From Father Scott – Bringing the Joy of the National Eucharistic Congress to Our Parish

With the National Eucharistic Congress comes our commission to bring the joy and enthusiasm expressed at the event in Indianapolis to our parishes. Like people led out of the dryness of the desert into a new land to ask, “What is this?”

While Fr. Arisman and some parishioners were there among the crowds, many of us watched it on EWTN and others have been hearing about it. The Masses were beautiful expressions of our faith that God does what He said He would do. That Jesus Christ fulfills all the Old Testament foretold of God sending a Redeemer. That just as Jesus gave Himself totally to the Father as an offering on the Cross, He gave His followers an Eternal Covenant in the Eucharist.

It will not be hard to bring the enthusiasm and reverence of the Congress to St. Francis Solanus. There is a deep, long-standing devotional life here that draws us into the Eucharistic experience. This is a parish on a mission!

We can find ourselves less than satisfied at times and we may grumble like the people in our first reading. But we need to remember God heard their grumbling and He gave them food so that they were satisfied. But it did not last long, and they grumbled again and even made idols wishing to return to the slavery God had freed them from. Let us be mindful of our blessings and of God’s desire to always draw us out of our own selves into His abundant life where we find our daily bread through prayer, virtue, and Eucharist.

Our Masses are made beautiful expressions of our parish’s life of mission through all those who give of their time to be servers, music ministers, lectors, ushers, collection counters, sacristans, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, and those who provide funeral ministry. Being involved in the parish beyond Sunday Mass draws us much closer to the Eucharist by bringing us closer to one another. I am grateful to all who do so much to make our worship beautiful, and I encourage anyone looking for a way to get closer to the Eucharist to join a ministry.

May the Lord inspire you to ask, “What is this.”

Yours in Christ,
Father Scott