Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

Friends, peace be with you. 

This weekend we celebrate the gift of the Holy Eucharist. This is a special celebration because of the three-year Eucharistic Revival the Bishops of this country have asked us to undertake. The first year was a ramp up phase, a chance for parishes, deaneries, and dioceses to make plans for what we would like to do. At St. Patricks, we will be hosting a series of pictures done by Carlo Acutis, a young man who grew up in Italy and was on fire for the Eucharist and, more specifically, Eucharistic Miracles. He made a website with pictures and descriptions of these instances where something inexplicable happened to the Eucharist, for instance if it changed into human flesh or, as in the case of St. Januarius, when the consecrated blood liquifies on certain days but remains dried others. 

We will also be, as a Cedar Rapids Deanery, participating in a communal bible study in the Fall hosted by Bishop Andrew Cozzens that is all about the Eucharist. Then, a year from now, we will join with other parishes in the Cedar Rapids area to participate in a day of reflection on the Eucharist and Eucharistic procession on the Xavier campus. 

The biggest impetus for this renewal comes because of surveys that show an overwhelming number of Catholics who do not have a basic understanding of Eucharistic theology, that it really is the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus. That must be our focus today and everyday as, if it isn’t, we have to entry into the death and resurrection of Jesus, we have no hope for eternal life. We, the body of Christ that is the church, are made this way because of the Eucharist. Let us pray for a greater understanding of the Eucharist among all peoples and that we will lead more people to a full understanding of the Eucharist.