In the familiar, visible world, “the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth His handiwork” (Psalm 19:1).
In the unseen realm, Jesus transformed the familiar and visible, “our daily bread”, into the mystery of the indwelling of the Eternal God.
The same Creator of the heavens and the earth (“In the beginning”) spoke again through Jesus Christ the words of re-creation: “This is my Body which is given for you…this is my blood of the new and everlasting covenant…” Hidden within the ordinary and familiar lies a profound mystery and glory that touches every dimension of life.
Pope Benedict XVI in his 2006 address to clergy at the Warsaw Cathedral stated: “In a world where there is so much noise, so much bewilderment, there is a need for silent adoration of Jesus concealed in the Host … It is a source of comfort and light, particularly to those who are suffering.”
However, the Eucharist was not the only gift of the Last Supper. The priesthood was given then, too, and friendship transformed by Jesus’s new command to love one another. Why? Because: “Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses,” as C. S. Lewis declared in his essay, The Weight of Glory.
Indeed, the Lord’s vineyard is fragrant, and we, His laborers, are privileged to work together in friendship with the Eternal God! In this, the ultimate nuptial, the invisible shines forth in undimmed glory through ordinary work, relationships, and simple fare – and the Eucharist!
Called to arise, we hurry to join the Lord’s victory feast, where through the Gift and Mystery of the Eucharist, our joy is complete, indeed.
“When such as I cast out remorse,
So great a sweetness flows into the breast:
We must laugh and we must sing!
We are blessed by everything.
Everything we look upon is blest.”
(W.B.Yeats, Dialogue of Soul and Self)
Ruth D. Lasserter
Friend of the SDC
Indiana, US
