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Saturday, January
22, 2005
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"Hoc
est corpus meum ...Hic est enim sanguis meus"
"This IS
my Body ... this IS my Blood"
Saint
Matthew 26.26-28 |
The
Priesthood of Jesus Christ
Body and Blood
Confessional ...
Consecration ... and Calvary
The
human soul longs, craves for, blessing and forgiveness.
The human heart longs to experience itself as dwelling in God's
favour, being the recipient of the gift of His graces, but how
often do we actually really reflect upon the beauty, the power,
the mercy made manifest, freely offered to each and every one of
us in the Sacrament of Reconciliation?
How often do we reflect upon with gratitude those priests who
have laid down their lives, to be ministers of His Word and His
sacraments?
It is comparatively easy for us to engender feelings of
compassion, sympathy and pity for those held in captivity,
imprisoned through no fault of their own, and even with those
who have perpetrated crimes and live out their limited existence
in our prisons and state penitentiaries --- but do we ever think
of those who are prisoners of love? --- Those who spend much of
their lives within the close confines of the Confessional
listening to the penitent hearts of humanity?
Throughout the whole Catholic world, especially in the great
centres of pilgrimage, Lourdes, Fatima, Guadeloupe, Knock, Rome,
Assisi, San Giovanni Rotundo, and in many, many other places,
priests serve the faithful with great generosity within the
Confessional.
The self giving of a priest in the Confessional is beyond
measure, the holy, wise, and loving counsel given ... these are
the listening ears of Christ, the priest's lips are the
dispensers of the very mercy of God, and who among us has not
known healing and received the gift of new life through the
ministry of a priest?
We will never know with what love the priest has taken our
burdens upon himself in prayer, often with penance and
mortification, often with tears before God.
Think of the great Cure of Ars, Saint Jeanne Vianney, who
performed the most extraordinary penances to gain merits, or as
a gift of reparation to the Lord, for the sins of his penitents.
Hundreds were drawn to seek his counsel; through his aid, his
love, his wisdom, and holy encouragement they perceived rightly
that he could and would direct their feet on the path back to
God.
"The Priest continues the work of redemption on earth ... If we
really understood the priest on earth, we would die, not of
fright, but of love ... The Priesthood is the love of the heart
of Jesus". (Cure of Ars)
Saint Padre Pio, the Friar of San Giovanni Rotundo, the
Stigmatic and Priest, is famous for the miracles of healing that
have been performed through his intercession; but far more
impressive are the long hours he sat in the Confessional,
consoling, correcting and assisting sinners.
"He united himself to Christ in expiation for the sins of man.
If there were many conversions through him, many astounding, I
believe that this was principally due to his suffering, a
message of devotion, of fidelity and of love for the Pope and
the Church". (Fr General of the Order)
And what of the much loved "hero of the confessional" Saint
Leopold Mandic, the humble Capuchin Friar, who spent the greater
part of his priestly life in the Confessional. He himself was
crippled with arthritis, and at a mere 4 feet 10 inches tall, a
small man at best --- with a great heart for God and for souls.
Thousands benefited from his ministry of self sacrifice.
"When I say Mass, my thoughts are all for who have consulted me.
At the culmination of the Sacred Mysteries I fold them all in my
heart and I know the prayers will be answered because what I ask
for is nothing compared to what I offer". (Saint Leopold Mandic).
The very fact that thousands and thousands have sought to be
reconciled to God through the ministry of a priest in the
Confessionals of our great Churches shows how much the human
heart and soul longs to be at peace and in communion with its
God.
Our God is so rich in mercy and forgiveness! In abundance unto
overflowing! Let us take time to read the lives of our Saints,
our priests and sing with heartfelt gratitude for all they have
done for the Church --- which is to say, for us. For you. For
me.
Probably the most poignant picture to be seen in recent years
was the photograph that appeared in all our national papers, and
on all our television networks of Our Holy, Father Pope John
Paul, listening, with his head bowed, to the words and heart of
his would-be assassin Ali Agca, an unforgettable picture of
mercy and forgiveness. A veritable image ... the clearest image
of God, before our eyes ...
Who can ever know or fathom the love which passes through the
heart of a priest; who can ever possibly begin to valuate his
holy zeal to win and save souls for the Kingdom.
The heart of a priest is the heart of Christ.
Pray and give thanks for our priests, especially for those who
have assisted you through life, and brought you life, in Christ
--- even Jesus Christ Himself at the Altar, in the Most Holy
Sacrifice of the Mass --- His very Body and Blood in the Holy
Eucharist ... by whose hands, whose words, Christ becomes really
and truly present to us!
Peace through the Sacrament of Penance --- Life itself through
the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar!
Give thanks to God for Priests among men who bring us to God in
the Confessional ... and bring God to us in the the Mass!
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