Pope Benedict XVI has said the Eucharist is the heart of Church life and an “antidote” to the increasingly individualistic global culture.
Addressing pilgrims on the feast of Corpus Christi, which commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, the Pope said the Eucharist was like the “pulsing heart” that gives life and meaning to everything the church does.
As the sacrament of Communion, it is able to transform people’s lives, leading them to God, he said.
“In a culture that is more and more individualistic – a culture in which we are immersed in Western society, and that tends to spread itself throughout the world – the Eucharist constitutes a type of ‘antidote,’ ” the Pope said.
“It works in the minds and hearts of believers and continually disseminates in them the logic of communion, of service, of sharing – in short, the logic of the Gospel,” he said.
The Pope said this spirit, nourished by the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, was evident in the lives of the early Christians, who lived fraternally and shared their worldly goods in common, so that no one was impoverished.
“And even in later generations through the centuries, the Church, despite human limits and errors, continued to be a force of communion in the world. We think especially of the most difficult periods of trial: what it meant, for example, in countries ruled by totalitarian regimes, to be able to gather at Sunday Mass,” he said.
Against the emptiness produced by a false sense of freedom, the Pope said, the Eucharist is like a medicine that helps people regain an attachment to the truth and the common good.
Having been unable to sell in churches for well over a year due to the pandemic, we are now inviting readers to support the Herald by investing in our future. We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values.
Please join us on our 130 year mission by supporting us. We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching. For more information from our chairman on contributing to the Herald Patron's Fund, click here
Make a Donation
Donors giving £500 or more will automatically become sponsor patrons of the Herald. This includes two complimentary print/digital gift subscriptions, invitations to Patron events, pilgrimages and dinners, and 6 gift subscriptions sent to priests, seminaries, Catholic schools, religious care homes and prison and university chaplaincies. Click here for more information on becoming a Patron Sponsor. Click here for more information about contributing to the Herald Patron's Fund