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The
Most Loving and Tender Act of God
“There is no more loving or tender aspect in which to gaze upon the Saviour than this act, in which He, so to say, annihilates Himself, and gives
Himself to us as food, in order to fill our souls, and to unite Himself more closely
to the heart and flesh of His faithful ones.” These are the wise words of St.
Francis de Sales in speaking about the Holy Eucharist. Certainly, we can gaze
upon our Savior in so many different ways. We can, for example, contemplate
Him in His Infancy, adoring Him in union with the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, her chaste companion and spouse, the holy angels, the humble
shepherds, and the three kings. We can contemplate Him in His working of
miracles and healings, remembering how He cures the sick and works wonders, in the lives of all those who believe in Him, for the glory of God the Father. We
can behold Him in His Sorrowful Passion and be moved with compassion, in realizing how our Redeemer suffered so willingly and lovingly for us to make
reparation for the sins we have committed. Or we can contemplate Him in His
glorious Resurrection and Ascension into Heaven and praise His Holy and Powerful Name for opening wide open the doors of Heaven. But the most
loving and tender act in which we can contemplate our Savior, as St. Francis de
Sales stated, is the act of giving Himself totally to us by willing to become Food
for us, in order to stay with us on Earth, and gaze upon our souls and our lives
when we come before His presence in the Eucharistic Tabernacle. There our
Lord expresses to us His desire to unite Himself more closely “to the heart and
flesh of His faithful ones.”
The Eucharist is the Center of our Religion. He is not only the Heart of the
Catholic Church, or the Heart of the world, but the Heart of all Creation. He,
who was begotten and not created, is our Creator and our Life. The Eucharist is our Creator and our Life! He gives us life by giving Himself to us. That is why
the Eucharist is not only a Sacrifice, but also a Sacrament. As a sacrifice, Jesus
in the Holy Eucharist offers Himself to God our Father as “an offering of adoration, thanksgiving, propitiation, and supplication in our favor, and in favor
of the whole world.” (St. Peter Julian Eymard) As a Sacrament, Jesus in the
Holy Eucharist desires to be received by us and should be received by us. He
adores and thanks God the Father with the perfection that the Father deserves. He makes reparation for our sins, while being sinless himself, and as a result, the
Only One worthy of making reparation for us, and the whole world. And He
offers a sacrifice of supplication to God the Father, praying for us to God the
Father with the faith that He deserves to be prayed with.
The Eucharist is Announced in the Old Testament
God was already preparing us for the Gift of the Eucharist in the Old Testament. The Eucharistic Sacrifice was announced in the book of Genesis
chapter 14 where it says, “18 But Melchisedech, the king of Salem, bringing
forth bread and wine, for he was the priest of the most high God, 19 Blessed him, and said: Blessed be Abram by the most high God, who created heaven and earth. 20 And blessed be the most high God, by whose protection, the enemies are in thy hands. And he gave him the tithes of all.” The Word of God says that
Melchisedech brought bread and wine. It also says that Jesus offered bread and wine to God, just as we offer bread and wine to God in the Holy Mass, while
we present our tithes (10% of what we have) to God during the offertory, or presentation of the gifts. This bread Jesus broke and gave to His disciples, and
this wine Jesus passed to them. This bread became His Body, and the wine became His Blood. The same thing happens in the Holy Mass, for Jesus told His twelve disciples, the first bishops and priests of the Church, to “do this in
remembrance of Me.” (Luke 22,19) And if His disciples do what Jesus did,
they do what Jesus did! By the power of the Holy Spirit, they convert the bread
to Jesus’ Body, and the wine to Jesus’ Blood, because that is what they were
instructed to do.
The Eucharistic Sacrifice is also announced in the immolation of the Paschal Lamb. In Exodus chapter 12 we read, 6 “…the whole multitude of the children
of Israel shall sacrifice [the lamb] in the evening. 7 And they shall take of the
blood thereof, and put it upon both the side posts, and on the upper doorposts
of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. 8 And they shall eat the flesh that night
roasted at the fire, and unleavened bread… 11 And thus you shall eat it: you
shall gird your reins, and you shall have shoes on your feet, holding staves in your hands, and you shall eat in haste; for it is the Phase (that is the Passage) of the
Lord. 12 And I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and will kill every
firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast: and against all the gods of
Egypt I will execute judgments; I am the Lord. 13 And the blood shall be unto
you for a sign in the houses where you shall be; and I shall see the blood, and
shall pass over you; and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I
shall strike the land of Egypt.”...
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