Source And Summit

From time to time in this column we’ll turn to official documents of the Church to shed a bit more light on the Eucharist. A great place to start is Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church. A key document of Vatican II, it was promulgated on November 21, 1964.

The document, like all Church documents, gets its title from the first two words in its primary language (Latin); these words mean “A Light to the nations,” and it refers to Jesus. Jesus established the Church and its sacraments. Through the sacraments we have direct contact with Jesus and his love for us. In section 11 of this document, the authors briefly describe each of the seven sacraments and their place in our life. And when it comes to the Eucharist, they wrote, “Taking part in the eucharistic sacrifice [the Mass], the source and summit of the Christian life, [the faithful] offer the divine victim to God, and themselves along with it.”

Do we view the Mass and the participation in the Eucharist as the “summit” of our week? If the Mass were a place where we look for entertainment, or where we simply fulfill an obligation, perhaps we wouldn’t consider it so. But if we believe in the True Presence, then we realize that we are encountering Jesus himself, and in the most intimate way. No other experience on earth can bring us this close to God, nor can anything or anyone else bring us true peace. We may go looking elsewhere, but that search is in vain.

Notice that the Eucharist and the Mass is also our “source” of Christian life. We all know that life is difficult, and to truly love means to sacrifice. Who better to strengthen us in our sacrifices than the one who gave his life for all of us, who knows all about suffering, and who accompanies us in our sufferings?

Maybe this week is the week we should reflect on our lives and our priorities. Can we place the Eucharist at the very top of our to-do lists? How can we better offer ourselves to God and receive the healing touch of our Savior?

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Contact me at eucharist@stmli.org.