Like most Catholics, my heart ached when I found out that our the Lord's Supper, in which our Lord and Savior instituted the Eucharist our of his love for us, was mocked during the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics. I sent a text message to a group of men that I know well and invited them to join me in boycotting (not watching) the Olympics. The Olympic Games are meant to unify the world yet France thought it was appropriate to mock the most central, unifying moment in Christianity - the Lord's Supper. No Olympics for me.
That Saturday morning, after leading the opening prayer for the KofC Summer Conference, I shared this with my brother Knights:
I asked my brother Knights to pray for Paris and France, who thought that it would be okay to mock our Lord Jesus Christ at the Last Supper, a moment so central and sacred to our faith because it was when our Lord instituted the Eucharist and gave us the priesthood. I am appalled and disheartened, especially since just last week, we had the National Eucharistic Congress to celebrate the Eucharist - the source and summit of the Christian life.
I am grateful to our Bishops who spoke out against this blasphemy, including Bishop Robert Barron. (whose two videos that he posted can be found on his social media platform). In particularly, I am grateful to Bishop Cozzen, who was the Chairman of the National Eucharistic Congress, who encouraged the faithful to pray and do an act of reparation for sins against our Lord Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Eucharist. You can read his statement here: https://munciecatholic.flocknote.com/note/27371304. It is also shared on the Diocese of Austin's social media platforms.
Then [Jesus] took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me. And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you (Luke 22:19-20).Make no mistake: God is not mocked, for a person will reap only what he sows. . . (Galatians 6:7)
I am grateful to our pastor, Fr. Charlie, who supported the idea of a Holy Hour of reparation. Encouraged, I worked with one of my brother Knights to do a Holy (Half) Hour before the 6:30 P.M. Daily Mass on Wednesday (7/31). Fr. Charlie even announced in his homily, at the Mass that he celebrated on Tuesday morning, encouraging our parishioners to come to the Adoration and Rosary. You can listen to his homily here:
And so, last night, I had the blessed for the opportunity to lead Adoration and the Rosary of reparation for sins against our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the most Holy Eucharist. We prayed a prayer of reparation, the Glorious Mystery of the Holy Rosary, and the Litany of Reparation. praying that our Eucharistic Lord be received with faith, hope, and love and adored in all the tabernacles in the world. O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine!
Many thanks to Jill for helping get everything set up and for Daisy for this picture (below). Most of all, many thanks to all the faithful who came to pray with us. Afterwards, a parishioner shared this with me:
Thank you, Deacon Phúc, for leading the Holy Hour for the reparation of sins throughout the world. Prayers were beautiful and glad that we had Benediction. My heart was hurt for what happened at the opening ceremony of the Olympics and am glad I was able to pray through it tonight! I could only imagine that is how Jesus feels when we sin.
The Eucharistic Revival and National Eucharistic Congress are reminder to us, as Catholics, of our belief in our the Real Presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist, which he instituted and gave to us at the Last Supper. We pray and reflect on this in the Fifth Luminous Mystery of the Most Holy Rosary. Moreover. . .
The Eucharist is the “gift that [satisfies] hunger for all and forever” (Ratzinger, 265). We ask God for this gift every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer: “. . .give us this day our daily bread.” God answers our prayers and gives us the Bread of Life, which we receive at Communion. In the Mass, the Word becomes flesh (John 1:14) and satisfies our deepest hunger. We are fed by the word of God in the Liturgy of the Word and, in the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we are nourished by the Incarnate Word of God - his Body, which is “true food,” and his Blood, which is “true drink” (John 6:55).
(Excerpt from Homily for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B - 7/28/2024) https://dcnphuc2019.blogspot.com/2024/07/homily-for-seventeenth-sunday-in.html & https://phucphan.podbean.com/e/homily-for-the-seventeenth-sunday-in-ordinary-time-year-b-7282024/)
My heart is comforted and filled with joy after the Adoration and Rosary of Reparation. Let us never cease inviting others to the table of the Lord's Supper - the Mass - so that they too may encounter our Eucharistic Lord and be transformed into living tabernacles of faith, hope, and love, strengthen by the Body of Christ and the Blood of Christ. Vivat Jesus.
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