Dear Readers,
I’d like to take a moment, if I may, to check in with you at this midway point of the National Eucharistic Revival; have you found a way to bring the fullness of the “source and summit” more alive in your life? I’m trying, but I struggle.
I struggle because I still fall short of my goal which, in part, is to experience overwhelming joy in the power of the Presence every time I receive Communion.
Luckily, there are many resources available to assist in the task at hand. Our own Catholic Herald has been full of wonderful, inspiring articles on the subject. Online, many other excellent resources can be found, all dedicated to the new “Three Rs,” the Reality and the Requirement of the Real Presence.
One thing that has helped me a bit in this quest is the regular reflection on the two most powerful Eucharistic experiences I’ve ever had.
The power of Communion
It was a lovely spring morning long ago when the scent of gardenias floated along in the balmy breeze.
My husband Dave and I had made a huge effort to be on time; we were expecting the unexpected and didn’t want to take any chances.
After ditching my mouse ears and catching a bus, a tram, and the monorail, we found ourselves part of a massive crowd of travelers snaking our way into a giant convention center.
There, with several thousand of our closest friends, we would celebrate Easter Sunday in Walt Disney World where a local parish, the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary Queen of the Universe, had arranged to offer Mass. Talk about the Magic Kingdom!
Walking into the convention center, we were amazed at the sight of seemingly endless rows of neatly aligned folding chairs filling up the gigantic space. In a small section at the very front, a beautifully bedecked, flower-filled altar had been constructed atop a large platform.
The room began to fill quickly and when it approached capacity, a well-dressed gentleman ascended the steps of the platform to the altar and, stepping up to the microphone, asked if there were any trained Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion in the crowd who would be willing to help with the distribution of Communion. Dave and I hurried up to the front to volunteer where we were given instructions and a briefing on logistics.
Making my way to my assigned “station” after the sign of peace, I grew nervous; would there be a language problem? Perhaps confusion about receiving on the tongue versus in the hand?
But I needn’t have worried.
What a blessing! What a tremendous honor and privilege to share the Real Presence with hundreds of strangers who suddenly didn’t seem like strangers anymore!
Despite the fact we had come from all over the globe, we were completely united at that moment in our mutual higher calling.
As St. Thomas Aquinas said, “The Eucharist is the sacrament of ecclesiastical unity, which is brought about by many being one in Christ.”
I found myself fighting back tears! Every single sojourner who stood before me that day seemed to have either a slight smile on her lips or a tiny twinkle in his eyes — Joyful! Joyful! He is risen!
As I stood there, I was transported back to another spring day when I was seven years old, the day of my First Communion (do you, dear Readers, remember yours?), when I had been completely overwhelmed by the conviction that because I had received the Real Presence, I was a different person, a better person, and the world was a different place, a better place! Here, in the “happiest place on Earth,” I felt that way again!
I can’t remember what the official Communion hymn was that Easter in Orlando, but I do recall the lyrics of “In the Breaking of the Bread” sounding loud and clear within my heart: “. . . We took the bread as He had done and then we blessed it, broke it, offered it. In the breaking of the bread, we saw Him! Suddenly our eyes were opened, and we knew He was alive . . . In the breaking of the bread, He is here with us again, and we know He is alive!”
God bless us and guide as we continue in our crusade to successfully revive the source and summit of our faith!
Linda E. Kelly is a member of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Madison.