The Eucharist is a “powerful antidote” to division in the world, Pope Leo XIV said yesterday, calling on Catholics to “draw with faith from this source of divine life” and to allow themselves “to be transformed by the mystery we celebrate”. Source: EWTN News.
“Thus, by incorporating us into Christ, the Eucharist teaches us to adopt the very style of life of the Lord Jesus, which was marked by the free gift of himself,” the Pope said during his general audience in St Peter’s Square.
“This gift draws us into the dynamic of unity, offering a powerful antidote to the forces of division that undermine our world, our communities, our families, and our hearts,” he said.
The Pope continued his catechesis on the documents of the Second Vatican Council, focusing on the Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium on the sacred liturgy.
Leo highlighted the liturgical reform called for by the council fathers, especially the creation of the Lectionary, the book containing the biblical readings for liturgical celebrations.
“The liturgical reform translated this request into the treasure that is the Lectionary, the book that gathers all the biblical readings for liturgical celebrations,” he said.
“This richness has been drawn from the purest source of the living Tradition, which combines fidelity with tradition; with openness to legitimate progress,” the Pope added, citing Sacrosanctum Concilium.
Reflecting on the Mass, Leo said the faithful are invited “to listen to the Word of God and to be nourished at the Lord’s table, where He offers Himself to the Father.”
The two parts of the Mass – the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist – “are so closely connected with each other that they form but one single act of worship,” he said.
“The Eucharist opens us to an understanding of Scripture, just as Scripture for its part illumines and explains the mystery of the Eucharist,” the Pope said, quoting Benedict XVI’s apostolic exhortation Verbum Domini.
The Pope said that through the Eucharist, Christians become what they receive: the Body of Christ.
“Thus, the Eucharist is the sacrament of the Kingdom that is to come,” Leo said. “It is the Bread for the journey that leads us to our heavenly homeland, until that blessed day when ‘God will be all in all’.”
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Pope Leo XIV: The Eucharist is a powerful antidote to division (By Victoria Cardiel, EWTN News)
