In remembering our dead this month, we highlight some thoughts by Fr Anthony as shared by Emmanuel Magazine in the November/December edition of this year.
"Some years ago, while preparing to preach on the Sunday Scriptures, I was struck by this verse in the Book of Wisdom. '...And passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of god and prophets' (7:27).
The passage of course, is about Wisdom, the highest attribute of God and the supreme gift of God to souls that seek him. But, as I reflected on it then and through the ensuing years, I have come to see that this is also a beautiful description of the Eucharist as I experience it, celebrate it, and pray it.
As a religious of the blessed Sacrament and a priest, the Eucharist is the center of my life and ministry, and the privileged place of entry into the mystery of God. Certainly as a priest, my ministry is public in nature. But the Eucharist is also my prayer as a member of the community of believers, all of us together offering our praise and worship to God.
'And passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of God...' Wisdom brings about intimacy with God The Eucharist also does.
The intimacy of the Eucharist is not of our making, but of god's desiring and effecting. As we sit at table with the Lord, as for his first followers on the night of the Last Supper and in subsequent meals and encounters with the Lord after his resurrection, Christ draws us close to himself, to his heart and to the Father's. he teachers us, forgives us, strengthens us with the gift of his very life, and then sends us out in his name.
The first moment of eucharistic intimacy is the liturgy, but it is deepened and intensified in times of quiet prayer in his presence. how amazing it is to know the overwhelming love of God for us in Christ!
'...and prophets.' The Eucharist is meant to change us and empower us for our mission in the world. Weak and sinful and wholly dependent on God's grace, we are nonetheless transformed over time to boldly proclaim God's truth, justice, and compassion to others. Thus, the Eucharist brings us to the heart of God in loving intimacy and then outward in mission to those around us. "
Eucharistic Witness
Very Reverend Anthony Schueller, SSS
(1950-2021)
