The Church of St. Luke

Dear STL Family,

 

This Sunday we celebrate the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ which calls us to focus on two manifestations of the Body of Christ -- the Holy Eucharist and the Church. The primary purpose of this feast is to focus our attention on the Eucharist. The opening prayer at Mass calls our attention to Jesus' suffering and death and our worship of Him, especially in the Eucharist.

At every Mass, our attention is called to the Eucharist and the Real Presence of Christ in it. The secondary focus of this feast is upon the Body of Christ as it is present in the Church. The Church is called the Body of Christ because of the intimate communion which Jesus shares with his disciples -- that's us. He expresses this in the gospels by using the metaphor of a body in which He is the head. This image keeps our focus on both the unity and the diversity of the Church. Just remember WE ARE CHURCH!

Here are two important things happening over the next few days --

I don't know about you, but when this pandemic hit in the Spring of 2020, it felt scary but temporary to me. As time passed, the spoiler alert that it wasn't over hit me hard. The terrible realization was we're in it for the long haul. The ups and downs of closing and reopening, the good news and bad news, the masks and no masks, etc. have been a really tough pill to swallow. I know it's been tough on you, too. I wish I could promise it ends now, but it's not my call. I CAN promise that if we place our trust in God and allow His Spirit to guide us, we'll be just fine -- our Masses are back indoors in our sacred gathering space; our Communion procession is back; our altar servers are now present on the altar; our lectors are proclaiming the Word; our congregation is singing and presenting the offertory gifts at Mass. It's just a matter of time!!!

 

All of this was most profound today on the Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. When you consider the HUGE sacrifice Christ made for us, giving his Body and spilling his blood for us -- well, I think we can sacrifice being uncomfortable with our awkward masks and the COVID protocols a little longer. So please continue to be patient and cooperative and hang in there with us. May God continue to bless you as you have so blessed our faith community. See you at church...

 

From my heart to yours,

 

Jane A.