FROM THE SERVANT GENERAL
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
(Part 118)
THE EUCHARIST – 2
April 19, 2024
Today’s gospel: John 6:52-59
Jesus told the Jews that he was the bread of life and that bread was his flesh. The Jews said, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (v.52). A perfectly normal human reaction. How indeed could one eat the flesh of another (unless he is a cannibal)? Crazy. Insane. Madness. Many of them ended up leaving him.
Fast forward to today. Today Catholics have no problem with receiving the bread and wine. But what is not accepted by many today is that the bread and wine are actually the body and blood of Jesus. How can bread and wine be the flesh and blood of Jesus? Crazy. Insane. Madness. Many remain with Jesus, but no longer take him at his word.
But Jesus says, “my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.” (v.55). So even if we receive Holy Communion, what is the result of disbelieving in the Real Presence?
- We will not have life in us. “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.” (v.53). Jesus is the Life, and it is his life that we need to live. We need to live Christ.
- Jesus does not remain in us. “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (v.56). Jesus sustains us in our day-to-day lives. He lives in us and he gives us the grace and strength to endure challenges that inevitably come.
- We will not attain to eternal life. “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.” (v.54). Jesus won for us our salvation, making heaven our eternal destination. The Eucharist is the key.
In this short passage from John, Jesus over and over again speaks of his flesh and blood that we need to partake of. The Real Presence is a great mystery. It is a great gift. Jesus speaks the profound reality: “the one who feeds on me will have life because of me.” (v.57b).
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