Pastoral Letter From The Bishops Of Scotland

 

 

PASTORAL LETTER OF THE BISHOPS OF SCOTLAND (condensed)

On the Holy Eucharist

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

“The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a communion with the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a communion in the body of Christ? As there is one bread, so we, though many, are one body for we all share in the one bread.”

 

On the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi), the Bishops of Scotland want to proclaim the truth, goodness and beauty of the Eucharist and encourage all the faithful to centre their lives once again on its celebration at Mass.

 

The Eucharist is the summit and source, the heart and centre of our Christian life. Somewhat as the rhythmic beating of our hearts draws in our lifeblood to send it out purified and re-oxygenated, so a pattern of eucharistic worship draws our own lives into God’s heart and fills them with the Holy Spirit.

 

Let us recall here what it is we enter into at Mass.

 

We come to church, each with our differences. We come of our own free will, but also, beyond that, moved by the Holy Spirit. In the opening moments of the Mass, the Spirit rekindles our common faith, draws us together and brings us, forgiven sinners, before the Lord. We are no longer just our separate selves. We are now a worshipping community, the Church gathered in this place and turning to its Lord. When the Mass is full of music and song, we feel this all the more.

 

The Eucharist does not end with the Mass. It is prolonged, for example, in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament

It is destined, too, to extend still further into the whole of our life as members of the Church. Through the Eucharist we become what we receive, namely the Body of Christ. There is no corner of our humanity and our Christian life which the Eucharist cannot enter, purify and raise to a new level.

 

Any commitment to prayer, to community life, to our own family and friends or to our work can be inspired and nourished by it. Any form of caring, the task of teaching and educating, any form of social service or pastoral care can become part of “living by the Lord’s Day” and be an overflow of Christ’s self-gift.

It “is also a source of light and motivation for our concerns for the environment, directing us to be stewards of all creation.”

 

Thanks to the Eucharist, these various efforts become more than personal causes; they are taken up into the charity of Christ; they become part of the life of the Church, Christ’s Body and Bride, in the world. Christ’s presence is extended into the whole of life.

 

Even the bother and tedium of daily life take on deeper meaning in the sacrifice of Christ. And there is no suffering which his Heart has not embraced.

 

This is why we, as your Bishops, desire that Christ’s great Eucharistic gift be continually acknowledged in faith, celebrated in prayer and lived out in love. We encourage all, especially our families and young people, to live by the Lord’s Day. We ask your prayers for vocations to the priesthood. We pray that the Eucharist may amaze us more and more, “as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.”