A question came to mind after reading today's gospel: how does Jesus impact the world through what I do because I have received Holy Communion? Call to mind our sisters and brothers we call "born again Christians" or the Fundamentalist Christian communities for a moment. Many in these groups are seriously committed to evangelization, to knowing their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Now call to mind our own Catholic communities: do we spend more time pushing the monetary basket than preaching about Jesus Christ and the saving redemption his brought to each of us through his suffering and death? If we are honest, don't we sense that the groups mentioned above speak more openly about their faith in Jesus Christ?
Another question: Is the current moral challenge to the Church not an avenue to help the Church through concerns for the victims of abuse -- any victim or any kind of abuse -- that will be the window (like the famous "window letting in fresh air" of the Second Vatican Council) that has been opened to bring in a newer, fresher air for the Church? The suffering anyone endures is a part of the process of healing, of reforming the soul.
Vatican II? May we see it now as a time of preparation to lead us through a reforming our Church where there is a genuine need? Are we not seeing a structure which may have afforded sin a hiding place behind secrecy that prevented openness?
So, when I receive Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, do I sense any difference in my life? A calling to be different? Or, do I take the Eucharist for granted, just part of the Mass routine?
Today there are some Catholics who speak disparagingly about the "styles" of other religious professions. Is there jealousy that urges such words or is the seed of hatred still in the soul?
And Jesus said over and again, "Whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life."
