From Our Pastor: Choosing to Serve God and Reverence in the Eucharist

This weekend’s readings, we are asked to choose. In the book of Joshua, Joshua asks the people who they will serve. This question is posed to you and to me. Whom will you serve? Will you serve the world or fame or fortune or success or sports or your kids sports etc? OR will you serve God? And the Lord alone? And the answer Joshua gives is the answer we should give. Not just I will serve the Lord. Joshua says “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Does your whole household serve the Lord? Is it the priority?

This last week I saw a great meme that asked a good question. It said “When you'll run yourself ragged to make sure your child is involved in every school & social event/activity, but thinks it's no big deal for them to miss church.....that's a real big deal.” I remember Sundays at my household growing up could be hectic of everyone getting up and getting ready for mass to get there, hopefully on time. Usually right before we started or maybe a couple minutes before. What I will tell you is that hectic mess that Sunday morning could tell me the message of this meme, that it was a really big deal. We only did that chaotic hurry to be ready and on time for things that were important. Make mass that important in your family and life.

The gospel asks us to choose to believe in the real presence of Jesus. Do you? In the gospel today, Jesus actually lets some of his followers leave because they didn’t believe. Judas leaves because of this to go and betray Jesus, because he truly doesn’t believe in the real presence. Do you? Do your actions show you believe? When you receive do you act reverent or just be flippant about receiving? When you walk back to your pew do you look like you received your Lord or do you look like you’re just walking down the street? Do you have a posture of prayer on the way up and back? Are you in a state of grace and have you been to confession in the last year (at least)? Do you fast before mass? Remember in the old days the fast was from midnight on, which is why midnight mass and early morning masses were popular. Yes, Father’s pet peeve is for many reasons, because chewing gum breaks your fast. Use water or cough drops (medicinal and melt) if your throat needs it, i.e. you have a cough or dry mouth. Ask yourself would your grandma or the sister you had in school allow you to ever think it’s ok to chew gum in church? I think not. They’d probably smack you up the backside of the head for even thinking about it, let alone doing it. Besides do you believe in the real presence of Jesus? Do you think it’s acceptable to chew your Lord into your gum and spit it out? The answer is no and desecration of the Eucharist is a serious matter. I was asked in passing this several times in the last week about this and why I am so strong on this subject. So, I am writing an explanation here. The question is why is every person and every priest NOT strong on this subject? We should be. It’s a desecration to the Lord and tells everyone you don’t believe in the real presence. Fasting before communion is important. Please make sure you actually make that a priority. Jesus actually asks the apostles are you going to leave me too? And that question is posed to us? Do we believe what we receive in the Eucharist is really a WHO? It is the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus that we receive. May you answer like Peter, “Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life!” The Eucharist is the source of eternal life. Choose Jesus Christ and serve Him.

I don’t know if you have noticed how great our campus looks. If you see Marty Karhoff, thank him because man does he work hard to trim and edge and clean up our campus. It’s an insane amount of work. We have a team to mow and I am appreciative of the Wiewel’s for that work. Marty keeps it all pristine and makes us look good to our community. If you see him give him a thanks! He works hard.

Lastly, school is up and running and going great. Thanks to the faculty and staff for their hard work. We will begin adoration on Wednesdays after school mass until 5 p.m. and I ask you to consider signing up each week so that we can make sure we have enough people to make this available to our school children and our community. It’s very important. You can not have adoration without someone there to adore. We always have two to make sure that someone is consistently there. Please make sure to sign up. We will begin the Wednesday after Labor Day.

- Rev. Steven Arisman