Deacon Jerry’s Lenten Reflection: 3rd Sunday of Lent
The last two weeks we explored God’s Covenant and his promise to us of undying eternal love. The covenants God gives us is gradually revealed and fulfilled in Christ.
I will cheat a bit, kind of like reading the end of a book to get to the punchline that we see in its fullness in the Triduum at the end of the month. The reason for me skipping ahead is that this weekend we are hosting a Eucharistic Miracle Exhibit in the Mackin Center from Saturday evening, March 2, through Tuesday, March 5th, at 5:30. The complete hours are listed elsewhere in the bulletin.
The Exhibit is remarkable for two reasons: (1) who created the Exhibit and (2) what constitutes a Eucharistic miracle.
The Exhibit was created by Carlo Acutis a young Italian web designer who died 18 years ago at the age of 15. Carlo came from a wealthy secular family that was not particularly religious, yet Carlo was devoted to spreading the word about Eucharistic miracles and approved Marian apparitions. He was beatified by Pope Francis three and a half years ago.
What is a Eucharistic miracle? You could say that every Mass is a Eucharistic miracle, and you would be right! Jesus Christ coming down and being fully present and converting these common elements of bread and wine into the substance of his body and blood is truly miraculous. But that is not what the common term Eucharist miracle refers to.
You could say the dedication of Carlo Acutis, Li (a young Chinese martyr in the late 1940s who Archbishop Sheen preached about), or Tarcisius (a young Roman martyr), or all those who faithfully institute or receive the Eucharist are Eucharistic miracles, and you would be right!. But again, that is not what the term refers to.
Lanciano, the site of an 8th century Eucharistic miracle, is typical. The priest who was saying Mass doubted as he was consecrating the Eucharist. The corpus of the consecrated host turned into human heart tissue and the wine into blood. Carlo documents 32 such approved miracles in the Exhibit. Come and see and receive a deeper understanding of the Eucharist and a deeper faith.
Blessings,
Deacon Jerry
Readings for the Third Sunday of Lent: Lectionary 28, 29
Tags: #carloacutis, #deaconjerrybrennan, #eucharist, #eucharisticmiracles, #ewtn, #exhibit, #lent2024, #lentenreflection, #michaeloneill, #ourladyofthewayside, #realpresence
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