The Gift of the Eucharist

The Pope at the Angelus on June 2 renews his appeal for peace throughout the world, citing in particular four theaters of conflict: «Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Myanmar». Francis asks for a halt to the escalation of wars, urging dialogue and negotiation. «I appeal to the wisdom of governments to stop the escalation and to place every effort in dialogue and negotiation»

The Bishop of Rome in the introduction to the Marian prayer recalls that «in Italy and in other countries today we celebrate the Solemnity of Corpus Christi». The Gospel recounts «the Last Supper, during which the Lord makes an act of surrender: in fact, in the broken bread and in the cup offered to the disciples, it is He who gives himself for all humanity and offers himself for the life of the world. In that gesture of Jesus who breaks the bread, there is an important aspect that the Gospel emphasizes with the words “he gave it to them”. Let us fix these words in our hearts: he gave it to them».
The Eucharist recalls «first of all the dimension of the gift. Jesus takes the bread not to consume it himself, but to break it and give it to the disciples, thus revealing his identity and his mission. He did not keep his life for himself, but gave it to us; he did not consider his being like God a jealous treasure, but he stripped himself of his glory to share our humanity and let us enter into eternal life». Of all «his life Jesus made a gift. We understand then that celebrating the Eucharist and nourishing ourselves with this Bread, as we do especially on Sundays, is not an act of worship detached from life or a simple moment of personal consolation; we must always remember that Jesus, taking the bread, broke it and gave it to them, therefore, communion with Him makes us capable of becoming also broken bread for others, capable of sharing what we are and what we have».

Thus, thanks to «the Eucharist, we become prophets and builders of a new world: when we overcome selfishness and open ourselves to love, when we cultivate bonds of brotherhood, when we participate in the suffering of our brothers and share bread and resources with those in need, when we make our talents available to all, then we are breaking the bread of our life like Jesus».

Bergoglio recommends asking ourselves: «Do I keep my life only for myself or do I give it like Jesus? Do I spend myself for others or am I closed in my own little self? And, in everyday situations, do I know how to share or do I always seek my own interest?»


Domenico Agasso
NP June / July 2024