2nd Sunday of Lent – Cycle AGenesis 12: 1-4a; 2 Timothy 1: 8b-10;
Matthew 17: 1-9
There is a particular song that has always been a favorite of mine. It's special. The reason it is so special is that it has the ability to change me. It doesn't matter what is happening, what mood I'm in – when that song is played, I immediately become happy. It's incredible. One moment I can be tired or depressed and the next I am invigorated and feeling good. Have any of you had that same experience? Maybe for you it's a photograph or a memory. But you recall that moment and your whole outlook seems brighter.
I imagine that for St. Peter, the events of today's gospel was just such a memory. I picture him sitting in a prison in Rome, awaiting his execution. It must have been frightening. He surely had doubts. I imagine that the memory of the transfiguration sustained him. Seeing Jesus shine like the sun, standing in the company of Moses and Elijah – I'm certain that this memory reinforced Peter's faith and renewed his soul.
Today as Catholics, we share an experience such as this every time we participate in the mass. The moment occurs just after the offertory. Father begins the dialogue:
“The Lord be with you.”
“And also with you.”
“Lift up your hearts.”
“We lift them up to the Lord.”
“Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.”
“It is right to give him thanks and praise.”
This simple exchange is designed to excite us – to pump us up – to make us ready for what is about to happen. It doesn't matter what mood we are in – it doesn't matter if we fell asleep during the deacon's boring homily- these words awaken our hearts and cause our spirits to soar. Something amazing is about to happen. We are about to celebrate the Eucharist.
There is something holy and mysterious about the Eucharist. We take ordinary bread and wine, gifts of ourselves, and bring them to our altar. And together with the priest, we participate in their transformation into the most sacred body and blood of Christ. As we pray together, the Holy Spirit accepts our offering and changes it forever into Jesus Christ himself. Bread becomes flesh. Wine becomes blood. This transformation culminates at the Agnus Dei – the Lamb of God – when the body of our Lord is broken – just as it was broken at Calvary. Father raises the host and chalice and using the words of John the Baptist proclaims “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” And we fall to our knees and with one voice we cry out “Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but say the word and I shall be healed.”
The word is given. We are invited to partake in the celebration. The bread and wine that was present only a few moments ago has been forever changed. But the transformation doesn't end there. As we come forward to receive, if we are open to the graces that the sacrament intends, we change as well. We become the body of Christ. We become the tabernacle that holds our Lord. And we take Christ with us when we leave this place and go back to our homes and our lives. We take Christ with us.
If there is one problem with the mass, and with the Eucharist in particular, it is that Eucharist can become routine. We go through the motions, we respond when necessary, but we are not fully attentive to what is happening. It is a rut that is hard to escape from. It takes effort and resolve. I ask each of you to open your hearts to the graces that this sacrament bestows. Don't allow anything to distract you from the miracle that is Eucharist. Allow the body of Christ and the Holy Spirit to mold you, to shape you, to change you into a shining example of God's love for all to witness.
I want you to look at the tabernacle for a minute. There next to the tabernacle is a lit candle. That candle burns continuously, proclaiming to the world that Jesus is present within that tabernacle. Every time we come to communion, come to receive that true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, it's as if we are re-lighting our baptismal candle and and proclaiming to the world that God dwells within each of us. Carry that light of Christ proudly.
As we leave here today, recall the words from Genesis that we heard in the first reading: “Go forth … I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. All the communities of the earth shall find blessing in you.”
May the body of Christ bring us all to everlasting life.
Deacon Darryl J. Diemer
2nd Sunday of Lent
March 20, 2011
