Stay with us Lord

Sermon - Kalyan Catholic Charismatic Convention - Eucharistic Congress (Saturday, 13th November 2004)

During this convention, very often we are reminded of Christ’s promise: "I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Mt 28: 20). In contemplation before the Eucharist, at this moment we experience the truth of Christ's promise: He is with us!
You all may be aware of the Apostolic letter of Pope John Paul II for the Eucharistic Year, Mane Nobiscum Domine means ‘stay with us Lord’. Every day, particularly on Sunday, the day of Christ's Resurrection, the Church lives Eucharistic mystery. But, in this Year of the Eucharist, the Christian community is invited to become more aware of it through a more meaningful and deeply felt celebration, fervent adoration and a better commitment at the service of the poor and needy.
The human heart, burdened with sin, often confused and tried by suffering of all kinds, is in need of light. In the Eucharist; the Word of God constantly proclaimed, in the bread and wine that have become the Body and Blood of Christ, it is precisely he, the risen Lord, who opens minds and hearts and makes us recognize him, as he made the two disciples on the way to Emmaus recognize him, in the "breaking of the bread" (cf. Lk 24: 35). In this gesture we relive the sacrifice of the Cross, we experience God's infinite love, we feel called to spread Christ's light to the humanity of our time.
Unfortunately, the emergence of new groups and sects has created confusion with regard to sound faith and Catholic doctrine concerning this sacrament. At times, it is sad to see an extremely reduced understanding of the Eucharistic. The concept of Eucharist as sacrifice is reduced to a simple celebration of fraternal banquet. The necessity of the ministerial priesthood, grounded in apostolic succession, is at times buried and the sacramental nature of the Eucharist is reduced to mere proclamation.
Ecclesia de Eucharistia. The Church is from the Eucharist. By the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost the Church was born and set out upon the pathways of the world. Yet a decisive moment in taking shape of the Church was certainly the institution of the Eucharist. For this very reason the Eucharist stands at the centre of the Church's life. This is already clear from the earliest images of the Church found in the Acts of the Apostles: “They devoted themselves to the Apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (2:42). The “breaking of the bread” refers to the Eucharist. Today, it is the Church breaks and gives us this Eucharist. From the Eucharist the Church draws her life and nourishment.
I wish that all of us, closing our eyes, pray like the two disciples in the Gospel, Lord Jesus, stay with us! Divine traveler, expert of our ways and reader of our hearts, do not leave us to the evening shadows. Forgive our sins and direct our steps on the path of goodness. Bless the priests and consecrated persons, children, youth, mothers, fathers, elderly, families and the sick in particular. Bless all humanity. In the Eucharist, you made yourself the "medicine of immortality": help us the pilgrims on this earth, to fix our goal to the life without end. Stay with us, Lord! Stay with us! Amen.