Dear Friends,
From the youngest age, I was taught that life is a gift that we give and receive. Giving life means freely sharing who we are, what we love, and the people and things that are dear to us with others and with God. In a most profound way, parents give life to their children, participating in the creative work of the Lord. Yet, in order to give, we must first receive. God is the author of life: he is our origin and our destiny. Gifted with life, we humans were created out of love by a Father who wants to share everything with us.
When our first parents turned away from God in the Garden of Eden, he didn’t abandon us: he promised a Savior. God sent his beloved Son, Jesus, who came to take on the burden of our sin, conquering sin and death through his passion, death, resurrection, and ascension: the Paschal Mystery. The gift of life was restored to us, Heaven was opened to us, and now we can share deeply in the life of the Blessed Trinity, and in the very life-saving mission of Jesus! This is EPIC good news!
And we know the Gate (Jn 10:7) to this new life, we know the Way (Jn 14:6) to Heaven. He is a person, and his name is Jesus! In a profound and yet mysterious way, Jesus remains with us always in the Eucharist. Sometimes, he delights to use the most humble of his children to draw us into a life-changing encounter with him (“When eternal life takes root in us”). At other times, Jesus invites us to go deeper into our story — the story of salvation history — to strengthen the bond of love he so desires with us (“FORMED Now!”). At all times, he is inspiring our leaders — especially our bishops — to present our faith in ways that touch our hearts and help us deeply desire Jesus, who always deeply desires us (“Reigniting Your Eucharistic Faith”).
It is a privilege to journey with you during this time of Revival! Please continue to pray for our bishops and the countless men and women who are serving this movement. May we, like Jesus, become a gift to one another, so that all may be fully alive in Christ! |
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P.S.: Thank you for sharing your feedback in our recent prayer companion survey. I’m excited to announce that we will be journeying through Lent with the Corporal Works of Mercy — a lens to help us deepen our commitment to living Eucharistic lives! New prayer resources, testimonies, and articles are being written right now. We are so grateful for your prayers for our team of writers! |
INSPIRED BY THE EUCHARIST |
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When Katie Lyon and her husband, Ken, welcomed their daughter Jennifer into the world, they never imagined how she would change their lives and bring them to Jesus. Katie shares their story with HRN this week! Leer en español.
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The mystery of the Eucharist is deeply embedded in salvation history. Dr. Tim Gray and Dr. John Sehorn help deepen our understanding of the Biblical roots of the Eucharist in this episode of FORMED Now! |
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THE EUCHARIST AND PAPAL TEACHING
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(CNS photo/Vatican Media) |
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Pope Francis, address to participants in the course “Living Liturgical Action Fully,” January 20, 2023
And finally, I urge you to cultivate silence. In this age, we talk, we talk. ... Silence. Especially before the celebrations — a moment that is at times taken for a social gathering. We talk: “Ah, how are you? Is everything going well? Why not?” Silence helps the assembly and concelebrants to concentrate on what is to be done. Often sacristies are noisy before and after celebrations, but silence opens and prepares for the mystery: it is silence that enables you to prepare for the mystery, it permits its assimilation, and lets the echo of the Word that is listened to resound. Fraternity is beautiful; greeting one another is beautiful, but it is the encounter with Jesus that gives meaning to our gathering, to our coming together. We must rediscover and cherish silence!
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Do This in Remembrance of Me: A Step-by-Step Walk through the Mass. In this week’s column, we join Father Luke and give “glory to God in the highest” while we learn more about the Gloria as a hymn of praise. Read now. Leer en español.
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Don’t miss this webinar with Bishop Cozzens on January 29! He’ll be sharing the good news about building the Eucharistic Revival in America and all that lies ahead. You can register for free here.
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Enjoy this beautiful arrangement of “Adoro Te Devote,” a sacred hymn composed by St. Thomas Aquinas. He is known as the Angelic Doctor and made major contributions to Eucharistic Theology. Listen now!
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“This the truth each Christian learns, Bread into his flesh he turns,
To his precious blood the wine …” |
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS St. Thomas Aquinas’ feast day is celebrated on January 28.
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FOLLOW ALONG WITH THE REVIVAL |
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