The Eucharist is my Everything

“The Eucharist? The Eucharist is my Everything,” our pastor preached on Corpus Christi.  “The Eucharist is my Everything.”

I learned just how much the Eucharist means to me one night when this Gift was withheld, years before those dark months when the whole Church would experience this. It was at a daily Mass. The time came for Communion and the priest went to the tabernacle, but realized the key was not in its usual spot. He checked by the sacristy. The servers were checking. The key could not be found.  

When he announced that there would be no Communion, my heart sank. As we recited a spiritual communion, I ran through the daily Mass schedule in my mind.  There were no other Masses of the day. That familiar longing during the Triduum awoke in me.  I felt like Mary Magdalene lamenting at the empty tomb, and the tears later fell on my steering wheel.  It was an oddly painful yet consoling grace reminding me just how much I depend on my Beloved for strength, nourishment, and intimacy.  

A symbol doesn’t do that.
A custom doesn’t do that.
Good vibes certainly don’t do that.
Bread can’t do that.
A reminder won’t do that.

But a Person does.
A Bridegroom does.
Heaven does.
Truth does.
Love does.

May the Eucharist be my and your Everything, and may our longing for this Heavenly Feast only increase.