| MANAGING EDITOR, HEART OF THE REVIVAL
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Dear Friends,
At the heart of the National Eucharistic Revival is a Person: Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is inviting us each into a new, deep encounter with him that will lead to a new, deep commitment: sharing in his mission for the life of the world. As this movement continues to grow, I’m honored to have been chosen as the Heart of the Revival newsletter’s managing editor. I will also serve as your weekly newsletter host, sharing newsletter highlights, and drawing your attention to important developments during these years of Revival leading to the 2024 National Eucharistic Congress, which will launch our Year of Missionary Sending.
Our goal is to deliver engaging content to nourish and cultivate deeper commitment to Jesus on the part of our readers. You can help right now with the gift of just a few minutes. By taking our brief survey, you will help us get to know you better and discern more intentionally what kind of content we should be offering you. Thank you so much for helping us grow this newsletter and supporting this historic movement. God bless you!
In Jesus, Sister Alicia
Please click below to fill our the survey and help us serve you with this weekly newsletter: |
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INSPIRED BY THE EUCHARIST |
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Years ago, youth minister Lauren Wright witnessed dozens of middle schoolers encounter Jesus for the first time during a transformative twilight Holy Hour at summer camp. Camp ended, but the effects of that hour endure to this day, especially in Lauren’s own participation at Mass. Leer en español. |
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The Eucharist has transformed Fr. Mike Schmitz’ life, and he wants to tell you all about it. Watch his powerful testimony now. |
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REFLECTIONS ON THE LITURGY
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Eucharist: Offered also for the dead
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As we remember the Holy Souls in Purgatory during the month of November, these words from Pope Saint Paul VI’s encyclical on the Holy Eucharist remind us of how powerful the effects of the Mass are for our beloved deceased.
Foreshadowed by Malachias, this new oblation of the New Testament has always been offered by the Church, in accordance with the teaching of Our Lord and the Apostles, “not only to atone for the sins and punishments and satisfactions of the living faithful and to appeal for their other needs, but also to help those who have died in Christ but have not yet been completely purified.”
We will pass over the other citations and rest content with recalling the testimony offered by St. Cyril of Jerusalem, who wrote the following memorable words for the neophytes whom he was instructing in the Christian faith: “After the spiritual sacrifice, the un-bloody act of worship, has been completed, we bend over this propitiatory offering and beg God to grant peace to all the Churches, to give harmony to the whole world, to bless our rulers, our soldiers and our companions, to aid the sick and afflicted, and in general to assist all those who stand in need; we all pray for all these intentions and we offer this victim for them . . . and last of all for our deceased holy forefathers and bishops and for all those who have lived among us. For we have a deep conviction that great help will be afforded those souls for whom prayers are offered while this holy and awesome victim is present.”
In support of this, this holy Doctor offers the example of a crown made for an emperor in order to win a pardon for some exiles, and he concludes his talk with these words: “In the same fashion, when we offer our prayers to God for the dead, even those who are sinners, we are not just making a crown but instead are offering Christ who was slaughtered for our sins, and thus begging the merciful God to take pity both on them and on ourselves.” St. Augustine attests that this custom of offering the “sacrifice which ransomed us” also for the dead was observed in the Church at Rome, and he mentions at the same time that the universal Church observed this custom as something handed down from the Fathers.
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Our Sunday Visitor publisher Scott Richert explores how we as Catholics are called to live Eucharistic lives, focusing on the significance of the sanctuary lamp, which signals to all the presence of Christ. Read here.
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Surrounded by the reality of sin and death in a broken world, any honest person would admit we desperately need a Savior. In his keynote address at the Eucharistic Congress in Fargo, North Dakota, this September, Msgr. James Shea shared how the Eucharist is an integral part of God’s epic rescue mission to save us by offering his only Son. Read more and watch Msgr. Shea’s talk here.
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| From the time of the Apostles, eyewitness testimony has been one of the most effective ways to show the world that Jesus is risen and alive among us! How has the Eucharist impacted your journey? Click below to proclaim that he is alive and still moving among us. |
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“(St.) Martin (de Porres) lived from the adoration of the Lord present in the Eucharist, passing entire nights in prayer before the crucified Lord in the tabernacle, while during the day he tirelessly cared for the sick and assisted the socially outcast and despised, with whom he, as a mulatto, identified because of his origins. The encounter with the Lord, who gives himself to us from the cross, makes all of us members of the one body by means of the one bread, which when responded to fully moves us to serve the suffering, to care for the weak and the forgotten.”
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CARDINAL RATZINGER (POPE EMERITUS BENEDICT XVI) |
This quote is from a June 2002 lecture, “Eucharist, Communion and Solidarity.” St. Martin de Porres’ feast day is celebrated on November 3.
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FOLLOW ALONG WITH THE REVIVAL |
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