funeral homily for Jenna Lee Riley-a message of hope

Everyone wants to be free. Freedom is one of the most cherished ideals in our nation. We live in the land of the free and the brave. Freedom of speech and freedom of religion are two of our country's most treasured hallmarks. What about the freedom to be who we were created to be? Well, that is more difficult, and something rarely found. We all conform in one sense or another-dress, attitudes, likes, religion. For many religion is the ultimate conformity-adhere to an ethical code-a set of rules and regulations and you get to heaven. That is not Catholic Christianity and that is definitely not Jenna Lee Riley. I stress the word "is" because our faith tells us that we will live forever with Jesus if we have a personal relationship with him right here and right now. "Come, follow me" Jesus says. Jenna did. Whether it was comforting her friends, taking in a wayward soul, Jenna was living the Gospel. Why? Because the Gospel liberates-Jesus said "The truth will set you free" and if we follow Him we will be free. St. Paul speaks about the "glorious freedom of the children of God." There is great freedom in knowing Jesus Christ. Some of you undoubtedly may be saying "Well if this freedom is so great, how come it hurts so much?" For that question there are no easy answers. In fact, it may seem that the God who we speak about as love just doesn't seem to care or at least is not very interested. It is OK to feel that way. It is OK to feel angry. Someone very special has been taken from you. This is where the 2nd reading and the gospel give us such comfort. St. Paul says in St. Paul to the Romans: "But in all these things we overcome because of him who has loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height not depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." This is also where today's Gospel is so relevant. The friends of Jesus were walking away sad, grief stricken, full of questions, just like many of you. But something very special happens. Jesus himself draws near. At first they do not recognize him ( I like to think he was wearing Groucho Marx glasses, or maybe those goofy glasses Jenna was wearing in the pictures at Spencer Funeral Home) But there is something about him-the tone of his voice....and they invite him in. As they break bread, as they open the scriptures and celebrate the eucharist they see it is really Him! He is still with them! "Stay with us!" they say. "Stay with us, Jenna" Because of Jesus and the power of the resurrection and his promise of everlasting life, she has. Her mom Lisa said that every night she would read from St. Paul's letter to the Phillippians. This epistle is known as the epistle of joy. What is so ironic is that it was written by a man who was in prison chained to a pillar. How could he write a letter of joy? Because of the freedom he found in Jesus Christ. God promised He would not leave us orphaned. He promised to send us the Comforter, the Holy Spirit. the next time you look at a crucifix look into the eyes of your savior. Look into the eyes of the God who sweat blood in the Garden of Gethsemani. Behold the scourge marks all over his body. They mocked Him, spit upon Him, placed a crown of thorns on his head-and He endured it all to prove His love for you and for me. My prayer is that each and every person will leave here today full of hope. The world is a better place because Jenna Lee Riley touched the lives of everyone here. As you leave consider the words from the musical Carousel: "When you walk through a storm hold your head up high and don't be afraid of the dark. Walk on , Walk on, with hope in your heart, You'll never walk alone." Because of Jesus Christ none of us walks alone. Today, Jenna is walking with Jesus Christ!

Finding God in the mountains

On Monday I will be leaving for Squaw Valley, CA. Squaw Valley is a ski area that hosted the 1960 winter olympics and overlooks beautiful Lake Tahoe. Mountains figure prominently in the life of Jesus. He was transfigured on Mt. Tabor, we know about his sermon on the Mount, and we know he often retired to the mountains to spend the night in prayer. Most recently, Pope John Paul II was also known to be a great lover of mountains. He would escape to ski in the Italian Alps and when a polish priest, used to take young people up into the mountains. Mountains figure prominently in the spiritual life. St. John of the Cross used the analogy of climbing a mountain to describe the spiritual life (the ascent of mount carmel). Mountains can be obstacles, or they can be majestic peaks that remind us of the grandeur of God. When one climbs a mountain there needs to be proper preparation for severe weather changes. Here in New England the place known with the worst weather in the world is Mt Washington. Every summer thousands of hikers will climb the mountain. As one gets into the higher elevations the protective layers disappear. One of the amazing things about Mt. Washington is the dramatic ascent above the tree line. Artic fauna becomes the norm. The hiker is exposed to the elements. So it is as we get close to God. Those things we use to hide from Him-addictions, bad habits, sin-all get exposed as one climbs higher. When it comes to the highest peaks in the world, it is always a team that makes the ascent (Mt Everest, k-2). None of us is an island. Not even God is a perfect solitude. He was never alone-He was always Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We need community, we need to work out our salvation with brothers and sisters who are "teammates". Mountains also afford another perpective. One of my favorite hikes is Cannon mountain, NH. As you stand over what once was the "old man on the mountain" you look down on I-93. You see how small the cars are. Those problems, those things that seem to keep troubling you, look quite small when seen from the heights. " To the heights" was the motto of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassatti. Blessed Pier Giorgio loved the mountains outside his home of Turin, Italy. He loved to hike. Mountains are the setting of some of the world's most famous monastaries. Saint Bruno founded the Carthusian order in the mountains of France. I spent some time at Monte Corona, an ancient Camaldolese monastery west of Assisi in Italy. Psalm 121 says so beautifully: "I raise my eyes toward the mountains. From where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth." Psalm 95 says "Come, let us sing joyfully to the Lord; cry out to the rock of our salvation. Let us greet him with a song of praise, joyfully sing out our psalms. For the Lord is the great God, the great king over all gods, whose hand holds the depths of the earth; who owns the tops of the mountains. The sea and dry land belong to God, who made them, formed them by hand." In 1 Kings 19 there is the famous passage of the prophet Elijah on Mount Carmel: "There he came to a cave, where he took shelter. But the word of the Lord came to him, 'Why are you here, Elijah?' He answered: 'I have been most zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, but the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.' The the Lord said, 'Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord: the Lord will be passing by.' A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord-but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake-but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire-but the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave. A voice said to him 'Elijah why are you here?' He replied, 'I have been most zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. But the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.' 'Go, take the road back to the desert near Damascus' the Lord said to him.' When you arrive, you shall aniont Hazael as king of Aram. Then you shall anoint Jehu, son of Nimshi, as king of Israel, and Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah, as prophet to succeed you.'" Looking for your marching orders? Want to realign yourself with God's purpose in your life? Go to the mountains. It is what Jesus did. If you cannot go to the mountains then find some quiet place in nature where you can hear the "Still, small voice." Be persistent and do not let the silence of God frighten you. He is waiting.

Christian Themes in "Carousel"

Last night I had the great privilege of watching Rogers & Hammerstein's classic musical "Carousel." The setting was the Goodspeed Opera House on the CT river in Haddam Ct. What a beautiful spot and what a beautiful theater. For such a small stage the play really brought out some dramatic performances. The singing was wonderful and the chorearaphy/dancing was outstanding. From the sound of many tears I could tell the play impacted many in the theater deeply. One of the key Christian themes is redemption. Billy Bigelow takes his life and comes through the "back gate" of what appears to be heaven. He is asked if he has any unfinished business. Mind you, his friend Jigger, who got him into the predicament in the first place, warns him-he will not get to go before the Supreme Judge. Jigger tells him the best the two can hope for is a local magistrate. Only the rich get to go before the Supreme Judge. This is a reversal of how Christians understand God. Because of Jesus it is the poor who have a special place in the heart of the "supreme judge." In the dramatic scene in the gospel of Matthew we are told that we will be judged on how we cared for the "least in our midst." Are we goats or sheep? The answer appears to have eternal consequences. What is interesting is that Billy Bigelow appears to receive a second chance. In life Jesus gives us more than a second chance-he gives us many chances-his mercy endures forever. St Peter, the leader of the church, experiences this first hand. That same mercy was extended to Judas, but he ended in despair. The problem of a second chance after one dies is problematic. The Catholic church understands purgatory to be a place of final purification. It is not "plan b" as some see it, or even a second chance, but rather a place where one has been saved but there is still some attachment to sin, or purification that needs to take place. In the words of Curtis Martin, author of "Catholic for a reason": "The second objection against purgatory is that it is a manufactured second chance. If you don't really want to follow Christ, you can still get to heaven through 'the back door.' This offends against Christ, who called us to stand with Him or against Him. Scripture is clear that mediocrity is unacceptable: 'I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! Wo, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot or cold, I will spew you out of my mouth.'(Rev 3: 15-16) Jesus calls for complete commitment. He is either Lord of all, or He isn't Lord at all. There is no second chance; we are either for Christ or against Him (Lk 11:23). The doctrine of purgatory seems to be an end-run. But Jesus said, I am the way, and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me.(Jn 14:6)." Aware of the traditional scripture "proof" passages for purgatory ( 2 Macc 12:45-It was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin), Curtis Martin still remained skeptical about the Catholic teaching on purgatory. He was a born again evangelical and "faith alone" and "sola scriptura" were the two pillars of his faith. Listen to his words on how he began to see that the Catholic teaching may be true after all: " I began to search the Gospels to see if Jesus gave any teachings concerning judgement or purification at the end of our earthly life. I began to see that several of Our Lord's teachings, far from disproving purgatory, seemed to point to the possibility that there might be some debt of justice that would be paid after our earthly life. As Christ teaches about the importance of forgiveness, He gives the example of a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. He brought in a man who owed a great deal of money and forgave him the debt. The forgiven man in turn went our and met one of his fellow slaves, who owed him but a fraction of the amount, and demanded repayment. The just king summoned his slave back and said,'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you besought me; and should you not have mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you? And in anger his lord delivered him to the jailers, till he should pay all his debt (Mt 18:32-34) What was Jesus talking about? Scripture clearly attests 'There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1). And yet Our Lord Himself gives the example of a man who had been forgiven, afterward acted unjustly, and finally was handed over to repay all that he owed. Again in St. Luke's Gospel, Our Lord challenges His followers to make peace with one another, so that they will not be handed over to the magistrate who should throw them into prison: 'I tell you, you will never get out till you have paid the very last penny (Lk 12:59; Mt 5:26). Christ calls the believer, who has passed out of condemnation-the sentence of hell-to live a life of justice which will be exacted to the last cent. If this is not the case, then the teachings of Jesus make no sense. The Catholic teaching about purgatory is that if, at the end of our earthly life, this debt of justice was not satisfied, we shall be purified in purgatory before entering heaven. The teachings of Christ do not contradict this." Aside from purgatory, there is also the Catholic theme of the intercession of the saints. We believe that saints are alive, part of the body of Christ, our brothers and sisters, and people upon whom we can call for assistance. As is the case with Billy Bigelow, we see he is able to go back and be very close to his daughter. He even trips Enoch who insults her. We believe that the canonized saints and our dearly departed loved ones are very close to us as well. We also believe that healing with deceased individuals can help with prayer. For instance mothers who abort children find great healing when naming the child and knowing the child has forgiven them. People who experience sudden loss of a loved one may have some unresolved issues-these, too can be worked out in prayer. What about suicide? Isn't that a mortal sin and doesn't that condemn someone to hell? No. There are three necessary conditions for a mortal sin: grave matter, sufficient relection, and full consent of the will. Depression severly impairs the consent of the will and a person who may be inebriated or on drugs is not capable of making a fully rational decision. In this area the church focuses on mercy. Through it all the Christian can "confidently walk through the storms of life with a head held high" because Jesus has promised that he will walk with us every step of the way. Carousel is a wonderful musical that highlights human love, sin, redemption, mercy and forgiveness-all Christian themes-in a powerful way. As Psalm 23 tells us: "You guide me along the right path for the sake of your name. Even when I walk through a dark valley, I fear no harm for you are at my side; your rod and staff give me courage." What a comforting thought....none of us walks alone.....Jesus is at our side!

Is it possible to be pure in an impure age?

Today is the feast of St. Maria Goretti. She is a virgin martyr who died at the age of twelve. She speaks to our age because she is of our age. Born on October 16, 1890 in Corinaldo, a small town in Central Italy, Maria was the third child of farm worker Luigi Goretti and his wife Assunta. Maria never learned to read or write, as her family was too poor to spare her for school. The following I borrow from Dawn Eden's book "My Peace I give you: healing sexual wounds with the help of the saints." Dawn notes: "when Maria was eight, her father, seeking to save his family from desperate poverty, accepted an offer to work as a tenant farmer outside the coastal town of Nettuno. Because he lacked the funds to do it on his own, he entered into the tenancy jointly with a widower names Giovanni Serenelli. The Goretti's lived on one side of the upper floor of a barn, while Serenelli and his fifteen year old son Allesandro lived on the other; both families shared a central kitchen and stairs. It was an uneasy arrangement, as the Serenelli's had a very different lifestyle from the devout Goretti's. Giovanni drank and brought home lurid magazines; Allesandro, a moody sociopath, used pornographic pictures from the magazines to decorate his room. In late April of 1900, Luigi fell ill with malaria. The disease took several days to complete its fatal course. As he lay dying, fearing what might happen to his wife and children if they continued to live with the Serenelli's, Luigi urged Assunta to move the family back to Corinaldo. He was 41 when he passed on, leaving his wife with five children and a sixth on the way........nine year old Maria, although devestated by the loss of her father, stayed strong for her mother's sake. She told her mother not to worry: she herself would take over household duties so Assunta could work in the fields....The fact that Maria now had neither father nor mother at home to protect her did not go unnoticed by Allesandro, now eighteen. Aware that she was concerned to preserve her purity, he set about confronting her with dirty jokes and stories while she was doing household chores. How she responded to Allesandro's abuse brings us to one of the ways popular piety has unwittingly obscured the real Maria Goretti. Although the holy card image of her as a gentle maiden bearing white lillies is symbolically accurate, it fails to capture her fierceness. She embodied the saying of G K Chesterton that the whiteness of purity should not be imagined as something antiseptic, like hospital walls: rather, 'it means something flaming, like Joan of Arc.' And so, when she could not escape his sex talk, she hit Allesandro with whatever was at hand-a broom, an overturned bucket of water, anything to make him stop the flood of filth...." Maria began to long to receive holy communion. She pressed her mother to receive at age eleven. Her mother relented after some resistance and on May 29, 1902, the feast of Corpus Christi, she received her first holy communion. The date is significant for me because that is my ordination date (May 29, 1999). Dawn Eden draws upon some interesting historic parallels. She notes: "On the eve of her First Communion, Pope Leo XIII issued an encyclical on the Holy Eucharist that happens to both encapsulate the nature of Maria's holiness and presage her martyrdom. 'At the present day,' he wrote'an insatiable appetite rages (for bodily pleasures), infecting all classes as with an infectious disease, even from tender years.' He could have been describing Alessandro Serenelli. 'Yet' the pope went one, 'even for so terrible an evil there is a remedy close at hand in the divine Eucharist.' He gave two reasons for this. The first was spiritual-'it puts a check on lust by increasing charity'-but the second touched on the mystery of the Incarnation:'The most chaste flesh of Jesus keeps down the rebellion of our flesh.' We do not merely east the Eucharist, we become the Eucharist. 'St Augustine makes Christ himself say: You shall not change Me into yourself as you do the food of your body, but you shall be changed into Me.'" Young Maria was soon to become a living Eucharist. On July 5 yelling "No! No! It is a sin!" Maria bravely tried to fight off Allesandro's attempts to rape her. Undeterred by her resistance he began to stab her repeatedly. She did not die at first. She was brought to a hospital and died the next day. Remarkably, she forgave Allesandro and went to be with the Lord. Allesandro was sentenced to thirty years in prison. In his 27th year he had a dream of Maria standing in a garden holding out a flower and telling him she forgave him. Allesandro became a changed man, was released from prison three years early and was present at the Canonization ceremony of the young girl he had attacked. There are many lessons to be learned from this story. Some people say that pornography is harmless. There are no victims. Wrong. The woman, man, or child that is depicted in pornography is the victim. The good news is that even though there is so much readily accesible porn on the internet and computers, there are equally as many organizations and groups ready and willing to help people who struggle with porn addictions. Why is it important that the Christian strive to live a life of purity? For one, Jesus and scripture speak about it. St. Paul writes in First Thessalonians: "This is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from unchastity, that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like heathens who do not know God." (1 Th 4:3-5) The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks about "Training in the school of self-mastery." One great resource on the web is the Chastity Project: go to www.chastity.com for more info. Two cd's that may be of great help are Jason Evert's talk "Finding love in a world of lust." Another talk worth listening to is Matt Fradd: "Taking down Goliath: Five strategies to get porn out of your life." In his general audience on July 23, 1980, Blessed Pope John Paul II states: "The heart has become a battlefield between love and lust. The more lust dominates the heart, the less the heart experiences the nuptial meaning of the body. It becomes less sensitive to the gift of the person, which expresses that meaning in the mutual relations of man and woman....Does this mean that it is our duty to distrust the human heart? No! It only means that we must keep it under control." The Catholic Church has always taught that sex and sexuality are wonderful gifts from God.It has always speaken out vigorously against certain philosophies or worldviews that look to diminish the sacred gift of sexuality. We can learn from the story of St. Maria Goretti that pornography is not innocent. Lust does have consequences, but purity is possible. Frequent recourse to the sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation along with a life of prayer and fasting should enable one to live in a chaste manner. Are we speaking chastity for chastity's sake as if someone were to win a medal in the chastity Olympics? NO. The issue is charity. The purer our hearts, the freer we will be to love our neighbor. Conversely, the more we struggle to live purity of heart, the more love we will have in our heart for the poor, the sick, and the lonely. The two go hand in hand. Some try to pass off the church teaching on social justice and sexuality as if they were mutually exclusive. They are not. Guaranteed. Someone who is striving to live purity of heart will do more for the poor than someone who is not.

Pastoral Planning-a response to CNN's religion blog which states: "Catholics-dissent or leave"

The religion blog of CNN has an interesting title: Catholics-dissent or leave. The blog chooses to focus on a number of statistics that seem to indicate going dissatisfaction among those who have left the church. According to statistics the present Catholics now occupy 24% of the population in the United States. This is still the largest denomination but the numbers are down significantly from 35% a number of years ago. A large influx of immigrant catholics have helped bolster Catholic number according to blog editor Jim Spellman. The sources of discontent? Some cite the Clergy Sex abuse scandal but others seem to say " I'm not being fed." Although it is probably fair to say that the sex abuse scandals have dealt a blow to the church and the trust of the lay faithful, most Catholics realize the problem of sexual abuse is systemic in our society and is certainly no more common in the Roman Catholic priesthood than any other demographic. What then about the phrase "I'm not being fed?" This is a phrase I have heard a lot. Whether it is the preaching (or lack thereof) of priests or catechesis (or lack thereof), something is missing in our presentation of the faith. If we believe (as we say) that we are people of the Word and of the altar, should not our focus be on breaking God's Word for the people so they can better understand and appreciate the Eucharist? To give a 3-5 minute homily and then expect people to be "fed" or "sustained" is not enough. Then there is the other issue: Why do people leave under the premise of "not being fed" when they have the "Bread of Life?", the "Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ?" The mass is heaven on earth, it is, as Scott Hahn brought out so beautifully in his bood Lamb's Supper, the Book of Revelation-it is all there! The question for us is not one of gimmocks. There have been too many worldly-focused means used to attract people. What people are yearning for and hungering for is what Pope John Paul II wrote about in his apostolic letter NOVO MILLENIO INEUNTE. People are not being fed because they are not experiencing holiness. St. Josemaria Escriva used to say: " The world's crises are crises of saints." St. Paul in 1 Thess 4:3 says "This is the will of God, your sanctification." Here at St. Patrick Church in East Hampton, CT we are going through a process called pastoral planning. Pastoral Planning is an effort to combine resources with other parishes to build more vibrant faith communities. With an aging priesthood and a shortage of newer priests it is becoming increasingly evident that parishes will need to cooperate and collaborate resources. What Pope John Paul II does, however, is put the emphasis where it should be. While you and I immediately think in practical terms of programs or schedules. Pope John Paul II speaks a different language: holiness. Here are his words: "In fact, to place pastoral planning under the heading of holiness is a choice filled with consequences. It implies the conviction that, since Baptism is a true entry into the holiness of God through incorporation into Christ and the indwelling of his Spirit, it would be a contradiction to settle for a life of mediocrity, marked by a minimalist ethic and a shallow religiosity. To ask catechumens: 'Do you wish to receive Baptism?' means at the same time to ask them: 'Do you wish to become holy?' It means to set before them the radical nature of the Sermon on the Mount: 'Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.' (By the way the word perfect does not exist in Hebrew....the closest English equivalent would be completeness/wholeness) As the Council itself explained, this ideal of perfection must not be misunderstood as if it involved some kind of extraordinary existence, possible only for a few 'uncommon heroes' of holiness. The ways of holiness are many, according to the vocation of each individual. I thank the Lord that in these years he has enabled me to beatify and canonize a large number of Christians, and among them many lay people who attained holiness in the most ordinary circumstances of life. The time has come to re-propose the high standard of ordinary Christian living: the whole life of the Christian community and of Christian families must lead in this direction. It is also clear, however, that the paths of holiness are personal and call for a genuine 'training in holiness', adapted to people's needs. This training must integrate the resources offered to everyone with both the traditional forms of individual and group assistance, as well as the more recent forms of support offered in associations, and movements recognized by the Church." Still "not being fed?" Visit a soup kitchen and see Jesus disguised as the beggar. Visit a nursing home and touch the lonely and hurting Jesus. Make a visit to a church and spend time in prayer in front of the Blessed Sacrament and marvel that the God of the universe has made Himself so small, so vulnerable so as to be with, and speak to , you. Read Scripture. Get to know the story of God's great interventions in human history. Read about Elijah calling down fire from heaven. Read about Moses and the burning bush, or Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt. Read about Jesus and see how he multiplies the loaves and the fish, prefiguring the Eucharist. See him at the last supper where he says "Take and eat, This is my Body which is given up for you." Imagine you are in the crowd and you here him say "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood you do not have life within you." Question yourself...what does this mean. Then remember that over 2,000 there has been the "great cloud of witnesses" who have given their lives for Christ and are interceding with Jesus right now on your behalf. Recall St. Francis de Sales who valiantly went into the Chablais region of France and singlehandedly brought back over 60,000 souls to the Catholic Church through his writings, his kindness, his holiness. Still "not being fed?" Surround yourself with Godly people who are seeking wholeheartedly to do the will of God in their life and you want have to try to be holy. It will just happen. What is the best pastoral plan of all? A plan of holiness. How are we to respond to those who are critical of the church and say they are "not being fed?" Come and see. Come and See the splendor and beauty of Jesus and the Catholic church.

The Eucharist Sacrifice-Banquet of the New Covenant

The Eucharist Sacrifice-Banquet of the New Covenant

A Catholic argument for the Eucharist

Last evening in East Hampton, CT there was a beautiful rainbow. The rainbow is significant in scripture because Our Lord promised to Noah with a Rainbow in the sky that never again would he punish the earth. This became a sign of the covenant. For Catholics the sign of the New Covenant is the Eucharist-the real presence of the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ in a tiny piece of bread. It is an act of faith. It is an important act of faith because Jesus says in John 6:53: "Jesus said to them, '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. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks y blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me." Sadly, a teaching that was intended to unite and to bring life has become a source of division in Christianity. Catholics will sometimes say "I am not being fed " and leave the Catholic Church for a bible church that offers better fellowship, but no Eucharist. They do not know what they are leaving. Perhaps they were not taught. Perhaps they did not understand it. Perhaps the scandal of Catholics not believing caused them to leave. Regardless, if Catholics truly believed that God became present at every mass they would be walking across broken glass on hand and knee to make it to mass. There is the wonderful story that Fulton Sheen likes to share. A mass is being held in secret in China. The communists come in, arrest the priest and the congregants. For the next nine days the priest is able to watch a young teenage girl who survived the raid. Each day she would pick up a host thrown on the floor with her tongue and spend an hour in quiet adoration. The priest, under house arrest next door, was able to watch through a window. He knew there were nine hosts left on the floor. On the ninth day the young lady came in, as was her custom, knelt down and consumed the host on her tongue and prayed for an hour. As soon as the hour was over, the authorities came in and shot her on the spot. The young lady was a martyr for the Eucharist! Do we have that kind of faith? Sr. Briege McKenna tells the story of giving a retreat in Thailand. She is a nun (poor Clare) with the gift of healing. Sr Briege had her own miraculous healing in front of the exposed Blessed Sacrament. She was instantly healed of crippling rheumatoid arthritis. Wheel chair bound at the time she now travels the world ministering to priests and sharing her gift of healing. At this particular conference there was a loud commotion of Buddhist monks in the back of the chapel. As the priest held the Monstrance aloft Our Lord revealed Himself to the monks and they were on their knees shouting Jesus is Lord! Jesus is Lord! Fr. Dwight Longenecker is a convert to Catholicism from the Evangelical world. He has a great love and passion for C. S. Lewis and has written a book titled More Christianity. In a chapter titled "The Real Presence" he notes: "The Protestant theologians at the Reformation violently refuted the doctrine of the Eucharist. In different ways they all denied that the consecrated bread and sine were really and truly the Body and Blood of Christ. Yet this is the understanding of the Eucharist from the earliest days of the Church. The earliest writings are unanimous that the bread and wine of the Communion service become just what Jesus said it is-his Body and Blood. Before the year 108 Ignatius of Antioch says, 'Take great care to keep one Eucharist. For there is one flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ and one cup that unites us with his blood.' He says heretics deny that the Communion bread is really the Body of Christ. 'The Docetists stay away from the Eucharist and prayer, because they do not admit that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ which suffered for our sins.' The early Christian writings fervently insist that the bread and wine of commuion are supernatural gifts. Through them the flesh and blood of Jesus is with us in a real way. Justin Martyr, who died in the year 165, notes: 'We do not receive these gifts as ordinary food or ordinary drink. Buat as Jesus Christ our savior was made flesh through the Word of God and took flesh for our salvation, in the same way the food over which thanksgiving has been offered through the word of prayer that we have from him-the food by which our blood and flesh are nourished through its transformation-is, as we are taught, the flesh and blood of Jesus who was made flesh.'" The Catholic teaching on the Eucharist is not, as some claim, a "teaching of men." It is the teaching of Jesus Christ and has been the constant teaching of the church from its earliest days. Praised be Jesus Christ the God man, who humbles Himself to feed us with His own Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity!