September 7, 2005
We’re approaching the end of the Year of the Eucharist (it concludes in October 2005), the parting gift of Pope John Paul II to the Church, and what will be remembered as the year in which he died – the year he passed from the veiled reality of the Presence and Sacrifice of Christ which we celebrate here, into the full and unveiled reality of His Presence in the Kingdom of the Father. It’s worthwhile asking ourselves how well we took advantage of this grace-filled opportunity to reawaken in our hearts the “Eucharistic amazement” that John Paul II so ardently desired the Church to recover. And if, perhaps, we haven’t done as well as we could, or even if we haven’t done anything special at all to respond to this invitation, there’s still time; it’s not too late – yet. That seems to be part of the message of the parable of the workers in the vineyard (Mt 20:1-16): God doesn’t disdain those who squeeze in at the last minute.
And for those of us who, perhaps because of our negligence and sloth, need a little spiritual “kick in the pants” to get us moving, our new Pope Benedict XVI has some rousing words for us. In a homily he gave 26 years ago in Rome as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he spoke of Christ’s “sacred proximity” to us in the Eucharist, and vigorously proclaimed: “Today this should once more sink into our hearts: God is near. God knows us. God is waiting for us in Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. Let us not leave him waiting in vain! Let us not, through distraction and lethargy, pass by the greatest and most important thing that life offers us” [God Is Near Us; The Eucharist, the Heart of Life, ed. Stephan Otto Horn and Vinzenz Pfnür, trans. Henry Taylor (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2003) p. 103].
The last group of laborers were hired by the owner of the vineyard at the eleventh hour. Right now we’re in the eleventh month of the Eucharistic Year. If it wasn’t too late for them, it’s not too late for us! And maybe, if we take the parable seriously, it just might be possible to receive a year’s worth of grace and blessing in a month, or even a day. That’s kind of what an indulgence is all about, isn’t it? And there are indulgences attached to the Year of the Eucharist! Check out:
So let’s not lose the opportunity while there’s still time to seize the grace of this Year!
Fr. Herald J. Brock, CFR
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