Homily Notes, 06-06-21 - The Invitation to the Banquet

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 06-06-21
Second week after Pentecost
The Invitation to the Banquet


"A certain man made a supper and invited many..."

The Feast of Corpus Christi is a very important feast because the Eucharist is the most important gift God has given us.  It is the most important sacrament because it is God giving Himself to us; it is the closest union we can achieve with God on earth.

You probably didn't quite understand what you were doing when you received your first communion because you were too young to fully appreciate it.  How much have you grown and changed in your appreciation since then?  Do you have a better disposition now; is it the same, or worse?  Many receive the Eucharist out of routine, failing to understand the great gift that it is.

It is worth fighting for.  You should fight your whole life to receive communion.  Great saints prepared every single day to receive the Eucharist and gave thanks afterward.  Then they prepared to receive again. The Eucharist is a foretaste of Heaven because Heaven is the presence of God. As humans we can never be truly worthy to receive this gift, but we should still try to do what we can to be as worthy as we can be.  Make yourself worthy to receive this precious sacrament by:

1. Fighting against sin and temptation.

2. By living a life of virtue.  Live a life of good actions.  Our bodies and souls are meant to be dwelling places for God.  When we receive Holy Communion, we have God in our body and in our soul.  We are a temple of God.  If we invite someone into our house, we don't just clean the house but we also decorate it and make it beautiful.  Same with our souls; it's not good enough to just say "don't sin," it's also necessary to make our soul beautiful with virtuous actions, to make our soul a fitting resting place for God.  Clean, decorate, and prepare your soul to receive the Eucharist.

3. Fight to preserve the presence of God.  God's presence remains physically in our body for a time but also remains in our soul.  With God in our soul, we can be a shining light in the world, an example to others.  We have to stand out to show God to the world.  You are meant to be a lighthouse that guides others to God.  Our greatest means of being this shining force is by the reception of the Eucharist.

Maybe you didn't really receive well at your First Communion, but now you have the means to grow in your appreciation and consider what it is you are receiving.

In the Gospel, we have a man who makes a great feast and invites his friends.  They all come up with excuses not to come.  They don't come.  It's similar to Our Lord inviting us to the Eucharist, and yet we make excuses not to draw closer to Him.  So Our Lord turns to those who do accept the gift that He gives.  He gathers those who love Him.

Ask Our Lady to help you receive worthily; to prepare yourself to receive this Sacrament so you can enter into this Holy Feast that is the Mass.  Each time we receive communion, we should strive to grow in knowledge of and service for Our Lord.


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