At the end of His public life, Jesus sent His apostles into the world to preach, teach, baptize, and share the life He had given them (cf. Mt. 28:16-20). This is the divine model: people are called to God to be formed by Him, and then sent to bring others to share in that joyful life. The Church in the United States finds Herself in a similar position now in the final year of the Eucharistic Revival: it is the Year of Mission. After some time of diocesan and parish renewal, each of us is being charged to go forth into the world to bring Christ to others. Having been formed in these last years by our Eucharistic prayer and study, we are now commissioned as missionaries, sent to invite others to experience the great joy of knowing and serving Christ in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist.
To such an end, there are four main “pillars” proposed to us, both to guide our way and to help keep us stable in our pursuits of drawing people to Christ. The first of these pillars is Eucharistic Encounter. This pillar is meant to encourage and continue what we have been stressing this entire Revival: we need to encounter Christ in the Eucharist—we need to meet Him in His Presence and spend time with Him. This is the start and end of all our endeavors, for the Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life” (CCC, 1324). As the old saying goes, “nemo dat quod non habet, nobody gives what he doesn’t have.” In other words, we cannot expect to lead people to Christ if we are not spending time with Him ourselves. Strengthen this pillar, then, by your continued participation at Holy Mass, even daily if possible; by going to adoration and benediction of the Blessed Sacrament; and by making short visits to the tabernacle, even spiritually if you cannot do so physically. Frequent confession is a must in this area as well. Inviting others to join you in such moments of prayer is already taking that first step of being a Eucharistic missionary. A recent book by Fr. Donald Calloway, 30-Day Eucharistic Revival: A Retreat with St. Peter Julian Eymard, may aid in all these areas of your prayer.
The second pillar of the Year of Mission is Eucharistic Identity. Here we are called to remember and fortify our true identities as sons and daughters of the Father, particularly as we relate to Him in Christ through the Eucharist. The devil and the world today tell us so many lies about who we are, and we can see all around us the tragic desperation that people are led to by thinking they are something other than they are. The Gospel, on the other hand, reveals to us our truest nature and identity: we are sons and daughters of a loving God, and this was made possible by what Jesus did for us on the Cross. For His part, Jesus always knew His identity: He was and is the Son of the Father. It was from this identity that all of His words and actions flowed, which is one of the reasons He was so convicting in all that He said and did. By His Cross and Resurrection, He extends that sonship to us. By coming to Christ in the Eucharist, then, we stand, as it were, before a Divine Mirror, one which shows us who we truly are. The more time we spend there before the Eucharist, the more the lies and false things we believe are stripped away, and we are able to live and act more fully as the sons and daughters that God made us to be. Bringing the hurts and wounds of your heart and life to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, and encouraging others to do the same, can reinforce this pillar. Here I would encourage all to strengthen and deepen their relationship with the Saints, for the Saints are the men and women who learned who they truly are, and helped others to do the same. Reading their lives is a sure way to be inspired to holiness, and to gain heavenly help along the way. Additionally, you may find helpful in this regard the writings of Dr. Bob Schuchts at the John Paul II Healing Center. He has dedicated his life to helping people identify the wounds of their hearts, and to find healing for the same in Christ.
Eucharistic Life is the third pillar. Here we are encouraged to continue to conform our lives to Christ in every aspect, so that all is laid subject to the reign of God. Just as Christ laid down His life to the Father on our behalf, so too we are meant to follow Him even to the Cross, so that, with Him in the Eucharist, we can be offered to the Father. The powerful words of Saint Paul come to mind as guideposts here: “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete” (2 Cor. 10:5–6). We can see from the Apostle how radical and deep this conformity to Christ must go: we must be crucified so that even our thoughts are obedient to Christ. I would recommend two things to aid in your pursuit of such a Eucharistic life. The first is to study the faith, particularly by reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church. By doing so, your minds can be formed aright, which can help to hone your entire life: we cannot love what we do not know. Second, take up and practice the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. These ensure that our study of the faith does not stay only on an intellectual level, but in fact is transforming our hearts and bearing good fruit in our lives.
Finally, as the fourth pillar we have Eucharistic Mission. This fourth pillar is where the other three take on new life: it is here that all our endeavors take on an apostolic nature, one which does not hoard the great gifts of God for ourselves, but desires to share those great gifts with others. I assure you, every man, woman, and child is in need of Christ in the Eucharist. Not a single one of us would be without benefit from knowing Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. And yet, how many do not know Him! How many have never even heard of Him! This is where courage will be needed: it is difficult to share the faith, and it is tough to extend our love of the Eucharist to others. And yet that is what is needed, for Christ is asking us to do so. He is sending us on mission to be His missionaries. Saint Teresa of Avila put it this way:
Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.
Pray, then, to the Holy Spirit, that He give you the courage to be up to this task and mission. Christ is asking great things of you, but, with Him, you are capable of such great things. Seek fidelity to Him above all, and let Him work His wonders through you.
Quite plainly, at this moment in the life of the Church in America, the Lord is asking you, as He asked the prophets of old, “Will you go for Me? Will you bring My message to My people? Will you help them know My love for them? Will you tell them of the great abundance of love and mercy that I have given them in the Eucharist? Will you go?” All that remains is for you to answer. I pray, for the glory of God and the sake of so many souls, that you say “yes.”
