(May 31, 2012) Pope Benedict is urging Catholics worldwide to join him in prayers
so that all the faithful may understand the true meaning of the Eucharist. Every month
the Pope issues a general and a missionary prayer intention and for June he wants
us to pray “that believers may recognize in the Eucharist, the living presence of
the Risen One, who accompanies them in daily life”. It is sad that some Catholics
think the Eucharist is only a symbol of Christ’s presence. The Catholic Church teaches
that the Risen Christ is truly present in the Eucharist. It is in the Eucharist,
or Holy Communion, that Christ unites Himself to us, so that we can live in Him.
50 years ago, the Second Vatican Council pronounced the Eucharist “the source and
summit of Christian life”. The Eucharist is the “source” of our Christian life because
in receiving the Body of Christ, we become the Body of Christ. We can live a Christian
life only if we live as one with Christ. The Eucharist is the summit of Christian
life because it begins that union with God, which will reach its fulfilment in Heaven.
Let us join the Pope in praying that all believers may recognize Christ in the
Eucharist.