Divine Appeal Reflection - 258
Today, consider in Divine Appeal 258: "You must always come with a sincere penitent heart to receive My Body and Blood with reverence because I am all holiness from whom you can hide nothing."
One of the greatest wounds inflicted upon the Body of Christ today comes not from the world outside, but from within the sanctuary itself: when priests—those who have been configured to Christ by a sacred, indelible mark—treat the Most Holy Eucharist with casualness, neglect, or irreverence. Among the most grievous offenses is the allowance of the lay faithful to handle the Sacred Host as if it were common bread. Our Adorable Jesus is truly with us in the Host—Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. Yet in many places, He is handled as if He were something ordinary. Without proper teaching or deep interior preparation, the Blessed Sacrament is passed casually from hand to hand. But this is not bread. This is God. He deserves our full attention, our reverence, and a heart ready to receive Him with love and fear of the Lord. When formation is shallow, and preparation is forgotten, the mystery is lost, and hearts become blind to the One they are holding. The Host is sometimes distributed without due silence, without clear expression of the Real Presence, even without clear indication that the communicant believes or is disposed to receive. This is not pastoral sensitivity—it is a slow betrayal of Eucharistic truth. The priest, who has been set apart to offer sacrifice and stand in persona Christi, must tremble before the altar, knowing that he touches what angels dare not touch without veiling their faces. His silence, posture, tone, and careful guarding of the Sacred Mysteries either form the people in adoration—or deform them into indifference.
But the tragedy of irreverence is not limited to distribution alone. In many sanctuaries, Christ is further wounded by the abandonment of sacred silence, the use of banal language in homilies, hurried liturgies, and the casual handling of sacred vessels. The tabernacle—His dwelling place—is often pushed aside or hidden, no longer occupying the center of the church’s architecture or the people’s gaze. Sacred music is replaced with entertainment. Vestments are chosen for comfort rather than dignity. When the altar is treated like just another table, and the Mass like just another gathering, something deep begins to fade. A hurried priest, a skipped prayer, or casual chatter may seem small, but they speak loudly to the soul. They say: “This is ordinary.” Yet the altar is not ordinary—it is Calvary. When reverence is lost, belief soon follows, not through loud denial, but quiet indifference. When the sacred is treated as something casual, hearts slowly lose their wonder, and the light of faith begins to fade. But the truth is far greater than what eyes can see. Every Mass brings us to the foot of the Cross—where Jesus gives Himself again, and heaven meets earth. To profane this mystery through carelessness is a wound not only to Christ, but to the soul of the Church.
It must also be said with sorrow that some priests remain silent in the face of grave liturgical abuses, fearing backlash or division. Others permit habitual reception of Communion by those living publicly in mortal sin, those unrepentant or even opposed to the Church’s moral teachings. The altar becomes, for some, a place of false welcome rather than genuine conversion. But mercy without truth is not mercy—it is flattery. Love without reverence is not love—it is sentiment. The priest who fails to teach his flock that Holy Communion requires a state of grace betrays his vocation as shepherd and protector. It is not exclusion to tell a soul it must repent before receiving—it is charity. It is not unkind to ask that Catholics confess their sins before approaching the Lamb—it is justice to Christ and healing for the penitent. Priests must reclaim their prophetic voice: to call souls to holiness, to purify the temple, and to refuse to hand over the Divine Victim to careless hands or unrepentant hearts. They are not mere facilitators of worship—they are guardians of the mystery (cf. 1 Cor 4:1). And they must answer, not before men, but before the Eucharistic Christ, who sees all and judges with love and truth.
The recovery of Eucharistic reverence must begin with the priest. If he kneels, the people will kneel. If he protects the Sacred Species, the faithful will learn to adore. If he treats the altar with trembling awe, souls will rediscover what it means to stand on holy ground. But if he jokes, hurries, compromises, or remains indifferent, then the people will assume there is nothing here to honor—only routine. Holy Communion is not a right. It is not a mark of community membership. It is not a reward for attending Mass. It is a surrender to Christ crucified and risen, a trembling encounter with the Holy One. To receive casually is to court judgment. To distribute without reverence is to deepen the wound in the Body of Christ. Let the Church once more be clothed in awe. Let the liturgy breathe with silence. Let confessionals be filled before Communion lines grow long. Let the tabernacle shine again at the center. For when the Eucharist is truly treated as Christ Himself, present among us, then and only then will the Church begin to be healed, strengthened, and renewed from within.
Prayer
O our Adorable Jesus, hidden in the Blessed Sacrament, have mercy on us for the times we have treated You without love. Raise up priests who will guard Your holiness, and grant the faithful hearts that adore. May reverence return to Your Church, and may You be honored as You deserve. Amen.
Sr. Anna Ali of the Most Holy Eucharist, intercede for us.
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