“He that eateth this bread, shall live forever” (John 6, 59).
First Prelude: Picture the Blessed Virgin, after the ascension of her Divine Son, receiving Holy Communion at the services of the early Christians.
Second Prelude: O my Mother, I pray thee let me participate in the wonderful sentiments of thy heart, as often as I have the happiness of uniting myself with Jesus in Holy Communion.
First Point
THE FAITH OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN WHEN RECEIVING HOLY COMMUNION
What a delightful spectacle must it have been to the angels of heaven to behold the Blessed Virgin receiving the Body of her Divine Son under the form of bread! Who could depict her devotion, her fervor and love in this union with her Divine Son! Let us admire her lively faith which constituted the foundation of her marvelous, unbounded confidence. How great and powerful was the faith of Mary, even when the Archangel Gabriel announced to her the ineffable mystery of the Incarnation! How wonderfully was it increased at the birth of the Divine Child, in the flight to Egypt, during the years of the hidden life at Nazareth! How strong did her faith wax in the supreme moment on Calvary, when her Divine Son, covered with wounds, satiated with opprobrium, forsaken by God and man was taken down from the Cross! Nothing could ever have shaken her faith in His Divinity, His infinite Majesty and supreme Dignity. From this conjecture, estimate the faith of the Blessed Virgin when she approached the table of the Lord, the reverence that permeated her whole being! If the Saviour could not refrain from lauding the faith of the Canaanite woman publicly, “O woman, thy faith hath made thee whole” (Matt. 15, 28) and if He said to the centurion: “Verily, such faith I have not found in Israel” (Matt. 8, 11), with what complacency must He not have beheld the living faith of His holy Mother!
Truly, He could refuse nothing to such faith as hers. The confidence, springing from it, meriting all graces and blessings in profusion, was all-powerful over His Divine Heart. Let us learn from our holy Mother how to prepare ourselves for Holy Communion by a lively faith and unbounded confidence. Our devotion depends chiefly upon our faith, and our confidence is always the measure of God’s graces. Let us endeavor, then, through the mediation of the Blessed Virgin to acquire such a living faith, such immovable confidence, that the Saviour can say also to us: “Be it done to thee according to thy faith” (Matt. 8, 13). Is not my lack of faith and confidence the reason why I derive so little fruit from Holy Communion?
Second Point
THE HUMILITY AND LOVE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN
The lively faith of the Blessed Virgin was, likewise, the foundation of her profound humility. She, the Mother of the risen Saviour who was now gloriously ascended into heaven, remained in her own eyes the humble handmaid of the Lord. Penetrated with the profoundest humility, she received the most adorable Body of her Divine Son from the hands of the apostles. Let us strive, primarily, to emulate the most lovable virtue of humility as often as we appear at this heavenly banquet. The more we are wanting in love, the more becoming it is for us to approach the table of the Lord with the liveliest realization of our unworthiness. “O Lord, I am not worthy,” Holy Church teaches us to say with the centurion, whose humility Jesus rewarded miraculously. Let us, also, with an upright heart, make this confession, and with the humble publican, strike our breasts in sorrow and compunction; then we, too, despite our dryness and misery dare hope to be properly disposed to receive Jesus.
Should we lack even the least degree of the love, let us ask Mary to impart to us her affluence, for she possessed more love than all the angels and men combined. Let us enkindle our cold hearts with the fire of her love, that with love, desire for Jesus may take possession of our hearts. The saints derived so many graces from Holy Communion because they ardently longed for this heavenly Food. In a spirit of reparation for our defective Holy Communions, let us offer the desire of the Blessed Virgin before the birth of Jesus, her ardent longing to find Him again when she had lost Him, her intense desire to receive Him into her heart in the Sacrament of love, and we shall derive abundant fruits from Holy Communion.
Affections: O holiest Virgin, thou Tabernacle of the Incarnate Word with what faith, humility and ardent desire didst thou receive thy Divine Son in the adorable Sacrament of the Altar? Behold my dear Mother, my poor and miserable heart, into which my Lord and Saviour deigns to enter! I pray thee, impart to me of thy superabundance of graces. Impetrate for me a lively faith, unbounded confidence, profound humility and burning desire to be united with my Saviour in Holy Communion. Help me to preserve the fruits of Holy Communion by zeal and fidelity, that I may become ever more worthy to participate in the bountiful promises of Jesus.
Resolution: I will beg the Blessed Virgin in my preparation for Holy Communion, to let me share her sentiments of faith, humility, and love.
Spiritual Bouquet: “He that eateth this bread shall live forever.”
O Jesus, living in Mary . . .
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