May 27, 2005

There is a famous story from the life of Saint Philip Neri which is worth re-telling. Fr. Neri was celebrating Mass in Rome when he noticed a man leaving church right after receiving Holy Communion. Without missing a beat, Fr. Neri sent his two acolytes – with altar candles in tow – to escort the man home. When the man asked the altar servers what was going on, the obedient boys explained that Fr. Neri sent them to accompany the Blessed Sacrament. Whether the man went straight back to Church to make a proper thanksgiving I do not know, but I imagine it was his last attempt at an early exit from Mass!

Wouldn’t this Holy Year of the Eucharist be a great time to rekindle the practice of making a thanksgiving after Mass? Can you imagine what it would be like to see all the parishioners at your church kneel down after the recessional hymn and spend a few moments in silent thanksgiving? Still having present within us the Body and Blood of Our Lord – what an intimate and holy time to be with Him, with or without words!

Perhaps you would “stand out” quite noticeably if you were to quietly kneel down after Mass to express a moment of gratitude for the awesome mystery of this profound gift. Sometimes it’s good to “stand out”!

Sr. Clare Marie Matthiass, CFR
Local Servant, Our Lady of Guadalupe Convent, Bronx, New York

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