Fr. Jeff’s Weekly Homily

First Holy Communion
May 21 , 2006
6th Sunday of Easter

READING 1: Acts 10:25 -26, 34-35, 44-48
Then Peter proceeded to speak and said, “In truth, I see that God shows no partiality.”

Psalm 98
The Lord has revealed to the nations s saving power.

READING 2: 1 John 4:7-10
Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.

GOSPEL: John 15: 9-17
Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.

What a glorious day! Today 100 children will receive the Body and Blood of Christ for the first time. They have been learning about God all year and their teachers think they have come a long way. When the teacher told them in their first class that God made everything, one of the boys quickly stood up. “God does not make everything,” he insisted, “Most things are made in China .”

Now they know what the teacher meant. There are some days in our lives that are like door ways. We walk through the door and our lives are better. Our birthdays are doorways into this life. Our baptism day is a doorway into Christ’s life. Our First Communion day is a doorway into the Sacred. We have other door-way days: Confirmation, Ordination or Wedding days are some big ones.

Jesus comes to us in many ways, but when we receive Communion His precious Body and Blood become one with our precious body and blood. This is spectacularly intimate and totally awesome. How can receiving Communion make me stronger inside? How can a wafer of bread and a sip of wine make us stronger for coping with life? To try to respond to the question more directly: We believe that the wafer of bread once consecrated, that is blessed--or set aside for God’s use—is the Body of Christ and the wine—once consecrated—is the Blood of Christ which feed us spiritually in our body.

A long time ago I learned that there was air all around. [ Hold up your hands as if trying to touch the air. ] I certainly can’t feel the air. Can you? [ Sniff. ] I certainly can’t smell the air. Can you? We can smell the incense—that’s one of the reasons we use it—but we can’t smell the air. [ Hold your hands above your eyes and look all around you. ] I certainly can’t see the air. Can you? Well, if you can’t feel it, or smell or see it, how do you know air is all around? Watch and I’ll show you.

[ Begin to blow up the balloon. ] Do you know what is making the balloon get bigger? Yes, its air. Air is filling the balloon. [ Finish blowing up the balloon and tie it. ] The more air I blow into the balloon the bigger it gets. I can’t actually see the air, but I can see what air can do.

One day Jesus was talking with His Apostles. He knew that He was going to die and rise again. After His resurrection He knew that His friends would miss Him and would need help remembering Him and believing in Him and being strong for Him. So Jesus gave His friends a great, unique gift. He took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread and giving it to them, He said: “Take this and eat it, this is my body.” He didn’t say: “This is a symbol of my body” or “This is to remind you of my body.” No, He said “This IS my body given up for you.” In another place he said, “Whoever eats my body and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” [John 6:56] On the day of the resurrection, disciples recognized Him in the breaking of the bread. [Luke 24:30-32] St. Paul speaks of the Lord’s Supper when he says: “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.” [1 Cor. 11:23-26] His disciples received His Body, and then Judas left and betrayed Him. He received the Body but he was not Jesus’ friend. At the end of the meal, Jesus took the cup, again he said the blessing and gave the cup to His true friends. In today’s Gospel, Jesus calls us his friends. When we receive His Body and His Blood we are His friends. Friends stand by each other, take care of each other, protect each other from harm and love each other.

There is something else around us and in us that we cannot see. We can’t touch or smell or see love either but we know that when people are filled with love they are happier, healthier, livelier, and holier. How can you share Jesus love with others? [ Allow the children to answer. ] When we do these things, we are following the commands of Jesus. When we do these things we are showing that Jesus is alive in us.

In a few moments we will all say: “Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and my soul will be healed.” Jesus does it every time. He heals our souls when we ask. So, we receive Him. Like the air in the balloon, He will expand our hearts, He will expand our lives, He will carry us over the threshold into ever lasting life. That is good news!

Fr. Jeff McGowan
Queen of Peace Catholic Community
Gainesville, Florida