would have been taboo.  Jesus would have been considered unclean for touching the man with leprosy.  Jesus then said, “I do will it.  Be made clean.

Jesus does not just “wish it” as the man had said.  He “wills” it.  Jesus is the Son of God.  When we wish for something, it may or may not happen.  When Jesus wills something, it happens by his very word.  The man is healed.  He is physically healed and is isolated no longer.  He can rejoin his family and friends!  The man went and told everyone what happened.  He shared what Jesus, Son of God, had done for him.  To God be the glory.

Writing to the Corinthains, Paul says, “Avoid giving offense…I try to please everyone.”  It should never be our goal to offend anyone.  In loving our neighbor, we should try to please others (see my recent article, “Making Others Happy”). 

While offending others should never be our goal, if we follow Jesus, at times we will likely offend those who don’t.  In touching the man with leprosy, Jesus would have offended those who held to a strict following of the Levitical code.  Jesus followed his Sacred Heart of perfect love.

The leprosy described in the Book of Leviticus is not a major health problem today.  However, there are still people who live in isolation.  Some may be medically isolated for their own protection so they do not contract more disease while others may be isolated to not spread a disease they have.  Today, the latter is generally temporary.  Even then, we can ask ourselves if there is a way we can be present to them, a phone or video call.  For those who are isolated to protect themselves, it might be a longer period of time, like a person taking chemotherapy.  How can you “be present” to them?  The disease is not the “sum total” of who they are.  Remember they are a person who needs to feel loved. 

What about a person who is not medically isolated but becomes functionally isolated?  Who am I talking about?  The homebound and those in nursing homes.  They may not be able to go out and visit others but there may be nothing that stops people from visiting them.  Do not let them feel forgotten.  Visit them (a corporal work of mercy) and share your love for them.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff

The Hidden Depths of the Mass #27

The Eucharistic Prayer – Memorial Acclamation & Anamnesis

Following the words of Jesus that transubstantiate bread and wine into his Body and Blood, comes the Memorial Acclamation and Anamnesis.   At this point in the Mass, we recall the paschal mystery that includes the death, Resurrection, and ascension of Jesus into Heaven.

It is here that we need to realize that in celebrating the Eucharist at Mass, it is about much more than “just” Jesus feeding us with his Body and Blood.  The food that Jesus offers us in the Eucharist is nothing short of incredible.  Yet, there is more.  When we celebrate the Eucharist, we are celebrating everything Jesus suffers for us in his Passion and Crucifixion.  We are also celebrating his Resurrection to eternal life that we are offered.  As we include his Ascension, we know that He intercedes for us at his place at the right of the Father.