"BEHOLD! I AM WITH YOU, ALWAYS, YES, EVEN UNTIL THE END OF THE AGE." (Matthew 28:20)
We have searched for His Presence, hidden in His gifts. We have stumbled along interior pathways in our souls where perhaps we'd maybe rather not have gone. We've been instructed by St. Therese, St. Teresa, St. John of the Cross and through them, we've learned that it has been Christ Himself Who has been the Giver of priceless gifts, among them, self-knowledge, humility, courage, perseverance. We have borrowed them all from Himself. The Living Flame of Love will teach us how to return them to the Giver, with interest.
God desires to make us His equal. He desires to lavishly and without measure pour Himself into our brokenness, our solitude, our woundedness, our finite being which is so limited in its ability to love. His Being is a burning Furnace of Love that desires to be one with us. How could such intimate contact with the Divine Word ever be possible in the depths of my sinful soul, to be with me, every moment of my days when I neglect Him, offend Him, ignore Him, to stay with me, always, yes, even until the end of my age?
In 2003, St. Pope John Paul II gave us ECCLESIA DE EUCHARISTIA, his last and mystical encyclical. In one particular paragraph, our dear saint offers us an astonishing reply to that question. He wrote that when the Church was born at Pentecost,
"...a decisive moment in her taking shape was certainly THE INSTITUTION OF THE EUCHARIST IN THE UPPER ROOM....in this Gift, Jesus Christ entrusted to His Church THE PERENNIAL MAKING PRESENT OF THE PASCHAL MYSTERY. With it, He brought about a mysterious ONENESS IN TIME BETWEEN THE TRIDUUM AND THE PASSAGE OF THE CENTURIES."
Through the wisdom of our Pope, Jesus Lord is telling us, clearly and without possibility of misinterpretation,
"BEHOLD! I AM WITH YOU, ALWAYS, YES, EVEN UNTIL THE END OF THE AGE."
When He instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper , Jesus Lord embraced His Passion and His Resurrection. Oneness in time...when He made His Suffering and Death and Rising perennially Present down through the centuries, at every Mass, on every altar for all time. Yes, even until the end of the age. Every soul who has ever lived, all who are living now, all who are yet to be born: all held in the Being Who is Love, Who desires to be one with our soul, Who desires to make us His equal.
Through, with and in Him, the Christ, the Eucharistic Presence, we can thank our great great grandparents for praying us into our faith; we can plead to His Sacred Heart for all those whom we love today but who have separated themselves from God; we can offer every life's trial from this day forward that we may endure for all those whom God is holding until He can no longer wait to breathe them into life, those who will only ever see photographs of us - those who are yet to be born.
St. Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face reminds us that every single prayer and sacrifice offered in Love soars beyond place and time. No walls or time can imprison our prayer. Through our Savior, all of our loved ones who were, who are and who are yet to be born, are touched by the prayer we pray today. We all become one in Him. And in His staggering love and generosity, Christ draws us into His mighty and eternal act of Redemption so that He can reward us for doing what He gave us the power to do in the first place. Oneness in time.
"I am in them and you are in me, so that they may be made completely one." (John 17:2) The Triduum, made Present, down through the centuries, in, with and through Christ Savior, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Eucharist.
"BEHOLD! I AM WITH YOU, ALWAYS, YES, EVEN UNTIL THE END OF THE AGE."
OUR GLORIOUS LENTEN GIFT HAS REVEALED HIMSELF.
God desires to make us His equal. He desires to lavishly and without measure pour Himself into our brokenness, our solitude, our woundedness, our finite being which is so limited in its ability to love. His Being is a burning Furnace of Love that desires to be one with us. How could such intimate contact with the Divine Word ever be possible in the depths of my sinful soul, to be with me, every moment of my days when I neglect Him, offend Him, ignore Him, to stay with me, always, yes, even until the end of my age?
In 2003, St. Pope John Paul II gave us ECCLESIA DE EUCHARISTIA, his last and mystical encyclical. In one particular paragraph, our dear saint offers us an astonishing reply to that question. He wrote that when the Church was born at Pentecost,
"...a decisive moment in her taking shape was certainly THE INSTITUTION OF THE EUCHARIST IN THE UPPER ROOM....in this Gift, Jesus Christ entrusted to His Church THE PERENNIAL MAKING PRESENT OF THE PASCHAL MYSTERY. With it, He brought about a mysterious ONENESS IN TIME BETWEEN THE TRIDUUM AND THE PASSAGE OF THE CENTURIES."
Through the wisdom of our Pope, Jesus Lord is telling us, clearly and without possibility of misinterpretation,
"BEHOLD! I AM WITH YOU, ALWAYS, YES, EVEN UNTIL THE END OF THE AGE."
When He instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper , Jesus Lord embraced His Passion and His Resurrection. Oneness in time...when He made His Suffering and Death and Rising perennially Present down through the centuries, at every Mass, on every altar for all time. Yes, even until the end of the age. Every soul who has ever lived, all who are living now, all who are yet to be born: all held in the Being Who is Love, Who desires to be one with our soul, Who desires to make us His equal.
Through, with and in Him, the Christ, the Eucharistic Presence, we can thank our great great grandparents for praying us into our faith; we can plead to His Sacred Heart for all those whom we love today but who have separated themselves from God; we can offer every life's trial from this day forward that we may endure for all those whom God is holding until He can no longer wait to breathe them into life, those who will only ever see photographs of us - those who are yet to be born.
St. Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face reminds us that every single prayer and sacrifice offered in Love soars beyond place and time. No walls or time can imprison our prayer. Through our Savior, all of our loved ones who were, who are and who are yet to be born, are touched by the prayer we pray today. We all become one in Him. And in His staggering love and generosity, Christ draws us into His mighty and eternal act of Redemption so that He can reward us for doing what He gave us the power to do in the first place. Oneness in time.
"I am in them and you are in me, so that they may be made completely one." (John 17:2)
The Triduum, made Present, down through the centuries, in, with and through Christ Savior, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Eucharist.
"BEHOLD! I AM WITH YOU, ALWAYS, YES, EVEN UNTIL THE END OF THE AGE."
OUR GLORIOUS LENTEN GIFT HAS REVEALED HIMSELF.
He is risen. Alleluia! Wishing you and yours a blessed Easter, Anna.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bill, for your spiritual companionship on a holy Lenten journey into Christ's Heart. Onward and upward, into ever deeper holy joys through His Cross.
DeleteHappy Easter, Anna, my dear Sister in Carmel. Praying for many blessings for you on this Day of all days. Thank you for this profound reflection bringing us this Holy Day to the feet of the Eucharistic Saviour. He is with us always "on every altar for all time." You have made our hearts soar this Easter morning. And you bring us there through the humble servants, St. Therese, the saint of our Age "no walls can imprison our prayer", such inspiration, Anna. And then our beloved Pope John Paul the Great. His words on the Eucharist are gift beyond measure, beyond time, beyond generation. I am frozen in awe at the magnitude of this mystical reality. This is the crescendo of your Lenten symphony to our God. What a gift of Love the Spirit of the Living God has revealed to us through your work this Lent, Anna, we are indeed returned to the Giver "with interest." Your investment in our souls, your Carmelite zeal for the Lord and your inspired thoughts and prayerful care throughout this journey bring us to the summit today. I am overjoyed and grateful beyond words, dear Sister. May the mantle of our Madre and her care be upon your shoulders now and always. Your sister in Carmel, Clare
ReplyDeleteI am taking your words with me to sit before the Host. With you, their author, we will present them to the Savior and all together, we will give them to the Father. And as I read your words to Him, Our Father will be given deep delight. You have blessed me, Sister Clare.
ReplyDeleteMerci, Anna, pour ce mouvement de l'Esprit dans nos vies à travers vos écrits de Carême. Notre profonde théologie carmélitaine et nos grands docteurs et saints sont liés au don de la Sainte Eucharistie et à l'intemporalité et à la présence mystique du Pape Jean-Paul qui est "au-delà". J'ai tant appris au cours de notre voyage commun et mon âme a été touchée par la Flamme vivante grâce à vous. Mes remerciements sincères et mes prières affectueuses. HB OCD
ReplyDeleteQuerida Anna: Has cambiado mi vida y la de muchos en estas semanas. Mi agradecimiento y mis oraciones y te deseo una Feliz Pascua y maravillosas bendiciones por tu trabajo. Con mucha gratitud.
ReplyDelete