Eucharist: standing along with Mary at the cross

Source: Mary at the Cross: A Mother’s Unwavering Love – Life Lessons by Jenine Marie

In yesterday’s blog I reflected on the close association between the Holy Cross – celebrated each year on 14 September – and the Eucharist which makes the fruits and the power of the sacrifice of Calvary present in the here and now.  Today’s memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows follows immediately after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross yesterday.  The liturgy invites us to stand with Mary at the foot of the Cross contemplating her Son who is given for us.  The evangelist, John, witnessed to what happened as follows:

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, here is your son.’ Then he said to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home (John 19:26-27).

At this crucial moment in salvation history three important strands come together:

The Holy Cross and the Eucharist: living with a purpose

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Cross, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The origins of this feast go back to the early centuries of Christianity and are associated with the dedication of the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and the Church's veneration of the wood of the Cross on which Christ accomplished our salvation.

At the heart of every Eucharist stands the mystery of the Cross. The Eucharist makes present the one sacrifice of Christ, the true Paschal Lamb, who offered himself for us on Calvary. His sacrifice was offered once for all, yet its saving power reaches us whenever we gather to celebrate the Eucharist. Through this sacred mystery we are drawn into Christ's death and resurrection and share in the grace that flows from his redeeming love.

St John Chrysostom: honouring Christ in the Eucharist and the poor

St John Chrysostom was born in Antioch in Roman Syria (modern-day Antakya, Turkey) around A.D. 347. In the Roman Catholic Church his feast is celebrated on 13 September, while in the Byzantine tradition his principal feast falls on 13 November. Known as ‘Golden-Mouthed’ for his eloquence in preaching, he served as Archbishop of Constantinople and died in exile in A.D. 407. He is renowned for his sermons, biblical commentaries and the Divine Liturgy that bears his name, the most commonly celebrated Eucharistic liturgy in the Eastern Orthodox Church and in many Eastern Catholic Churches.. An example of this Liturgy (translated into English) in the case of the Antiochian Orthodox Church is provided here.

In the example given, the epiclesis, the prayer invoking the Holy Spirit upon the gifts, reads as follows:

Freeing the heart: the long road of forgiveness

Sunday 13 September 2026

Lectio Divina:*

Sirach 27:30-28:7 Psalm 103(102) Romans 14:7-9 Matthew 18:21-35

(See also Luke 17:4)

Meditatio:

‘So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart’  (Matthew 18:35)

Commentary:

This Sunday’s Gospel begins with Peter’s question: how often must he forgive a brother who sins against him? Jesus responds that forgiveness cannot be measured or limited. He then tells the parable of the unforgiving servant and concludes with a solemn warning that forgiveness must come ‘from your heart’.

Forgiveness cuts both ways: our forgiveness of others and God’s forgiveness of us. Jesus has already taught that reconciliation with our neighbour is inseparable from authentic worship (Matthew 5:23-24). Forgiveness is not cheap, nor is it limited to minor grievances. It reaches into the deepest wounds of human experience.

Hunger for truth

In his exhortation, Sacramentum Caritatis, Pope Benedict XVI reminds us that:

Precisely because Christ has become for us the food of truth, the Church turns to every man and woman, inviting them freely to accept God's gift.

It is by meeting Christ in the Blessed Sacrament and being nourished by his Word that are souls are strengthened for the journey ahead.  Each one of us, whether we know it or not, deeply desires truth, beauty and goodness.  One of the great legacies of Pope Benedict XVI was the emphasis he placed on faithful adherence to the liturgical rites of the Church. Beauty, reverence, sacred music, appropriate architecture and careful celebration help reveal the mystery being celebrated. The truth of Christ’s presence in the Sacrament can never be separated from the truth of Christian witness. We go out into the world from each Mass to be broken bread for all of humanity.  In a sense – not to be confused with the reception of the Sacrament – we become food for the world.

The truth of Christ's presence in the Eucharist can never be separated from the truth of Christian witness. Having encountered Christ and received him in Holy Communion, we are sent forth to bring his love to the world. People may never read the Bible or attend Mass, but they encounter us every day. If our lives reflect Christ's self-giving charity, we become living witnesses to the Gospel and signs of the love we have received in the Eucharist.

Keeping watch with Jesus in the Eucharist

Credit: godongphoto | Shutterstock

The practice of the Forty Hours Devotion has deep roots in the Roman Catholic tradition. Adoration of Christ present in the reserved Eucharist, as we know it today, has been part of Catholic life for at least seven centuries. The devotion takes its name from the approximately forty hours during which Christ's body lay in the tomb between his death and resurrection, a symbolism strongly promoted by St Charles Borromeo and widely embraced in the Church's devotional tradition. The number forty also recalls other significant moments in salvation history, especially the forty days Jesus spent in prayer and fasting in the desert before beginning his public ministry.

At its heart, the Forty Hours Devotion is an extended period of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, inviting the faithful to contemplate the mystery of Christ's abiding presence among his people. Far from being separate from the celebration of the Mass, Eucharistic adoration flows directly from it and leads back to it.

Pope Benedict XVI wrote in Sacramentum Caritatis (2007):

The litmus test

A striking feature of modern political discourse – amplified by social media – is the lack of respect, civility and inclusion. The world is increasingly polarised into ‘them’ and ‘us’. ‘They’, who are different from ‘us’ whether by colour, creed, sexuality, political views or social class are deemed to be a threat.  ‘We’ are the victims while ‘they’ get preferential treatment in relation to goods, services and right of access. The ‘other’ is viewed as any or all of the following: suspicious, dangerous, lazy, violent, opportunistic, callous and deviant.

Christians are called to witness to the love of Christ, who offers salvation to all and excludes no person from the reach of his mercy.  We are called to view all of our neighbours as brothers and sisters of the human family.  It is appalling to witness cases such as that which was widely reported earlier this week when gangs of hooded, masked and uniformly dressed men shouted ‘Christ is King’ while they terrorised people who were trying to help other human beings. Resorting to violence and threats – online as well as offline – against the brave men and women who rescued human beings from the sea shows the depths to which hateful ideologies have entered our societies more and more. Not only that, but many of these ideologies have sought to hijack Christian religion for purposes completely inimical to the message of Jesus Christ.