"I myself am the bread of life. No one who comes to me shall ever be hungry, no one who believes in me shall ever thirst . . . . He who feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has life eternal and I will raise him up on the last day" (Jn 6:35 and 54). The bread and wine at Mass, "By the words of Christ and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, become Christ's Body and Blood" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1333).

"The Church draws her life from the Eucharist. This truth does not simply express a daily experience of faith, but recapitulates the heart of the mystery of the Church. In a variety of ways she joyfully experiences the constant fulfilment of the promise: 'Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age' (Mt 28:20), but in the Holy Eucharist, through the changing of bread and wine into the body and blood of the Lord, she rejoices in this presence with unique intensity. Ever since Pentecost, when the Church, the People of the New Covenant, began her pilgrim journey towards her heavenly homeland, the Divine Sacrament has continued to mark the passing of her days, filling them with confident hope. "The Second Vatican Council rightly proclaimed that the Eucharistic sacrifice is 'the source and summit of the Christian life'. 'For the most holy Eucharist contains the Church's entire spiritual wealth: Christ himself, our passover and living bread. Through his own flesh, now made living and life-giving by the Holy Spirit, he offers life to men'. Consequently the gaze of the Church is constantly turned to her Lord, present in the Sacrament of the Altar, in which she discovers the full manifestation of his boundless love." "Every commitment to holiness, every activity aimed at carrying out the Church's mission, every work of pastoral planning, must draw the strength it needs from the Eucharistic mystery and in turn be directed to that mystery as its culmination. In the Eucharist we have Jesus, we have his redemptive sacrifice, we have his resurrection, we have the gift of the Holy Spirit, we have adoration, obedience and love of the Father. Were we to disregard the Eucharist, how could we overcome our own deficiency? (Pope John Paul II, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 1 & 60).

"Indeed, this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks upon the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life. Him I will raise up on the last day" (Jn 6:40).

"It is pleasant to spend time with him, to lie close to his breast like the Beloved Disciple (cf. Jn 13:25) and to feel the infinite love present in his heart. If in our time Christians must be distinguished above all by the 'art of prayer', how can we not feel a renewed need to spend time in spiritual converse, in silent adoration, in heartfelt love before Christ present in the Most Holy Sacrament? How often, dear brother and sisters, have I experienced this, and drawn from it strength, consolation and support!" (Pope John Paul II, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 25).

"Give me Thy grace to long for Thine holy Sacraments, and specially to rejoice in the presence of Thy very blessed Body, Sweet Saviour Christ, in the Holy Sacrament of the altar" (St. Thomas More of England, Husband, Father, Lawyer, Martyr--Feast day, June 22).

The Divine Praises

Blessed be God. Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete. Blessed be His Holy Name. Blessed be the great Mother of God, Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God, and true Man. Mary most holy. Blessed be the Name of Jesus. Blessed be her holy and Immaculate Conception. Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart. Blessed be her glorious Assumption. Blessed be His Most Precious Blood. Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother. Blessed be Jesus Blessed be St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse. in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Blessed be God in His angels and in His saints.

Feast of Pentecost--June 8 "The Descent Of The Holy Spirit Upon The Apostles And Our Lady (Acts 2:1-4): The apostles were gathered around Mary in prayer when the Holy Spirit descended upon them as tongues of fire! That same fire of Divine Love inflames Jesus in The Eucharist, where the love of God is poured into each of our hearts. Come Holy Spirit And Renew The Face Of The Earth!" (From our new A-13 "The Eucharistic Rosary" pamphlet).

Feast in Honor of the Most Blessed Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit--June 15 "The Eucharistic gift assumes even more awesome proportions when we reflect that the Son of God present herein is ever united, intimately and indivisibly, with his co-Persons in the Trinity--his Eternal Father and their mutual Spirit of Love; which means that they, too, are mysteriously yet really with him, and consequently with us no less. In effect, then, the total Eucharistic mystery includes the presence of both the Father and the Holy Spirit as an inseparable concomitant. That is, the Blessed Sacrament embraces the Trinitarian mystery within its compass" (Mary & The Eucharist, Fr. Richard Foley, S.J.).

Feast of Corpus Christi, The Body and Blood of Christ--June 22 "Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, hours of adoration, Eucharistic processions, especially on the feast of Corpus Christi, and Eucharistic congresses concentrate our attention on the One who is the Bread of life, life itself. They remind and give witness to all that man does not live by bread alone" (John Paul II, 47 Intl. Eucharistic Congress, June 2000).

Birth of St. John the Baptist--June 24 "John the Baptist saw Jesus and exclaimed 'Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.' 'It is He who will baptize with The Holy Spirit.' When we go to 'The Lamb,' Jesus in The Holy Eucharist, we ask for grace to live out our Baptismal calling as faithful children of The Father"(From our new A-13 Rosary pamphlet).

Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus--June 27 "Let every knee bend before Thee, O greatness of my God, so supremely humbled in the sacred Host. May every heart love Thee, every spirit adore Thee, and every will be subject to Thee!" (St. Margaret Mary). "The heart of the Catholic faith is the Blessed Sacrament; the heart of the Blessed Sacrament is the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In gratitude for the gift of life the Sacred Heart of Jesus should be the heart of my heart and the soul of my soul!" (From the new book Does This Shock You?, by Louis Kaczmarek, available through us).

Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary--June 28 "As with prayer directed to the Father, so, too, when it is addressed to the Holy Spirit, a feast of faith and devotion beckons us, especially during adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. For the heart of Jesus beating there burns with love both divine and human--a love kindled within him by the Third Person. And his Eucharistic Heart is closely united with the Immaculate Heart of his mother--the masterpiece of the Holy Spirit" (Mary & the Eucharist, Fr. Richard Foley, S.J.).

Start Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration in your parish today! Help bring everyone to the Sacred Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, in Adoration, to honor the Most Blessed Trinity! Please be generous with your prayers & donations, we need your help to do this work!

Contact us for information, to schedule a Missionary, or obtain materials: M.B.S., P.O. Box 1701, Plattsburgh, NY 12901 (518) 561-8193 www.ACFP2000.com

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