Never Far From Home

"O precious and wonderful banquet, that brings us salvation and contains all sweetness! Could anything be of more intrinsic value? What could be more wonderful than this? No other sacrament has greater healing power; through it sins are purged away, virtues are increased, and the soul is enriched with an abundance of every spiritual gift. Yet, in the end, no one can fully express the sweetness of this sacrament, in which spiritual delight is tasted at its very source, and in which we renew the memory of that surpassing love for which Christ revealed in His passion."

~Saint Thomas Aquinas, O.P.


Happy solemnity of Corpus Christi! I have particular affection for this feast day, because discovering our Lord's true presence in the Eucharist was the instrument of my "reversion" to the Catholic faith.

Growing up Catholic, and always going through sacramental formation in my various parishes, I always knew the Eucharist was special--that there was some great significance to our Communion, and that it wasn't just like other churches and their partaking of the Lord's Supper. But I didn't really know what that meant. I didn't really know much more than that it was special and significant.

I first truly recognized our Lord, in His Eucharistic presence, during my confirmation retreat in 10th grade, and He then reinforced the reality of His presence the following summer at the Steubenville South Youth Conference in Alexandria, LA. Unfortunately, my lack of spiritual maturity, and lack of involvement in a youth group community led me to quickly forget the reality I had so beautifully experienced during those times. But major seeds were planted.

It took getting to a really low and lost point in my life to realize that what I was searching for the whole time was Him--I was off trying to fill that void in my life, that desire for Jesus, with anything but Him. It took a random retreat I hastily attended at the last minute, a few months before my graduation from high school, for God to allow me another opportunity to meet Him, face to face, in the Most Blessed Sacrament. And there He came. So simply, so humbly, so beautifully. For me. Right in front of me. Despite my failings. Despite running away from Him. He was still there. And always has been!

My entire life changed after that point. I mean, if you REALLY believe in the Real Presence, it should change everything about your life! As Saint Augustine commented--normally, our bodies receive food, in order for us to take that food and turn it into ourselves. But in receiving the Eucharist, we receive the Bread of Angels in order to become what we consume--Jesus, in His fullness.

As I sometimes tell my Protestant friends--when Jesus told His disciples that He would be with them even until the end of time, or when He took bread wine at the Last Supper and said "this is My Body, this is My Blood, do this in remembrance of Me"...do you think He was only kidding?! He wasn't!

The universality of the Eucharist has been particularly beautiful for me during my various travels in the Navy. Anywhere we went in the world, any port we visited, in any country, I knew I could find a Catholic church. And no matter the language, no matter the local customs, no matter what--Jesus would be there, fully, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, in His Eucharistic presence. With that reality, I was never far from home. I was at home in every place I visited, all around the world, whenever I was sitting before the tabernacle.

Thank you Lord, for remaining with us. May we become what we eat, and through that reality, transform our world.