New

My friend Frankie and I were talking about the Eucharist, particularly about receiving the Eucharist--who ought to receive and who ought to abstain. For a newcomer to Mass, a non-practicing Catholic, or a fellow Christian from another denomination, approaching the Eucharist is challenging because we ask those not in full communion with the Church to receive a blessing instead of the Body and Blood. Catholics are also encouraged to be in a state of grace (with no mortal sin) before receiving the Body and Blood.

This is a sign of respect foremost. To receive Jesus Christ in his body, blood, soul, and divinity under the disguise of bread and wine we ought to be fully aware of the gift and love present in the sacrament--the meal, the man, and the mystery. While this is true, even the most knowledgeable and devout Catholic can spend a lifetime pondering the Eucharist. And every one of us is a sinner in need of redemption.

Yet Christ always approached sinners. Christ embraced them in their current state. He loved them. We can strive to do the same.

Jesus wants us at the Eucharistic feast, but he also wants us on the path of conversion. Learning about the faith before embracing it through communion, returning regularly to the Sacrament of Reconciliation in acknowledgement of our brokenness--these are the ways we know the world is both redeemed and being redeemed, that Christ has arrived and will return, that the Kingdom is here and now and still to come.

We live imperfectly. During Holy Week, we once again embrace the Passion of our Lord. We take up the cross. We love. We follow. We are made new.