The Catholic Weekly 21 June 2020

8 21, June, 2020 F rom the archbishop catholicweekly.com.au The Bread of Life The Eucharist is no mere symbol. It really is Jesus, God, in every possible wayWho we receive A ustralia breathed a collective sigh of relief when 14-year-old Wil- liamCallaghan was found on Wednesday on a moun- tain north of Melbourne. William, who is autistic and non-verbal, was on a camp- ing trip when he ran ahead and got lost, spending two Pope Francis celebrates the Eucharist during Easter Mass in St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican on 12 April. PHOTO: CNS,ANDREAS SOLARO, REUTERS POOL Priests (from left) Miguel Campos, John Jang,William Chow, Joseph Murphy, William Loh OP, Moises Tapia Carrasco and Ronnie Ma- ree pose for the camera after their ordination in Sydney in 2019. PHOTO: GIOVANNI PORTELLI nights in freezing conditions, in treacherous terrain, with- out food, water or protective clothing. Just hours before he was found, the boy’s mother Penny confessed “I’m not the praying type, but I’m praying now.” All Australia was praying with her. Certainly we Cath- olics were, because – at our best – we are great pray-ers. Through the recent pandem- ic we’ve served our commu- nity inmany ways, including constant prayer for our health professionals and essential service workers, leaders and health authorities, those at- risk or anxious, the sick, dy- ing and deceased. We’ve also demonstrated great resilience in the face of church lock- downs, joining Mass through live-streaming and praying fromhome or wherever we are. I recently saw ameme of a family back at Mass at last. In a thought-bubble above his head the father is thinking: “I’mglad to be back at church again, but I domiss being able to fast-forward andmute”! Go- ing to church at home has its upsides. But we know it’s sec- ond best. Our highest prayer is theMass – the Church’s offer- ing of Christ to the Father in in- tercession for the needs of the world. We participatemost ful- ly in Christ’s self-giving by be- ing present and receiving His substance into our own inHoly Communion. Andwe extend that experience by praying be- fore the Blessed Sacrament. Public health restrictions have forced a long Eucharistic fast upon us – not just abstaining fromearthly food for an hour before Holy Communion, but abstaining fromour heavenly food itself for several months now. The hunger we’ve experi- enced shouldmake us appreci- ate the Eucharist all themore, as we realisemore than ever how important it is to gather with our brothers and sisters in Christ and receive Him to- gether. Good as it has been to practice spiritual communion during this time, our hungry souls have craved sacramen- tal Communion. As we gradu- ally return to the altar not just hungry for Our Lord but more appreciative, we will discov- er anewhowdeeply satisfying is that Eucharistic food and, hopefully, bemore deter- mined than ever to receive it every Sunday out of love, and well-prepared, not just out of habit. Hungry, appreciative, satis- fied. Cooking shows are all the rage and I have to admit I’m a fan of Nigella, Jamie, Don- na and others and delight in attempting their recommen- dations. So glamourised, hun- grying, even addictive are the shows and cookbooks, ads and blogs of celebrity chefs and food stylists that it’s been dubbed ‘food porn’. So I won- der howmodernity hears Je- Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP