Jesus, our Great High Priest, lovingly offered his own life on the cross as a holy sacrifice to the Father for our sins. As the spotless â??Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the worldâ?? (John 1:29), Jesus established the everlasting covenantâ??â??the new covenant in my bloodâ?? (Luke 22:20)â??with the Father. In the Eucharist, this one sacrifice of Christ is again made fully present.
By taking part in the liturgy of the Eucharist, we join ourselves to this one holy sacrifice of Christ. The celebration of the Eucharist culminates in the reception of Holy Communion. We are nourished in the Eucharistic banquet by the living bread, and we partake of the cup of our salvation. The Risen Lord Jesus comes to dwell personally within us, and so we share in his life and friendship. He gives himself completely and entirely to us, and we are called to give ourselves completely and entirely to him. We are also lifted up into his heavenly Kingdom, and, in union with him, we are embraced by the Father in the love of the Holy Spirit as his redeemed sons and daughters. Receiving Jesus in Holy Communion, therefore, fortifies us against sin, which damages our relationship with God; heals us of our weaknesses; and empowers us to live holy lives of sacrificial love for one another.
The reception of Holy Communion is an act of the Church as the Body of Christ. While we each personally receive Holy Communion, it is not a private devotion. Rather, the reception of Holy Communion is an integral part of our worship as a community of faith. Likewise, the term â??communionâ?? accentuates the fact that, in receiving Holy Communion, we are united to Jesus and thus to one another. As we become one body with Christ in receiving Holy Communion, so we are also united with one another. â??Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loafâ?? (1 Cor 10:17).
Union with Christ is also union with all those to whom he gives himself. I cannot possess Christ just for myself; I can belong to him only in union with all those who have become, or who will become, his own. Communion draws me out of myself towards him, and thus also towards unity with all Christians. We become â??one body,â?? completely joined in a single existence. Love of God and love of
neighbor are now truly united: God incarnate draws us all to himself. Receiving Jesus in Holy Communion is then the foremost source and expression of our communion with the Blessed Trinity and with one another. Holy Communion is truly a foretaste of heavenâ??where together all of the Fatherâ??s children will become fully one with his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in the love of the Spirit.
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Happy Are Those Who Are Called to His Supper: On Preparing to Receive Christ Worthily in the Eucharist
