06/07/2026
FROM FATHER JOHN: ““I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” (John 6:51) “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life.” (John 6:53) “For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (John 6:55 – 56)
St. Padre Pio wrote “Every Holy Mass, heard with devotion, produces in our souls marvelous effects, abundant spiritual and material graces which we ourselves, do not know.”
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Eucharist is a gift that Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, our Lord and Savior gives each of us. Every time we come to the Church to celebrate mass and receive the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus, our Lord gives us nourishment, strength and grace upon grace. This happens every time we take a break from the stresses of the world and come here to receive the sacrament of His Body and Blood.
The Eucharist is not a mere symbol. Our Lord Jesus is really and truly present in the Eucharist, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. This is the solemn teaching of the Catholic Church from the moment of Christ’s ascension into heaven. We see this teaching in all four gospels, in first Corinthians and throughout the New Testament. We also see this teaching in the documents of the Council of Trent, the First Vatican Council, the Second Vatican Council, Mysterium Fidei, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, just to name a few.
St. Faustina wrote “Every morning during meditation, I prepare myself for the whole day's struggle. Holy Communion assures me that I will win the victory; and so it is. I fear the day when I do not receive Holy Communion. This bread of the Strong gives me all the strength I need to carry on my mission and the courage to do whatever the Lord asks of me. The courage and strength that are in me are not of me, but of Him who lives in me - it is the Eucharist.”
St. Maximilian Kolbe wrote, "If angels could be jealous of men, they would be so for one reason: Holy Communion." St. Theresa of Calcutta said, "Jesus has made Himself the Bread of Life to give us life. Night and day, He is there. If you really want to grow in love, come back to the Eucharist, come back to that Adoration."
There are many presences of God in the world. But, the Eucharist is so unique that we simply call it the Real Presence. There is no great scientific explanation of how the bread and wine are transformed into the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is a matter of faith that Christ is really and truly, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, present in the Eucharist. It’s up to us to accept the life the Father gives us in the Eucharist or to reject it. God will not force it upon us.
I invite you to come to Church, daily or weekly, and receive Holy Eucharist during the celebration of the mass. The grace we receive in Holy Communion is more abundant and powerful than any of us can ever realize and it sustains us as we journey home to our heavenly Father.
May God Bless You and all those who love the Lord.
