| Celebrating
“Bread for the World”
There
has been considerable concern raised in the last 10 years or so that the
faithful are losing our understanding of what Eucharist means for Catholics,
particularly regarding the doctrine of Christ’s real presence in the consecrated
bread and wine. This concern is not unwarranted — I have actually witnessed
communion ministers run back to the sacristy when the hosts were getting
low to open bags of unconsecrated hosts to add them to the communion plates.
I was able to catch them before this happened and gently remind them that
we can only use reserved hosts out of the tabernacle or those consecrated
during Mass. Many Catholics no longer understand the concept of real presence
and think of the bread and wine as simply memorial symbols, much as Presbyterian
Christians believe. Additionally, the weekly Catholic attendance at Eucharist
has fallen nationally to a dismal 28 percent. So the late Pope John Paul
II had some good reasons for wanting to set aside an entire year devoted
to our Catholic understanding of Eucharist.
There
was very good theology at Vatican II about Eucharist as the “source and
summit of the Christian life” that calls for the “full and active participation
of the people.” It helped us develop much better music over the last 40
years, much of it drawn from Scripture and readily singable for most assemblies.
It brought us the three-year Sunday lectionary, Mass texts in the vernacular,
cantors, and ministers of both bread and cup. It promoted a greater sense
of community. Unfortunately, now there is a trend building in quite the
opposite direction.
The
working text of the bishops’ Synod on the Eucharist in Rome reminds the
faithful that their role is to contribute “minimal assistance” at Eucharist
(sec. 43). How can such a theology support “full and active participation”?
There are some church leaders who would like to return communion from the
cup to the priest alone. What happened to good baptismal theology? All
the faithful should have equal access to both bread and wine as full participants
in the Lord’s paschal mystery. To do less is only to reinforce an unhealthy
clerical privilege surely not supported in the Gospels.
Another
example of this trend is that, no matter how bad the preaching, Rome insists
it must always come from an ordained person, even if it is evident that
many gifted laywomen and men have been set aside. It seems to matter little
that Christ’s flock is left unfed and that many people no longer attend
Eucharist simply because there is nothing there to inspire or challenge.
Our
archdiocese distributed a video about the Year of the Eucharist that devoted
10 minutes or so to promoting eucharistic adoration. The only images connecting
the Year with Mass were of a priest elevating the host; the participation
by the assembly was absent. Where were the exciting examples of Catholics
involved in inspiring worship together? Where was the music and preaching
that lifts up our hearts? How much more expansive it would have been to
reacquaint our people with the four real presences of Christ given to us
in the documents of Vatican II: the gathered assembly, the presiding priest,
the holy Scriptures, and the consecrated bread and wine.
I am
not trying to denigrate this devotional practice of adoration, but I am
concerned about its limitations. What does it say to the rest of the world
when our bishops spend so much effort trying to encourage Catholics to
adore Christ in bread while 80 percent of our earth community is not getting
adequate nutrition? Where is the connection of Eucharist to mission and
committing ourselves to feed our hungry sisters and brothers? How is it
possible that people are starving to death when so many people profess
to be Christian? Isn’t that shameful? Wouldn’t the Year of the Eucharist
have been a wonderful opportunity to remind us that, through Eucharist,
we too are consecrated and sent out to be bread for the world? It is not
enough just to pray for an hour before a bejeweled ostensorium and be content
we have given our all. Our faith tradition also demands that we immerse
ourselves in the struggle for justice. Prayer must always lead to a commitment
to action. The one who teaches us that he is to be found in the least of
God’s poor ones will demand a reckoning on the Last Day. ML
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