Is it still special for you?

Happy Easter!

We are continuing to celebrate the Easter Season! This weekend is a big one for some of the second graders of our parish. This is the first group of kids that are receiving Holy Communion for the first time! This year we again are breaking them up into smaller groups, so we are having three First Communion Masses since we have over 70 kids that will be receiving this great Sacrament for the first time. For a while, they have been preparing themselves to receive Jesus into their bodies in a very special way, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. This is what we receive each and every time that we receive Holy Communion.

As we are reminded of how special this day is, we can also remind ourselves to ask the question, how do we think of it when we are receiving it? Are we reminded how special of a thing it is to be able to receive Christ and let His body and His blood feed us, both bodily and spiritually? Yes, this is an important day in the children’s lives as well as their families. We sometimes get caught up in the children dressing in a special way, the boys with their nice clothes and ties, the girls in their pretty white dresses. It is a special day. It is a very special and holy event. It should be an incredible experience for them because of who they are receiving. But, as important as the first reception of the Eucharist is, the 2nd, the 10th, the 323rd, etc. is not less special or important for any of us.

We sometimes forget how much of a gift it is to be able to receive the Blessed Sacrament on a regular basis, as the old saying goes, what we do daily, sometimes we do dully or another phrase that I like better, practice makes permanent. I invite each and every one of you to remember your own First Communion (I received mine from Fr. Pat Bacon). Remember how special that day was and what it meant to you. Is receiving Jesus today, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity less special today since it is not the first time? The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the source and the summit of our faith. It is an incredible gift that Jesus gave to us to continue to draw us closer and closer to Him!

A few years ago was a stark reminder to me when we were not able to celebrate Holy Week and Easter together and should have reminded us of what we were really missing. Still even now, there are many people that still cannot come together to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and thus are not able to receive Him in the Eucharist. We should take time again and again to remind ourselves how special it is and to receive Him each and every time we come to Mass. The first time is special, but so are all the rest!

God bless,
Fr. Ken