[adapted from Secrets of the Eucharist]

As Christ once radiated upon His Resurrection, so does He now radiate through the Blessed Sacrament. He is the Light even in the dusk of Lent.

And that’s the final value of the Eucharist. Attainment of Heaven. Many are those who see or photograph a glow in relation to Communion or Adoration!

In his book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, Pope John Paul II said that the Eucharist and other sacraments create in man “the seed of eternal life.” Our own “resurrection” or at least, transcendence of death)!

When we receive Christ in Communion we are exerting the ultimate faith in His ability to manifest among us, and opening the door to realization that it is Heaven and only heaven we must aspire to!

Nothing else in life matters. The afterlife is all-important. It’s the reason for life on earth, which is a test and preparation. St. Margaret Mary said that a soul in purgatory once appeared to her enveloped in fire and explained that the greatest cause for his suffering (he was a Benedictine) was that in life he had preferred his own interests to those of God. He had been overly attached to his good reputation. His second defect was lack of charity to his brethren, and a third was his all- too-natural attachment to creatures. But after St. Margaret Mary prayed and suffered for that soul, he was freed of his bondage. She saw him radiant with joy and glory. He had finished his purgation.

Each time we receive Holy Communion, according to St. Gertrude, something good happens to every being in Heaven, on earth, and in purgatory.

The Curs de Ars once added that a Communion well received is worth more than a small fortune given to the poor.

Each time we receive Communion our place in heaven is permanently raised and our stay in purgatory is shortened. While on earth, with limited vision, we will never be able to appreciate the greatness of the Eucharist. We will never be able to comprehend the real fact of reliving Christ’s crucifixion. But we know the importance from places like Medjugorje.

In heaven, according to the seers, there is beauty beyond beauty. There is music beyond earthly music. There is peace beyond earthly composure. In heaven light seems to radiate from an object instead of reflecting off it and everything is alive and even the flowers sway as if singing praises to God. “The grass was of a beauty I can’t describe,” Mirjana once told an interviewer. “The flowers were so beautiful I can’t describe them.” There are living waters, and there are pure spirits with perpetual smiles because they live in an environment of God and love.

In the Blessed Sacrament, we experience a little piece of heaven. Paradise manifests itself through the sacrament. It manifests in the way of peace. It manifests in the calm we feel after Communion. It manifests in the way of miracles visible and invisible. Just as there were a flurry of Marian apparitions, now we also have a flurry of Eucharistic miracles.

I think this is highly significant. People often ask what the future will bring. Well, I think we’re going to experience a heightened presence of Jesus. We’re going to much better appreciate Communion. We’re going to see more force in the sacraments. There will be many signs, and a good number of them will come through the Eucharist. Jesus will radiate yet stronger. We will hear of many healed before the Blessed Sacrament.

This enhanced experience of the Eucharist will signal the reign of the Sacred Heart, and that’s good news indeed. The reign of the Sacred Heart will spell the end of much evil. One day soon, it will spell the end of Satan’s century. The Presence of Christ dispels the man of perdition (2 Thessalonians 2:8). It joins the Immaculate Heart in announcing victory. Jesus is even now arriving. His Heart will become more prominent and we will see more intervention. But first He must be called. He must be invoked. We must invite Him. So call. Invite Jesus. Call Him from the mountains, call Him from the rooftops. Call to Him in Adoration. Call that He take us to the Face of God and the Light of His Kingdom.

04/08/07

[resources: Secrets of the Eucharist]