Can I get an 'Amen'?

Leland's first Eucharist was valid but may not have been licit. He forgot to say, "Amen." Out loud—at least. I want to think he was so consumed by the moment that no audible was needed. As we were returning, I whispered, "You forgot to say, 'Amen.'" And he froze with widened eyes. "It's okay—I assured—as long as you believe."

Perhaps you've heard: that St. Monica is a community where all are welcome. And probably the greatest assurance is when Msgr.'s paraphrases Pope Francis: "The Eucharist is not a prize for the perfect. It's food and nourishment for those who need it." This is from Evangelli Gaudium (paragraph 47), and his footnotes for this proclamation are an exceptional consolation—citing Saints Ambrose and Cyril.

A national Eucharistic Revival begins this weekend and will continue for three years. Skeptics and cynics may quickly sow suspicion that this is a political movement rather than a spiritual one. However, Leland's experience reminds us that the relationship with God is an individual one—an invitation to strengthen our "Amen" to the true presence of Jesus. If we applaud our Holy Father for equating the Eucharist with "powerful medicine," who are we in our human condition to deny it to others?

When we consume the body and blood, we are never the same. That’s why partaking of the Eucharist is, for us, an evangelical undertaking. It is both a transformation and a declaration. When we accept this tremendous gift, we are proclaiming what we believe, and we are accepting the grace to follow through on that commitment.

Thank you for supporting St. Monica and our parish commitment to serve, support, and sustain all who are welcome here: wealthy and impoverished; single, married, gay, straight, or divorced; broken or whole, worthy or unworthy. It is only through your encouragement and contribution to parish life that make it possible to continue. Thank you for your "Amen!"