Jesus in the Eucharist, Chapter XV - Jesus in the Eucharist is Waiting for Us

1. Before ascending to heaven our divine Savior said to His apostles, to His Church, to all of us: "Behold I am with you all days until the consummation of ages" (Matthew 28:20). Jesus Christ has kept this promise for in the Blessed Eucharist He has ever since remained with those who believe in Him. He is really present day and night on our altars, not only to give Himself to us in Holy Communion, but also to intercede for us with His heavenly Father, to receive our visits, to confer favors upon us and to hear our prayers. So great is His love for men, that He cannot separate Himself from them, for He says: "My delights are to be with the children of men" (Proverbs 8:31). In fact, so great is His love for us, that, in order to remain always in our midst on our altars, He exposes Himself to horrible outrages from unbelievers, heretics, sinners, and even to the irreverences, ingratitude, indifference and neglect of many who boast of their faith, of their love for Him! "It is for us," says Venerable Father Champagnat, "that during nineteen centuries our divine Savior has remained day and night on our altars, that we may have recourse to Him in all our necessities; and nothing so grieves His divine Heart as our indifference to such a favor, our ingratitude towards His boundless love, and our neglect to visit Him, to ask His blessing and the helps and favors we need. If we knew how profitable the loving visits are to our Eucharistic Savior, we would never let an occasion of visiting Him slip by. The saints understood well, that Jesus Christ is the Source of all grace, and they would, therefore, hasten to visit Him in the Blessed Sacrament in every need, in every difficulty."

"It is certain," says Saint Alphonsus, "that of all the pious practices, next to Holy Communion, there is none more agreeable to God and more profitable to us, than to make frequent visits to Jesus Christ dwelling in our tabernacles. We often can obtain more grace in devoutly spending a quarter of an hour before the Blessed Sacrament, than in all the other pious devotions we could perform in a whole day." The saint was so enamored of Jesus in the Eucharist, that he not only daily visited Him himself, but wrote a most beautiful book of "Visits to the Blessed Sacrament," which is the delight of all who tenderly love Jesus Christ, and which has been translated in nearly every language and has gone through hundreds of editions. Many persons do not make a daily visit to Jesus in the Eucharist, because they do not know what to say to Him. Such persons should make use of the "Book of Visits of Saint Alphonsus," and it will teach them very soon how to converse with Jesus Christ, what to say to Him, and how to love Him and save their souls.

If a very dear friend of ours lives in our neighbor hood, we often go to see him and converse with him, for we are fond of the company of those we love. But our divine Savior is our best Friend, and no one loves us so much as He. We should, therefore, often visit Him. Wherefore, when you pass a church, when you have leisure, or are in want, in trouble, enter the church to greet Jesus, to show Him your affection, your gratitude. He is always at home, and always has time to attend to you; He is always pleased to see you, to listen to you, to grant you favors. In fact, He is waiting for you day and night. He wishes, He desires, He longs that you should come to Him and greet Him, and make your wants, your troubles known to Him. He is more anxious to grant you favors than you are to obtain them. Nowhere can you pray better than before the little tabernacle on the altar in which He dwells. When you enter the church to pay Him a visit, Jesus looks at you with love, for He loves you even more than you can love yourself.

What can you, what ought you to say to Him?

"My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I firmly believe that Thou art really present here in the Blessed Sacrament. Behold, O Lord, I have come to visit Thee. Dearest Jesus, I love Thee with my whole heart. I thank Thee for all that Thou hast done and suffered for me, and for the numberless benefits Thou hast bestowed on me. I am exceedingly sorry for having so often and so grievously offended Thee, O Jesus, forgive me, for I am resolved nevermore to offend Thee, and I will do all in my power to please Thee, to show Thee my love. I long to receive Thee into my soul; but since I cannot now do so in reality, deign to come spiritually into my heart, and to remain therein today and during all my life." Then with a true childlike confidence, ask Jesus for all the graces and favors you desire. And before you leave the church, ask Him to bless you and all who are dear to you.

When should you especially visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament? When you are in trouble; when you feel despondent, or melancholy; when you are sorely tried or tempted; when you feel resentment against some one who has offended you or hurt your feelings, when you are disturbed by doubts, or by remorse for your sins; when some misfortune has befallen you or persons dear to you; when you are ill or in any difficulty, go to visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and tell Him all about it, and beseech Him to help you, to enable you to bear all your troubles with patience and resignation, and for His sake. Bear in mind that Jesus is your best Friend, your best Physician, your wisest Counselor, your true and most loving Father, and that there is no ill, no trouble, which He will not remedy, no want which He will not bountifully fill. If you lovingly and confidently visit Him in all your wants, you will be astonished and delighted at the good result of your visit. Say to Him as the leper did: "Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou caret make me clean" (Matthew 8:2). "And thou shall be as the most obedient Son of the Most High, and He will have mercy on Thee more than a mother." (Eccli. 4:11)

Oh, how we should yearn, like the saints, after Jesus in the Holy Eucharist! "As the hart pants after the fountains of waters, so my soul pants after Thee, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs and faints for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh have rejoiced in the living God. (I have found) Thy altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God" (Psalm 83:2-4). "Come and visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament! Come taste and see how sweet the Lord is" (Psalm 33:9).

"O how sweet a joy it is," says Saint Alphonsus, "to remain, with faith and tender devotion, before an altar on which our Savior resides, and converse familiarly with Him, since He is there for the express purpose of listening to and graciously granting the prayers of those who visit Him! O what a heaven it is to remain there making acts of love to Him, who dwells on our altars, in order to pray for us to His heavenly Father, and to show His boundless love for us, even when we treat Him with indifference and ingratitude!"

2. Spiritual Communion. We should make a Spiritual Communion every time we visit our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament; moreover, we should do the same whenever we assist at Mass and are not able to receive Holy Communion, for when we see the priest and the communicants receiving Holy Communion, we should be filled with an ardent desire to receive it also, thinking within ourselves: "Oh, if I only could now receive my Savior! If He would only come now into my heart in Holy Communion, how happy it would make me!" If there is such a longing in our heart, let us say to Jesus: "O Jesus, I am sorry for my sins; forgive me; I will never offend Thee more. My Jesus, I believe that Thou art present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love Thee above all things, and I desire to receive Thee into my soul, and since I cannot now do this, come at least spiritually into my heart I embrace Thee as if Thou were already there, and I unite myself wholly to Thee; never let me be ever separated from Thee."

We can make a Spiritual Communion not only in church at Mass, at our Visit, but whenever we wish and wherever we are. The greater our desire and our love for Jesus, the greater also the blessings will Jesus bestow on us.

3. Visit to The Blessed Virgin Mary. Saint Alphonsus recommends and exhorts us to make a daily visit to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In his book of the visits to the Blessed Sacrament he adds to each Visit a short Visit to our Blessed Lady, for, as he says, "we cannot separate Jesus from Mary, nor Mary from Jesus." Jesus is the Author of grace, but Mary is the channel, the distributress of grace. Jesus redeemed us, and in His last will made Mary our Spiritual Mother, and made us Mary's spiritual children. She is, then, not only the Mother of the "Redeemer," but also the " Mother of the redeemed," that is, OUR MOTHER. She is, indeed, the best of mothers, and is more solicitous about our welfare than we ourselves can be. Let us, then, after visiting Jesus in the Sacrament of His love, pay a visit also to our most loving and tender Mother, and after greeting her and thanking her for all she has done for us, let us entreat her to obtain for us from Jesus, by her all-powerful intercession, all the graces and favors we need, especially her help in temptation and the inestimable grace of final perseverance, for she is the Mother of perseverance.

4. Benediction. We all feel happy when a priest, or bishop, gives us his blessing; even careless Catholics kneel devoutly to receive it. What is the reason of this? Because the priest, the bishop, is a representative of Jesus Christ. In the parishes of the majority of my readers, the parishioners frequently have the opportunity of receiving the blessing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Himself! And yet very many of the parishioners never avail themselves of this wonderful favor, for they never assist at Benediction! And these indifferent persons are just the ones who stand in the greatest need of the blessing of God!

At divine service on a Sunday afternoon, or evening, the priest accompanied by the altar boys goes to the altar, which is decorated with flowers and resplendent with lights. He ascends the altar, opens the tabernacle, and between the lights and over the tabernacle, exposes our Eucharistic Savior placed in the golden Ostensorium, or Monstrance. The organ peals forth its melodious and joyful tones, and the choir sings the praises of our Savior in the Sacrament of His love. The priest and the altar boys are kneeling on the altar steps, and all present in church, both old and young, are reverently and devoutly adoring and praying to their Savior, their Lord and God, their heavenly King. And Jesus from His throne looks down graciously and lovingly on His devout adorers! How grand, how solemn and cheering it is then in the House of God! How piously are the hymns sung! How fervently all present pray to Jesus from their inmost hearts! Yes, for God Himself is there! Wherefore, those who really love Him, come to Him from afar and near to visit Him, to adore Him, to thank Him, to implore His favors, to tell Him their wants, their troubles, and seek relief! At the end of the service, the priest, holding in his hands Jesus Christ in the Monstrance, gives the blessing of Jesus Christ Himself to all present; and they kneeling, bowing their heads and striking their breasts and making the sign of the cross, receive this priceless favor with lively faith, confidence and love.

At the Forty Hours Exposition those who are in real earnest, anxious to save their souls, will daily visit the Blessed Sacrament, go to confession and Holy Communion and pray fervently for the intentions of our Holy Father the Pope, in order to gain the indulgences and the abundant divine favors of that time of special graces.

Before concluding these articles on the Real Presence, may I be permitted to recommend the readers to read, carefully from time to time, books treating of the Blessed Eucharist, for these will strengthen their faith, increase their love for Jesus Christ, and greatly promote their salvation.

- text taken from Jesus in the Eucharist, by Father Ferreol Girardey, C.Ss.R.