It’s not easy being a sacrament. It is a challenging identity to claim, both as individuals and as community, but it is most definitely what we are called to be by baptism and through our understanding of the paschal mystery. Making a commitment to live as sign and symbol of a love beyond human understanding demands much of us. The Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it this way: “The Church’s mission is not an addition to that of Christ and the Holy Spirit, but is its sacrament: in her whole being and in all her members, the Church is sent to announce, bear witness, make present, and spread the mystery of the communion of the Holy Trinity” (738). Embracing this mission requires a certain surrender of self. We have to abandon the part of ourselves that seeks recognition and praise and build up instead the part that reflects Christ. The primary way that we do this is by growing in communion with each other, by sharing sacramentally in communion, by celebrating Eucharist in the most powerful ways that we can. When we have shared of the bread and cup and so again become the living Body of Christ, we are renewed in our ability to transform a broken world.

Doing so requires a willingness to connect what we do liturgically with our actions in daily life. It means being able to remember clearly the power of our images, poetic words, and symbols when we are attacked for our witness. How many of you, I wonder, have been berated for daring to claim that we who believe are the Bread of Life, the Body of Christ? Too many to count. I wonder, too, how St. Augustine would have fared if he spoke today with the words he used to invite the community at Hippo to the eucharistic table, “See what you believe! Become what you receive!” Still, if we dare to believe that Eucharist is not just a passive moment of reception but an action of sharing and new identity that transcends time, we can begin to find ways to continue to be the presence of Christ for one another that extends far beyond liturgy.

This year in ML, the Exsultet is our guide, and in this issue we consider the Eucharist, our passover feast, in a variety of dimensions. Mary Ann Paulukonis explores liturgical action and everyday life, making insightful suggestions about how to make connections between the two. Enabling these connections should be part of the formation and evangelization ministry of every community. Anne Louise Bannon shares some perspective on preparing the Liturgy of the Word and maintaining balance in celebrations of Eucharist. Joni Woelfel completes a two-part series as she describes ways of exploring positive memories as part of a ministry of healing. Recognizing that it is difficult at times to present positive images when ministering to those suffering pain or loss, she suggests methods of accessing memories of joy as a means of comfort. Caring for those in pain is an important part of our mandate as sacrament. Todd Flowerday presents a practical approach to volunteers in the parish community. Tending to those in volunteer parish ministry is a vital task, and how we treat those who offer their time and talent speaks volumes about who we are as community. Tom Iwanowski offers the second half of a series of resources for basic formation about the Mass so that as a community we may deepen our understanding of the communion we share.

In that communion we find strength, hope, and mystery. “In the humble signs of bread and wine, changed into his body and blood, Christ walks beside us as our strength and our food for the journey, and he enables us to become, for everyone, witnesses of hope. If, in the presence of this mystery, reason experiences its limits, the heart, enlightened by the grace of the Holy Spirit, clearly sees the response that is demanded, and bows low in adoration and unbounded love” (John Paul II, Ecclesia de Eucharistia 62). As we continue to ponder the mysteries we proclaim in the song of the great Vigil, may we continue to be witnesses of hope, bowing low in loving adoration.

For Christ has ransomed us with his blood,
and paid for us the price of Adam’s sin
to our eternal Father!

This is our passover feast,
when Christ, the true Lamb, is slain,
whose blood consecrates the homes of all believers. ML

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