Our Daily Bread
While they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is my body.” Mark 14:22
In many, if not all, religious traditions, the sharing of a meal is a celebration rich in symbolism. The Eucharist and Passover are bearers of the shared memories of a people. God reveals himself through the communal ritual of drinking and eating. Through the Eucharist, we believe that God remembers himself for us. He is brought to our midst and once again nourishes us with his very flesh and blood. We consume his life, and he becomes, very intimately, a living part of us. When we leave the sacred table and reimmerse ourselves into the seemingly mundane routines of life, we bear God within us—a God who lived, died and rose for us so that we might live the same mystery for and with each other. The body and blood of Jesus is indeed food for our journey through life.
Fr. James Stephen Behrens, O.C.S.O.
Originally published June 3, 2018
