YOUTH MINISTRY

Nineteenth Sunday, Ordinary Time, August 11, 2024

From the Deacon’s Desk Reflection on Today’s Gospel Reading

   Today’s Gospel reveals to us a large gap in the understanding between Christ and those who were listening to him. It is the profound difference between human understanding and divine perceptions. On the one hand, Christ spoke of himself thus:  I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.  Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world.’  His words are both mystical and difficult to grasp, but they speak to the heart of the Catholic way. Jesus is the nourishment that brings us into the kingdom as children of God. He sustains us, just as bread makes our bodies strong, the Eucharist nourishes our spiritual strength.  This spiritual nourishment is the lifeblood of our being and the key to our salvation.

   Those around Jesus who were unable to understand. They said: ‘Surely this is Jesus son of Joseph’… ‘We know his father and mother. How can he now say, “I have come down from heaven?”

   The people who were familiar with Jesus’ personal life as a human being and found it very hard to believe that He had come down from Heaven.  There, in that place of familiarity, he is already known. People find it more difficult to take him seriously when they remember him as a boy growing up. This very well can also be a challenge of faith for us, not because we remember Jesus growing up, but because we can very easily take receiving Holy Commuion for granted. The receiving of the Sacrament can become a routine, something we do, overly familiar, and normalized.

   We can easily put ourselves in the group from the Gospel reading that simply does not understand. It can be very spiritually healthy for us to admit this. After all, we are chosen to hang our entire lives of faith upon truths that remain beyond our comprehension. That is what we call ‘faith’.

   Approaching the Altar week after week can sometimes get to be a routine where we forget to pay attention to the incomprehensible, miraculous, transforming power of what we are about to do? 

   We need to recognize that Christ comes to us Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity every time we approach the altar and receive communion.  This extraordinary encounter should bring about a sense of reverence and awe in our hearts, minds, and soul. 

  When we allow it to be routine, or fail to reflect upon what we are actually receiving, we become like those in today’s Gospel, those who simply could not believe and accept what Jesus was proclaiming to them. Just as they couldn’t wrap their heads around the reality of Christ the prophet, we may sometimes not be able to understand that Communion is an extraordinary personal encounter with Jesus. We fail to move beyond that this living bread is actually Jesus, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.  Do we truly believe this?  Do we open our hearts to the transforming power of the sacrament?  Do we realize that the Eucharist calls us to be lights in a dark world where those we encounter can experience and see Christ within us.

   We live in the midst of mystery.  A mystery that is not to be solved but to be accepted wholeheartedly and embraced by our entire being with total trust and sincere conviction. We have the Gospels and Church tradition as our signposts along the way, and the everlasting truth of Christ’s words:  I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.  Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world.’

   So, let us today and every Sunday renew our trust, and our faith, in Christ’s divine presence in the Eucharist, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.  Every time we receive communion we are sent out into the world to use the gifts given to us in order to draw others into the faith of the Catholic Church, inviting others to come into the church fully and accept and believe in Her teachings, so that they too will one day be able to approach the altar in wonder and awe to receive Jesus’ Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.

Youth Ministry Announcements

Blessing of Athletes:  There will be a special blessing for athletes at the nine and eleven o’clock masses on Sunday, August 25.

Church Day at the Darke County Fair:  Deacon Mike will be at the Spiritual Life Building at the Darke County Fair on Monday, August 19, from 6:00 to 8:00.  Stop by to take a break from the fair festivities for some coffee or water, and good conversation.

Youth Mass for the Family of Parishes:  This year religious education along with youth ministry are kicking off the CCD year with a Mass at St. Louis Catholic Church in North Star, at 7:00 p.m.  All High School students are expected to attend.  Father Jones will be the main celebrant for the Mass.  Parents and other family members are encouraged to go to this special Mass 

High School Youth Ministry Sessions:  The summer is flying by and High School Youth Ministry is again around the corner.  This year we are looking into some changes in the leadership of youth ministry.  The new leadership is considering some new, and exciting options for the how youth ministry is structured on the high school level.  We will be providing information about the changes as soon as they are decided.  Middle School youth ministry will remain the same.

Middle School Youth Ministry Sessions:  Middle School Youth Ministry and will resume on September 4, 2021 for the new CCD year and will be held every Wednesday beginning with benediction at 6:05 p.m. immediately followed by Youth Ministry which will end 7:25 p.m. right religion classes which start at 7:30 p.m.

Breakfast With the Lord: The first Breakfast with the Lord will be on First Friday September 6 beginning with Mass at 6:30 a.m. followed by breakfast in the church basement.