“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27)
INTRODUCTION
We have just celebrated the 51st International Eucharistic Congress in the historic island of Cebu, the cradle of Christianity in the Philippines. We were blessed with the presence of the papal legate, Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, SDB, Archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar and by the presence of huge throngs of lay faithful with cardinals, bishops, priests, and religious. We thank the Lord most profoundly for this fervent manifestation of faith in the Most Holy Eucharist. We are also most grateful to Archbishop Jose S. Palma, Archbishop of Cebu, and the faithful of the Cebu archdiocese as well as to all those who helped make this event an outpouring of faith.
We celebrate the Eucharist, adore the Eucharist, receive the Eucharist, not only during this International Eucharistic Congress but in the course of our lives year after year. We should now ask ourselves, “Has our celebration, adoration and reception of the Eucharist borne fruit in Eucharistic lives that manifest and extend to others and to the world the life and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ whom we celebrate, adore and receive in the Eucharist?”
EUCHARISTIC LIFE
For the Eucharist is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself leading us to life, to new life, to transformed life, to fullness of life. He came to give us life in limitless abundance (Jn. 10:10). Beyond material prosperity He came to give us a life of union with him, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and a life of communion with others and with the whole creation. He achieved this through his Spirit-filled presence (Luke 4:18-21) among us, through a life of service in obedience to his Father, through works and deeds of mercy and compassion and finally, through the selfless sacrifice of his life on the cross, his resurrection, ascension and gift of the Holy Spirit. His was a Spirit-filled and upright life pleasing to God and wholly dedicated to doing good and healing all who were in the power of the devil (Acts 10:38). This was the life he offered to the Father in the eternal Spirit (Heb 9:14), and was glorified by the Father. This is the life, death, resurrection and ascension we memorialize in every Eucharist, and receive in every Holy Communion. This is the life that reconciled us, sinful human beings, to God and to each other, and healed our world.
Now, Jesus tells us, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life… Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (Jn. 6:54, 56). When we receive Jesus in the Eucharist, we become what we receive – Jesus the bread of life. If we truly receive Jesus with faith, we should live and manifest his life – a life lived by the grace of the Spirit in obedience to God our Father, and placed at the service of humankind and the world for salvation and reconciliation.
The Church teaches us that the Eucharist is “The source and summit of the whole Christian life” (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church no. 11). Those who celebrate, adore and receive the Eucharist will show and communicate to others the kind of life that Christ lived and offered as a sign of the love and mercy of his Father.
In other words, the unsurpassed gift of the Eucharist lays upon us the responsibility to live according to the Christ whom we receive.
ARE WE EUCHARISTIC PERSONS?
Hence, we must ask ourselves if our eyes and ears are like those of Christ. Do we read and listen to the word of God in the Bible, as Jesus did? Are our eyes and ears open to the needs of others, especially those who are needy and oppressed, the powerless and the voiceless, the excluded and those who do not count? Are we willing to listen to those who think and act differently from us as Christ would have us do? Do we hear the groan of creation and see its suffering brought about by our wastefulness and greed?
Do we have the mind of Christ Jesus (Cor. 2:16; Phil. 2:5) and see in each person someone made in God’s image and likeness, called by God to be his son or daughter, redeemed by the blood of Christ and bearing in his or her person Jesus himself so that what we do to the least of his brothers and sisters, is done to Christ himself? “Do we see in other created things reflections and gifts of the good God who entrusts them all to our charge and care?” said Pope Francis in “Laudato Si.
Do we have the heart of Christ which beats with love for his Father first and above all, and showed that love by obedience even unto death? Do we have compassion for the multitudes, especially of the deprived, the lost, the least, the last and the losers? Do our hearts embrace in love not only our families, friends, relatives and benefactors, but even our enemies and sinners? Does every person have a place in our heart as he or she has in the heart of Christ whose body was broken and whose blood was poured out for the sake of all.
Do our hands reach out to those who are far away, in the social and spiritual peripheries and to those who have wronged us or are very difficult and distant from us? And are our feet the beautiful feet of those who are willing to walk the extra mile to bring the good news of Christ to all so that all may share in the Eucharistic meal prepared by Christ (cf. Rom. 10:15)
In other words, are we willing not only to celebrate, adore and receive Christ but also bring him to others and to bring others to him by our lives, actions and words drawn from him who is the source of our life?
EUCHARISTIC ACTION IN THE ELECTORAL PROCESS
May this 51st International Eucharistic Congress have an impact not only in our personal lives but also in our life as a nation. An important event in our country this year are the national elections. In the light of our faith in the Eucharist which sees in it the real presence, the life giving meal and true sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, let us examine our conduct regarding these elections.
Most certainly our faith in the Eucharist is incompatible with the use of violence, votebuying and cheating during the election period. These are selfish, destructive and sinful. Those who engage in such practices should first repent and confess their sin before approaching Holy Communion to receive our Lord. We remind those who win positions by such fraudulent means that they have in fact no moral right to assume the offices they stole. We also urge the faithful not to allow themselves to be instruments of fraud. Selling one’s vote is a cooperation in a sinful practice. It is also against the common good.
Let all of us be guided by a sense of the common good when we elect leaders for those for whom Christ died. Let us choose those who are truly upright and self-sacrificing, respectful of the dignity of all and compassionate towards the poor. Let us reject those who are dishonest, deceitful, self-seeking and unmindful of the poor. Not voting for a particular position when there is no one fitted for it is also a valid Christian political choice. Voting for the “lesser evil” is still voting for evil.
We commend the COMELEC for working towards a truly credible election: one that is not only honest, orderly and peaceful but is also perceived as such. We pray and urge COMELEC to be strict and scrupulous in following the safeguards provided by law towards this goal. **
In God’s name, we ask all those in authority not to manipulate and subvert by any means the electoral process to favor any person or political party. To do so is not only gravely contrary to God’s will. It may also lead to disastrous national consequences. In God’s name, we also exhort all who have to do with the electoral process or with cases connected with the elections to resist any pressure exerted on them to act or against any person or political party. When pressured to do wrong, let them boldly say, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Our elections often exhibit practices that contradict the way of Jesus whom we celebrate and receive in the Eucharist. May the elections this coming May demonstrate our living of the Eucharist, the source and summit of our Christian life.
CONCLUSION
Dear people of God, we have joyfully celebrated, adored and received the Eucharist during this 51st Eucharistic Congress, thanks to the grace of our merciful and compassionate God. Let us continue to treasure the Eucharist and place it at the center of our lives. Let us participate actively, consciously, and joyfully in the Sunday Eucharist and give it priority. The further challenge that the Lord himself offers us now is to witness by our Eucharistic lives, deeds and words to our faith in the Eucharist that the world may see and say in wonder: “Christ is indeed in you, and He is our hope of glory” (cf. Col. 1:27)
Our Blessed Mother nourished the body and blood of Christ in her womb and united herself with the sacrifice of her Son as she stood near to Jesus crucified. She is present with us in every Eucharist. May Mary, the mother and disciple of the Eucharist, obtain for us the grace to live as adorers, receivers, and followers of her Son.
For the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, January 31, 2016, concluding day of the 51st International Eucharistic Congress, Cebu
+SOCRATES B. VILLEGAS
Archbishop of Lingayen Dagupan
President, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines
**The safeguards asked by the Automated Election Law call for:
a) the voter verified paper trail (VVPT);
b) the use of ultraviolet (UV) lamps to verify official ballots;
c) the use of the digital signatures (which are not the machine signatures);
d) proper and trustworthy source code review that is not hampered by restrictive conditionalities;
e) true random manual audit (RMA) immediately after the election;
f) inputs in the COMELEC Public website that make known to the public the
election results by precinct.
