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"Out of the darkness of my life, so much frustrated, I put before you the one great thing to love on earth: the Blessed Sacrament... There you will find romance, glory, honour, fidelity, and the true way of all your loves on earth, and more than that: Death. By the divine paradox, that which ends life, and demands the surrender of all, and yet by the taste -or foretaste- of which alone can what you seek in your earthly relationships (love, faithfulness, joy) be maintained, or take on that complexion of reality, of eternal endurance, which every man's heart desires....

Early Church Evidence Refutes Real Presence Introduction The real presence doctrine is probably the most important doctrine to Catholics today because it is the nucleolus of the Catholic mass. The doctrine insists that the eucharistic elements of bread and wine become the glorified body and blood of Christ when blessed by the priest. The doctrine further asserts that the substance of bread and wine are no longer present and only the accidents (characteristics or appearance) remain. Thus, the name derived from the explanation becomes transubstantiation (a change of substance). It is this belief that compels devout Catholics to worship the...

by Fr. Paul Scalia Other Articles by Fr. Paul Scalia Truth or Consequences 08/26/06 Our Lord’s beautiful Bread of Life discourse does not end on a happy note. In response to His teaching, many “of [His] disciples who were listening said, ‘This saying is hard; who can accept it?’” (Jn 6:60). It is the only instance in the Gospels of people rejecting our Lord’s teaching in such large numbers. “Many of His disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied Him” (Jn 6:66). They left because they could not accept our Lord’s teaching on the Eucharist. More...

August 3, 2003Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Psalm: Sunday 34 Reading I Responsorial Psalm Reading II Gospel Reading IEx 16:2-4, 12-15 The whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them,"Would that we had died at the LORD's hand in the land of Egypt,as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread! But you had to lead us into this desertto make the whole community die of famine!" Then the LORD said to Moses,"I will now rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather...