How long is Jesus present in the Eucharist after we’ve received Communion?

March 31- April 1 2018 : 
The Resurrection of the Lord

How long is Jesus present in the Eucharist  after we’ve received Communion?

Philip Kosloski , Aleteia

 

 "We have to pay proper respect to Our Lord" The great treasure of the Catholic Church is the Eucha-rist — Jesus himself hidden under the appearances of bread and wine. We believe, as the Catechism states, that “In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist ‘the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is  truly, really, and substantially contained'” (CCC 1374).

Additionally, this Real Presence of Christ in the  Eucharist does not end immediately when we receive him at Communion time. The Catechism goes on to  explain how, “The Eucharistic presence of Christ begins at the moment of the consecration and endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist” (CCC 1377).

What does that mean when we receive him into our mouths? How long does Jesus’ Real Presence remain in our bodies?

There is a famous story from the life of Saint Philip Neri that helps answer that question. One day while he was celebrating Mass, a man received Holy Communion and left the church early. The man appeared to have no re-gard for the Presence within him and so Philip Neri decided to use this opportunity as a teaching  moment. He sent two altar boys with lighted candles to follow the man outside of the church. After a while walk-ing through the streets of Rome, the man turned around to see the altar boys still following him. Confused, the man returned to the church and asked Philip Neri why he sent the altar boys. Saint Philip Neri responded by saying, “We have to pay proper respect to Our Lord, Whom you are carrying away with you. Since you neglect to adore Him, I sent two acolytes to take your place.” The man was stunned by the response and resolved to be more aware of God’s presence in the future.

 

It is generally assumed that the Eucharistic species of bread remains for about 15 minutes after reception.    This is based on simple biology and reflects the Catechism’s statement that the presence of Christ “endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist.”
This is why many saints have recommended offering 15 minutes of prayer after receiving the Eucharist as a thanksgiving to God. This allows the soul to savour the presence of God and have a true “heart-to-heart” with Jesus.

In our face paced world it is often difficult to remain long after Mass, but that doesn’t mean we can’t at least pray a brief prayer of thanksgiving. The main point is that we need to remember Jesus’ presence in the Eucha-rist stays with us for several minutes and presents us with a special time when we can commune with our Lord and feel his love within us.   If one day you forget, don’t be surprised if your parish priest sends altar servers to follow you to your car when you leave Mass early.

https://aleteia.org/2017/05/17/how-long-is-jesus-present-in-the-eucharist
-after-weve-received-communion/

Catholic men’s movements are on the rise (cont)

March 24-25 2018 : Palm Sunday

The Catholic Gentleman  

Sam Guzman, a 29-year-old who works in marketing at Covenant Eyes, a company helping people recover from pornography use, felt there has been a lack of clear norms for masculinity for his generation. In college, he began reading a site called The Art of Manliness, designed to revive vintage manhood and the value of a virtuous life, holding up icons like Teddy Roosevelt and Benjamin Franklin. After Guzman joined the Church in 2013, he found a lack of resources for Catholic men, although since then, many new masculine apostolates have been created. "One day, while praying St. Maximilian Kolbe’s consecra-tion to Mary novena and praying that I might be used in some way, I had a clear mental picture of a site for Catholic men called The Catholic Gentleman," he said. "It would move the reader from natural virtue to super-natural virtue and hold up the saints as models." Guzman immediately began the site.

According to him, being a Catholic gentleman means that you are faithful and a man of virtue. "We must practice things like self-control, honesty and self-discipline," he said. "We find that the happiest people are the holiest people." Guzman points out that we have daily opportunities to choose between selfishness and selflessness and to follow Christ, which is what being a Catholic gentleman is about.

Men’s conferences

 

Men’s conferences also have grown in recent years. On Feb. 3, Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia spoke to more than 1,500 men at the Catholic Men’s Fellowship Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

He challenged them to live a "new knighthood," making it holy by committing to prayer, courage and chastity and devoting themselves to serving the Church and its people. "Our first weapons should always be generosity, patience, mercy, forgiveness, an eagerness to listen and understand others, a strong personal witness of faith and speaking the truth unambiguously with love," he said.

John Henz, a husband of 50 years, father to three sons, and a catechist, attends the conference annually. "We are hoping to find a bigger venue," he explained, "because the 1,560 tickets usually sell out within four hours."

The conferences are opportunities for men to recognize the importance of marriage and the role of men within the family, he said. (to be continued)

Patti Maguire Armstrong OSV Newsweekly 7/3/2018

Catholic men’s movements are on the rise

March 17-18  2018 : 5th   Sunday of Lent

As culture leaves doubt as to how men can live out their identities, the Church has moved into the void Perception of men’s identities has gone through a lot of confusion in recent decades, with conflicting voices telling them they are too strong or too weak, that they need to take charge or give up control. More recently, the toxic depth of how men live out their sexualities and relate to others has been laid bare in the raft of accusations and allegations around the #MeToo movement. Issues of how boys are formed have come to the fore, with at least one recent commentator highlighting that all school shooters have been male. 

The rise in men’s movements within the Church is both a reaction to cultural confusion and a support and formation for what it means to be a man of God. The Church teaches the complementarity of men and women, the idea of different strengths, perspectives and roles, while advocating for the equal worth and dignity of both. There is a natural strength in relationships when lived out in union with God. Women can wholeheartedly support Catholic men’s programs because they are about men becoming Christlike for the benefit of their wives, children and communities. 
     

 Patti Maguire Armstrong OSV Newsweekly   7/3/2018

 To be continued.

 

On the feast of the Archangels in 2015, Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of Phoenix released “Into the Breach: An Apostolic Exhortation to Catholic Men, My Spiritual Sons in the Diocese of Phoenix.”
It was inspired when Dorinda C. Bordlee, vice president of the Bioethics Defense Fund, spoke in his diocese on Pope St. John Paul II’s writings on the feminine genius. “We need something on the genius of men,” she said.

“That was the trigger that inspired me,” Bishop Olmsted explained. “I was concerned for a long time about the need for greater clarity of the mission of men. We need humble and courageous men to live our faith joyfully.”

The response was amazing, spreading across the United States and even into other countries and getting translated into other languages. It is being used by men of all walks of life, including those discerning a religious vocation. 

The letter calls men not to hesitate to engage in the battle rag-ing around them “that is wounding our children and families” and “distorting the dignity of both women and men.” Bishop Olmsted noted that the battle is spiritual, often hidden, and related to the fact that 12 million Catholics have left the faith since 2000. 

He encouraged men, saying, “A throw-away culture cannot withstand the new life and light that constantly radiates from Christ. So I call upon you to open your minds and hearts to him, the Saviour who strengthens you to step into the breach!”

 

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Vatican confirms that canonization of Paul VI set for October

March 10-11  2018 : 4th   Sunday of Lent

ROME - Adding specificity to what was already known about the im-pending canonization of Blessed Paul VI in 2018, Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the pope’s top deputy as the Vatican’s Secretary of State, said Tuesday that the sainthood rite will take place in late October at the close of a meeting of the Synod of Bishops, an institution Paul VI himself founded.

Paul VI, who reigned from 1963 to 1978, led the Catholic Church through the closing of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) and the turbulent period that followed, oversee-ing significant transitions in liturgy, seminary formation, theological study, and many other areas of ecclesiastical life.
Paul VI also launched the Synod of Bishops in 1965, as an attempt to broaden the involvement of bishops from around the world in the governance of the Church. The next session is scheduled for Rome in October, devoted to themes of youth and vocations.

He is best known for his 1968 encyclical letter Humanae Vitae, which reaffirmed the Church’s traditional opposition to artificial birth control. 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of the encyclical, with major events planned in Rome and around the world to ponder its legacy.

Prior to his election to the papacy, Giovanni Battista Montini spent much of his career in the Vatican’s    diplomatic service, including serving as a senior aide to Pope Pius XII, before becoming the Cardinal of Milan. Paul VI was beatified in 2014 after a first miracle was attributed to him. And earlier this month, a Vatican    theological and medical commission approved a second miracle attributed to him. According to media reports, on Feb. 6 the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints approved the second miracle needed for the canonization of Pope Paul VI by a unanimous vote.

Pope Paul will become the third pontiff that Francis has made a saint since his election five years ago. The others are John XXIII, who died in 1963, and John Paul II, who died in 2005.

When we can't protect them, our children's guardian angels are a powerful aid against harm

Mar 3 - 4 2018 :   3rd Sunday of Lent

When we can't protect them, our children's guardian angels are a powerful aid against harm. The world is a dangerous place. When you leave the     comforts of your home there is no telling what may happen to you or your children. This has been the case since Adam and Eve and will continue to be so until Jesus comes again. The good news is that we are not alone.

As the Catechism of the Catholic Church declares, “From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by [angels and] their watchful care and intercession” (CCC 336). God appoints to each one of us a guardian angel whose mission is to guide, guard and protect. We don’t  always see them or sense their presence, but the truth is that they are there, ready and willing to come to our aid.
We just have to ask.

For parents, it is easy to forget that our children have   guardian angels and that we can pray to them (through the mediation of our own guardian angel) and invoke their powerful protection over our children. When we can’t physically be there with our children to protect them, it is most appropriate to pray to their guardian angel.

Here is a short prayer that is usually entitled, “A Mother’s Prayer to the Guardian Angels of Her Children,” and is one way that we can quiet our heart and be at peace knowing who is protecting our little ones.

I humbly salute you, O you faithful, heavenly friends of my children! I give you heartfelt thanks for all the love and goodness you show them. At some future day I shall, with thanks more worthy than I can now give, repay your care for them, and before the whole heavenly court acknowledge their indebtedness to your guidance and protection. Continue to watch over them. Provide for all their needs of body and soul. Pray, likewise, for me, for my husband, and my whole family, that we may all one day rejoice in your blessed company. Amen.

Philip Koslowski, Aleteia.

 

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What then is Christianity? 
In the home it is kindness;  In business it is honesty; In society it is courtesy;  In work it is fairness; Toward the unfortunate it is sympathy;
Toward the weak it is help;
Toward the wicked it is resistance;
Toward the strong it is trust; 
Toward the penitent it is forgiveness;
Toward the successful it is congratulation;
And toward God it is reverence and obedience.

Amen