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Church of the Eucharist - New Evangelization

Chapter 3: The Parish Community

Rev. Fr. Vincent Martin Lucia

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Ch 3

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"For all people today,
I once again repeat
the impassioned cry
with which I began
my pastoral ministry."

"Do not be afraid!
Open, indeed, open wide
the doors to Christ!!!"

"Open to His saving power
because the voice of Christ
is giving each of us
an especially urgent invitation
at this moment
to come closer to Him everyday
in the Blessed Sacrament
as life is a journey of faith
and intimacy with the Lord."

"Therefore, we must find
the time and the desire
for the prayer of adoration."

"God is hidden in the Blessed Sacrament
and is just waiting for us
to discover the secret of His Presence."

"In every parish
Jesus has pitched His tent among us,
and from His Eucharistic Dwelling,
He says: 'Come to Me.'⁸⁵ "

"I urge Priests and parents
to redouble their efforts
to teach the younger generation the meaning
and the value of Eucharistic Adoration."

"How will young people
be able to know the Lord,
if they are not introduced
to the Mystery of His Presence?"

"The Gospel scene of Martha and Mary
shows us the meaning and the value
of Eucharistic adoration."

"It teaches us that following Christ
is not an outward imitation,
since it reaches man
at the very depths of his being."

Scripture says that Mary
just 'seated herself at the Lord's feet.'⁸⁶

Jesus said to Martha, her sister,
'You are anxious and upset
about many things.'⁸⁷

'One thing alone is necessary.
Mary, your sister,
has chosen the best part,
and it should not be taken from her.'⁸⁸

The best time we spend on earth
is the time we spend
with our Best Friend,
Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

"Spend quiet time in His Presence
letting the Spirit speak to your hearts..."
'Be still and know that I am God.'⁸⁹
'Where I am, there will My servant be.'⁹⁰

"When we come into His Presence,
Christ draws near to us
and becomes more intimate to us
than we are to ourselves."

"All interior life needs silence
and intimacy with Christ
in order to develop."

"Our essential commitment in life
is to grow spiritually
in the climate of the Eucharist."

"The Eucharist is
the source and summit
of the whole Christian life."

"This is why our communal worship
at Holy Mass
must go together
with our personal love for Jesus
in the Blessed Sacrament
so that our love for God
may be complete."

"Every member of the parish
must be vigilant
in seeing that this Sacrament of Love
shall be at the center of parish life,
so that Christ shall be given back
'love for love'
and truly become
the life of our souls."

Of this Divine Life Jesus says:
'If anyone thirst,
let him come to Me.
Let him drink
who believes in Me.'⁹¹

Scripture says that from His Heart
'shall flow rivers of living waters.'⁹²

From this Fountain of Love
everyone is invited to drink.

"A parish is a house of welcome to all,
like a village fountain
where all have recourse in their thirst."

'If you know how
to give good things
to your children,'
Jesus said,
'how much more will the Father
give the Holy Spirit
to those who ask.'⁹³

"The Holy Spirit,
the Spirit of holiness,
flows from the Eucharist."

"The Father calls everyone
to a life of holiness, that is,
the perfection of love."

"We come to a full sense
of the dignity of the lay faithful
when we consider this universal call."

"Upon each individual,
the Eucharist confers incomparable dignity,
as each person who comes
into the Presence of the Blessed Sacrament
is reclothed in Christ Jesus,
refreshed by His Spirit,
and made holy,
as the Vine makes fruitful each branch
responding to the call of Eucharistic adoration..."

'Abide in My Love.'⁹⁴

"It is necessary that, in light of this call,
all rediscover the true meaning of the parish..."
'My house is meant as a house of prayer.'⁹⁵

'My House
shall be called a house of prayer
for all people.'⁹⁶

"How helpful it would be
if parishes were to ensure
an all pervading climate of prayer."

"Today there is a widespread demand
for spirituality,
a demand which expresses itself
in a renewed need for prayer."

"Much attention has been given
to the present state of parishes
in a greater effort
to bring about parish renewal."

"The parish is not principally a structure,
a territory, or a building."

"But rather, plainly and simply,
a parish is a Eucharistic community
afire with a unifying spirit,
where the Church shines forth
as a people made one
with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit."

"Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament
actually brings about
the intimate bonds of union
among all the faithful."

"Therefore, specifically, what I hope for
is the establishment of perpetual adoration
in every parish throughout the world."

"Again we turn to the words of Jesus,
'I am the Vine, you are the branches,
Abide in Me.'⁹⁷ "

"Through perpetual adoration,
the parish is engrafted to the Vine
and thus becomes a sign and instrument
of intimate union with God
and the unity of all the human race."

"Parishes must become
genuine 'schools of prayer'
expressed in ardent devotion
and adoration."

"The entire devotion
to the Heart of Jesus
is profoundly Eucharistic."

"Eucharistic adoration is proof
of that authentic renewal
which is the aim
and the true spirit
of the Second Vatican Council."

"The Eucharist is the Living Heart
of each of our churches,
and it is our very sweet duty
to honor and adore in the Sacred Host,
which our eyes see,
the Incarnate Word Whom they do not see."

The words of Scripture
express the spirit and the excitement
of a parish in perpetual adoration
of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

'Jesus was welcomed.
Indeed, they were
all waiting for Him.'⁹⁸

'People kept coming
to Him from all sides.'⁹⁹

'They began to praise God.
A great prophet has risen amongst us,
God has visited His people.'¹⁰⁰

Jesus said:
'He who welcomes a prophet
receives a prophet's reward.'¹⁰¹
'He who welcomes Me
welcomes Him Who sent Me.'¹⁰²

He gives the example
of 'a woman known in the town to be a sinner,'¹⁰³
who made Him welcome with a kiss,
while a Pharisee gave Him no kiss
nor water to wash His feet.

Like those in the Gospel
who made Him welcome,
a parish in perpetual adoration
welcomes Christ.

The Eucharist, then,
becomes the center of attention
and the main focus
of parish activity.

A chapel always open
makes Jesus, Who has come
'not for the self-righteous,'¹⁰⁴
available to all who need a Divine Physician.

'The Son of Man has come
to seek out and save what was lost.'¹⁰⁵

"An open door creates
the spirit of acceptance,
which the world needs so much.
It is important that everyone
have a place to pray."

When the disciples
asked Jesus where He stayed,
He said 'Come and see.'¹⁰⁶

'Comfort, give comfort
to My people...
Speak tenderly...'¹⁰⁷

'Cry out at the top of your voice,
herald of Good News, and say,
Here is your God.'¹⁰⁸

"An open chapel announces each day,
God loves you,
Christ came for you,
Christ is for you."

"Let us go forth to meet Him
and welcome Him in adoration."

If each of us would be willing
to spend just one hour each week
with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament,
then we could organize all the hours
of the day and night in such a way
that Jesus would be truly welcomed,
with perpetual adoration by the parish community.

"In this age of feverish activity
the Church attaches the greatest importance of all
to adoration as an authentic pastoral activity."

In a busy world where time is precious,
the time you give to Jesus
may be likened to the alabaster jar in the Gospel.

A woman gave to Jesus
the costly jar of perfume
instead of using it on herself.

'Why did you criticize the woman?'
Jesus said, 'Let her alone.
She has done Me a kindness.'¹⁰⁹

'I assure you, wherever the Good News is proclaimed
throughout the world,
what she has done will be told in her memory.'¹¹⁰

Likewise, every holy hour you spend with Jesus
will be retold throughout eternity
because of the glory it gives to God,
and the graces it brings to all humanity.

"Words are incapable of expressing
the value of a single holy hour of prayer
and what the Eucharist is in all its fullness."

"Adoration has greater spiritual value and fruit,
than the most intense action,
even apostolic action.
Adoration is the greatest action
in helping to heal a broken world."

'Strike the rock and water will flow.'¹¹¹
'And the Rock was Christ.'¹¹²
'I saw a river flowing out from the temple'¹¹³
down through the ages until the end of time.

The Eucharist is a spiritual fountain
mystically flowing from
the pierced side of Christ
making present
a wondrous stream of unceasing graces
flowing directly from Calvary
to all who go before the Lord.

Scripture says,
'Come and I will show you
what must take place in time to come,'¹¹⁴

as it describes a parish
as a powerhouse of prayer where
'day and night the people of God
go before the Lamb'¹¹⁵
in perpetual adoration.

By coming into His Presence
in perpetual adoration,
the Blood of the Lamb
is poured out upon the world
in endless streams of tender love
and Divine Mercy.

'There flows from the Lamb
a river of grace, crystal clear,
that heals all the nations.'¹¹⁶
'Then, one nation shall not
raise the sword against another,
nor shall they train for war again.'¹¹⁷

'They will beat their swords into plowshares.'¹¹⁸
"For what can the greatest army do
against divine omnipotence?
The Lord will reign
through the all-powerful love
of His Sacred Heart."

'Now have salvation and power come,
the Reign of our God,
and the authority
of His Anointed One.'¹¹⁹

'There shall be one flock then,
and one Shepherd,'¹²⁰
'so that at Jesus Name
every knee must bend
and every tongue proclaim
to the glory of the Father,
Jesus Christ is Lord!'¹²¹

Scripture References

⁸⁵ Mt 11:28
⁸⁶ Lk 10:39
⁸⁷ Lk 10:41
⁸⁸ Lk 10:42
⁸⁹ Ps 46:11
⁹⁰ Jn 12:26
⁹¹ Jn 7:37-38
⁹² Jn 7:38
⁹³ Mt 7:11
⁹⁴ Jn 15:9
⁹⁵ Mt 21:13
⁹⁶ Mk 11:17
⁹⁷ Jn 15:5-6
⁹⁸ Lk 8:40
⁹⁹ Mk 1:45
¹⁰⁰ Lk 7:16
¹⁰¹ Mt 10:41
¹⁰² Jn 13:20
¹⁰³ Lk 7:37
¹⁰⁴ Mk 2:17
¹⁰⁵ Lk 19:10
¹⁰⁶ Jn 1:39
¹⁰⁷ Is 40:1-2
¹⁰⁸ Is 40:9
¹⁰⁹ Mk 14:6
¹¹⁰ Mk 14:9
¹¹¹ Ex 17:6
¹¹² 1 Cor 10:4
¹¹³ Ez 47:1-12
¹¹⁴ Rv 4:1
¹¹⁵ Rv 7:15
¹¹⁶ Rv 22:1
¹¹⁷ Is 2:4
¹¹⁸ Is 2:4
¹¹⁹ Rv 12:10
¹²⁰ Jn 10:16
¹²¹ Phil 2:10-11