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Saturday of week 16 of the year or Saint Charbel Makhlouf, Priest or Saint Declan, Bishop

July 24th, 2010

“Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy.”
Ex 20 : 8

Unfortunately, even in Christian countries, the Sabbath Day, Sunday, has become very much the same as any other day of the week. When life seemed to go at a slower pace than now, Sunday was truly a day of rest. Only essential services brought people to work, and I remember as a child, these were no buses until 2 pm on Sundays. Families, having worshipped together, would sit down to a leisurely lunch, to be followed by an afternoon of restful leisure. How different today ! One need only think of the supermarkets trying to draw in the crowds as on any other day in the week.

To keep the Sabbath is to imitate God—six days of work and one day of rest. In following this pattern, we become co-creators with God. For six days we have worked and our lives have been focused on creating or supporting creation. On the seventh day, we enjoy the fruit of our labours; we sing our songs of thanks and praise to God for all that has been given to us, and we prepare through prayer to use our talents for the good of the earth and its people.

Prayer


PRAYER : Lord, may we find joy in serving you and may our lives be made fruitful as you have promised.

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Just a Thought

The Eucharist

The manner in which we celebrate Eucharist and the reverence we give to it speak greatly of the sort of people we are. The following is a lovely story from the early Church which I came across recently: it might help us to understand what it means to be a member of the Church:

Cyprian of Cathage, wrote to his friend, Donatus: “It’s a bad world, Donatus, in which we live. But right in the middle of it I have discovered a quiet and holy group of people. They are people who have found a happiness that is a thousand times more joyful than all the pleasures of our sinful lives. These people are despised and persecuted, but it doesn’t matter to them. They are Christians, Donatus, and I am one of them.”

St. Luke, in the Acts of the Apostles, describes how those people, the early Christians, bore witness to Christ and celebrated the Eucharist – i.e. the Mass; “The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions;… There was not a needy person among them…. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes…”

The Eucharist has consequences for the way we should live our lives. St. Augustine tells us that the Lord gave us these gifts of his Body and Blood so that we, too, might become these very things – i.e. his Body and Blood for the life of the world.

During the celebration of the Last Supper Jesus said, “I have given you an example, that you also should do what I have done to you.” Through us Christ is made present to our world. Our sharing in the Eucharist bonds us together with our brothers and sisters who have also been immersed into the life of Christ through the waters of Baptism.

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