Fill the hearts of Your faithful,
And enkindle in them the fire of Your love!
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| Early depiction from the Rabbula Gospels, 6th century |
Do
you realize that every time we celebrate Mass, we not only experience the
re-presentation of Christ's sacrifice on Calvary, but we also experience the
re-presentation of Pentecost? We not only gather together as the ancient Hebrews did, in a holy place, to rejoice in the presence of the Lord
among us, but like the Apostles, by the power of the Holy
Spirit, we ourselves are also filled with His presence!
The
Mass is the fulfillment of Jesus' high priestly prayer, which He made to the
Father on our behalf before entering into His Passion (John 17), "that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in
you, that they also may be in us." At Mass, Christ is present not only
among us, in the Word and in the Eucharist, but
also dwells in the priest and in us, the people, who are
gathered in Christ's name and enter into communion with Him-- and therefore into
communion with one another as His body!
