To Be Transformed

‘If you are the same at the end of Mass, as you were at the beginning, something is wrong.’

Every month Pope Francis issues a prayer intention. Here is this month’s the prayer intention:

‘For a Eucharistic life: We pray that Catholics may place the celebration of the Eucharist at the heart of their lives, transforming human relationships in a very deep way and opening to the encounter with God and all their brothers and sisters.’

In the last few weeks, in the newsletter I have been reflecting on how we celebrate the Mass as a parish. We are conscious that ‘the Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life.’ It is fitting that Pope Francis has given us this theme now. Each month he also releases a video to go with the prayer intention. In this month’s video he asks that we place the Eucharist at the centre of our lives.

The video begins with him saying: ‘If you are the same at the end of Mass, as you were at the beginning, something is wrong.’

The Pope invites us to see the celebration of the Eucharist not as an obligatory ritual, but rather as an encounter with the Risen Jesus, for ‘the Eucharist is the presence of Jesus,’ which is ‘profoundly transforming.’ Pope Francis insists that ‘it is Christ Who offers Himself, Who gives Himself for us;’ which leads to ‘our lives being nourished by Him, to nourish the lives of our brothers and sisters.’ He explains ‘the logic of the Eucharist,’ which ‘gives us the courage to encounter others, to go out of ourselves, and to open ourselves to others with love.’

This is why the Pope encourages us to encounter Jesus in the Eucharist, because that is where we receive the capacity to love others and to allow ourselves to be transformed by Him. Finally, he encourages us to pray that ‘Catholics place at the centre of their lives the Eucharistic Celebration, which transforms human relationships and opens up an encounter with God and their brothers and sisters.’

You can watch this video here

Let us pray:

Jesus, Bread of eternal life, came down from heaven and was made flesh thanks to the faith of Mary Most Holy. After having borne him with ineffable love, she followed him faithfully unto the Cross and to the resurrection. Let us ask Our Lady to help us rediscover the beauty of the Eucharist, to make it the centre of our life, especially at Sunday Mass and in adoration.