For in the warmth of his presence, our lives change. Without him, everything would truly be gray. Adoring the Body and Blood of Christ, let us ask him with our heart: “Lord, give me the daily bread to go forward, Lord, satisfy me with your presence!”
POPE FRANCIS, ANGELUS JUNE 19, 2022
The three-year Eucharistic Revival has begun! The Church in the United States is responding to the bishops’ call for us to be healed, converted, formed, and unified by an encounter with Jesus in the Eucharist—and then sent out on mission “for the life of the world” (Jn 6:51). We are invited to deepen our relationship with Jesus Christ, Our Lord, through the celebration of the Eucharist, so that we can be set on fire for the mission our Church needs so desperately.
The Eucharist is the greatest gift that Jesus has given us because it contains his very self. At the Last Supper Jesus says to his Twelve Apostles, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (Jn 15:13). Then he makes that statement real in the gift of the Eucharist when he says, “This is my Body given up for you… this is my Blood poured out for you” (Lk 22:19–20). He gives this saving self-gift—his Paschal Mystery—an enduring presence in the Eucharist, so that for all ages we would be able to receive this gift and learn to make a gift of our own lives: laying down our life for him, as he did for us.
On the Solemnity of Corpus Christi this year, June 11, 2023, we began the Eucharistic Revival’s parish year (June 2023–July 2024). This year promises to be the most impactful phase of this multi-year response to the Holy Spirit. For the Eucharistic Revival to be successful, parishes must fulfill their key role in boldly proclaiming the Gospel. With Pope Francis, we must understand that “the parish is not an outdated institution; precisely because it possesses great flexibility, it can assume quite different contours depending on the openness and missionary creativity of the pastor and the community” (Evangelii Gaudium, no. 28).
Join us this year to boldly proclaim the Gospel and allow the impact of Jesus's True Presence to spread throughout our parish!