Eucharist – The Miracle Presence of Jesus in Our Midst!
If you want to learn more about the miracle presence of Jesus in the Eucharist then read this article all the way through to the end. Specifically, in this article I'll be covering what or rather 'who' the Eucharist is (the small, white host of bread consecrated in catholic masses). By the end of this article you will have a better understanding and knowledge of this amazing miracle which is in our midst every moment of every day of every year!
The word 'Eucharist' literally translated from the Greek means thanksgiving; truly the Eucharist is a cause for thanksgiving for God's generosity and love in giving us his only begotten son.
The Church, instituted by Jesus, when he came to live and die on earth, has always loved, honoured and cherished the Eucharist. She cherishes it above all else and acim the consecrated Eucharistic hosts in her Tabernacles for veneration, adoration and worship and to keep the real presence of Jesus alive among us in our Christian communities.
Declaring before all that the Eucharist is the 'source and summit' of the Christian life, the Church encourages us to seek no further but to learn to mine the depths of the treasures we find in the awesome Eucharistic mystery of Jesus present among us as well as his presence among us in His word, the Bible!
It is a startling fact, but every consecrated host of bread is an incredible, living mystery of grace and contains the whole spiritual good of the church. The reason for this is both simple yet profound.
Jesus himself is in the Eucharist, he is in fact, the Eucharist. The Eucharist is more than meets the eye as the substance of the host, at the consecration of the mass has been miraculously changed into the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, by the hands of the priest, through the power of the Holy Spirit. However the appearance and taste of the bread by a miracle of grace stays the same!
This one fact alone, that Jesus himself is the Eucharist, cannot fail to astound us.
Once this fact is acknowledged in our hearts, our eyes of faith also see the truth and our hearts recognise Jesus' presence, even if our bodily eyes, like the disciples on the way to Emmaus, are dimmed.
The gift of faith in the Eucharist is given by the Holy Spirit all we have to do is to ask him! It's as simple as that.
Indeed, St Cyril of Jerusalem stated; 'Since Christ himself has said in the Bible; 'This is My Body'-who shall dare to doubt that It is his body?' for Jesus is Truth incarnate with no shadow of error in his words. His words in the Bible were not meant to be merely symbolic about bread being eaten, if they were, why did so many of his disciples leave him at that point, saying that it was too hard to believe in such a doctrine.
Although Jesus ascended into Heaven he chose to, in a remarkable and mysterious manner, which not even the Seraphim and Cherubim can fathom, stay on earth in the Eucharist with us so that his promise at the end of Gospels would always be true: