The Fifth of Five Diocesan Synodal Goals Leading to Our Eucharistic Revival:
Jesus came to change the world. Without the saving action of Christ, the brokenness that sin initiates and exacerbates affects every relationship we have – with God, with each other, with the rest of Creation, and even with ourselves. God loves us too much to leave us in this state, and so, as we just celebrated at Christmas, in the fullness of time, Jesus came to us that we might have life and have it abundantly. In encountering Jesus and allowing Him to act in our lives, we are opened to a new way of being in the world, a new way of living, to a life in Christ.
Our response to the gift of salvation offered to us in Jesus is to put our trust in Him rather than in ourselves. It is to entrust our very selves to Him, our lives and every aspect of them. It is to follow Him, learning from Him what a real life of grace can be. It is to grow in relationship with Him, and through Him with the Father and the Holy Spirit who is always so close to us. It is to grow in relationship with each other and to see all as our brothers and sisters, loved by the God who loves us and worthy of our love, even when they themselves do not recognize their worth or follow a path of truth and goodness. This response is a life of discipleship, wholly given over to Jesus as Our Lord and Savior. During our Synodal experience and in our Convocation, we saw the need to go ever deeper into this discipleship and into the mission to which it commits us: to love God above all things and our neighbors as ourselves.
"Without the saving action of Christ, the brokenness that sin initiates and exacerbates affects every relationship we have – with God, with each other, with the rest of Creation, and even with ourselves."
Eucharistic Revival is about this journey. In a True Eucharistic Revival, we will be taken deeper in our own discipleship and will be equipped for the mission of bringing others to discipleship as missionary disciples. We will be reconciled with God, with each other, with Creation, and with ourselves through the sacrament of Reconciliation. We will be formed by the Word in the readings at Mass, in good homilies, and in our individual reading of Sacred Scripture. We will live in a communion that only Jesus can bring and will celebrate that and be brought ever more fully into that communion in the Eucharist. We will be nourished and strengthened for growth and for the battle of following Christ in everyday life by receiving the Eucharist.
For a True Eucharistic Revival, we need to encounter Jesus ourselves, and we need to help others encounter Him. For a True Eucharistic Revival, we need to grow as disciples, and we need to accompany others as they grow as disciples. Living out the Good News of salvation and new life in Christ and sharing that Good News with others so that they may experience and join us in the gift we have received are at the heart of missionary discipleship.
For a True Eucharistic Revival, we need to encounter Jesus ourselves, and we need to help others encounter Him. For a True Eucharistic Revival, we need to grow as disciples, and we need to accompany others as they grow as disciples.
As we move forward, let us see that the Diocesan Synodal Goals are not separate but interrelated. Enhanced Spiritual Formation in the Holy Spirit, Improved Communications and Responsible Coordination of Efforts, and a Renewal of Formation in Doctrine and the Sacraments will be major components of a True Eucharistic Revival that results in Missionary Disciples who are alive in their Faith and equipped for their mission of bringing the love and mercy of Christ to a world that so desperately needs Him. Join me in taking little steps that will help these goals to be realized so that each of us and those we love will be brought ever more closely into the arms of our Heavenly Father through Our Lord Jesus Christ as we trustingly follow the Holy Spirit! St. Thérèse, pray for us!
Link to the Revive Parishes course: https://reviveparishes.com/course/mystery-of-the-eucharist-in-the-life-of-the-church-course/
This is recommended formation for all Parish Eucharistic Revival Teams, but it is also a good resource for anyone who is interested.
+Most Reverend Stephen J. Berg
Bishop of Pueblo
Image by jcomp on Freepik
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