The Sunday Eucharist is the antidote to post-Baptism disillusionment

Fr Paolo Consonni, MCCJ

EASTER 03 Sunday Year A

During the Easter Vigil, almost 200 catechumens from different parishes in Macau received the Sacraments of Christian Initiation. Through Baptism, we acquired new brothers and sisters in Christ. I am sure that many of those attending the liturgy felt very emotional.

Watching the pouring of water over their heads, I prayed in my heart that the newly-baptized may persist in their faith, especially in times of difficulty and pain, when following Jesus will lead them to the foot of the Cross. Faith is a gift which cannot be taken for granted, and it needs to undergo the trials meant to test our resolve, and deepen our relationship with the Lord. The reasons to abandon faith and leave the Church are many and well-founded: the Church is not living up to the standard of the Gospel, Catholics are hypocrites, the clergy is engulfed in all kinds of scandals, God seems completely absent when we need Him, moral rules are too strict, faith does make any difference in our society, and so on. The enthusiasm of neophytes can very quickly turn into disillusionment, which usually starts manifesting itself by abandoning the Sunday community Eucharist.

The two disciples on the road to Emmaus described in this Sunday’s Gospel (Lk 24:13-35) might be considered among the first “fallen away” believers on record. Their disappointment toward Jesus is palpable. “We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel” (v. 21). Instead, they witnessed his crucifixion, the kind of execution reserved for criminals cursed by men and by God. Their hopes of a new life crumbled and they were returning home in a very sad mood.

We know the rest of the story. The risen Christ approached them, unrecognized, and quoting the Scriptures unveiled for them the deep meaning behind his sufferings and death. When we face difficulties, we often focus only on the negative side of the story and we lose sight of the big picture. The risen Christ made them understand that his sufferings and death were part of a larger plan of love, of which they too were invited to make a contribution to. Their hearts were rekindled: their choice to follow Christ was not in vain, all in all.

Pope Francis once said the confirmation of a good choice takes the form of feeling that everything falls into place. He even gave an interesting example. In St. Peter’s Square in Rome, there are two precise points -the focal points of the ellipse- from which one can see the hundreds of columns perfectly aligned. Similarly, when we make a good choice, despite the inevitable difficulties, we can see the larger scheme of things and manage to integrate the different aspects of our complex reality, including the painful ones, which we then face with renewed energy and fortitude (see General Audience of Dec. 7, 2022).

Using the same metaphor for the two disillusioned disciples, the two focal points from where to start realigning their lives were the Scriptures and “the breaking of the bread”, which form the core of each Eucharistic celebration: “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” (v. 32). “He was known to them in the breaking of the bread” (v. 35). The Eucharist then builds the Church: the two disciples “set out at once” to reunite with the community.

Liturgy and daily life cannot be separated, or placed in distinct compartments of our existence. Yet, one of the greatest pitfalls of our Christian life —especially for long-time Catholics— is the weakening of the intimate relationship between our worship and our day-to-day activities. Then the Sunday Eucharist becomes simply a routine, an obligation to fulfill, a ritual disconnected to the reality of our life.

On the contrary, as Pope Francis recently wrote, “Sunday, before being a precept, is a gift that God gives to his people; and for this reason, the Church safeguards it with a precept. The Sunday celebration offers to the Christian community the possibility of being formed by the Eucharist. From Sunday to Sunday, the Word of the Risen Lord illuminates our existence, wanting to achieve in us the end for which the Word was sent (cf. Is 55:10-11). From Sunday to Sunday, communion in the Body and Blood of Christ wants to make our lives a sacrifice pleasing to the Father, in the fraternal communion of sharing, of hospitality, of service. From Sunday to Sunday, the energy of the Bread broken sustains us in announcing the Gospel in which the authenticity of our celebration shows itself” (Apostolic Letter “Desiderio Desideravi” N. 65).

When trials and disillusionment occur, no matter whether we are newly baptized or “old Catholics”, that is the time to gather in the community, to re-read our life in the light of the Scriptures and to break the bread together. It will take time, but I guarantee that eventually everything will fall into place.