Thinking Anew:We are still in the Easter season and tomorrow we are again reminded of the post resurrection appearances of Jesus to his friends and disciples.
The disciples had had a poor night's fishing but at the instigation of Jesus they cast out their nets again and they were filled to breaking point with fish. It is at that moment the disciple whom Jesus loved recognised the risen Lord and said to Peter, "It is the Lord" (John 21:7). Later when he invited them to breakfast and "stepped forward, took the bread and gave it to them and the same with the fish," they all recognised him for who he was.
There certainly are Eucharistic overtones in this post-resurrection appearance of Jesus. There is also a profound link made between heaven and earth. Tomorrow's Gospel impels us to see that our celebration of the Eucharist is not some sort of rarefied event that has nothing to do with the world we inhabit. The Eucharist is the re-enactment of the passion and death of Jesus but it is also a celebration of our Christian fellowship and solidarity with one another.
At Mass we break bread and drink wine. We eat the body of Christ and drink his blood. The Eucharist involves us in communion with other people and, like all the sacraments, it is a sign which effects what it signifies.
We celebrate family events and important occasions in the context of a meal. We invite close friends and relatives to our homes to sit with us at table and enjoy our food and drink. Sharing food and drink is a sign of friendship and camaraderie. It is also a way of healing wounds and offering forgiveness to people.
Whenever we sit at table with someone, we hope that there is friendship and charity in the air. Bitterness or hatred makes our sitting down at the same table a nonsense and contradiction.
Easter is a celebration of the victory of life over death, of hope over despair. It is significant that in tomorrow's Gospel Jesus grounds his appearance in the context of food and a meal together with his friends.
The meal of the Eucharist is situated in the world of the here and now. Does it make sense celebrating the Eucharist with people with whom we have nothing in common? Or worse, how can we share bread with people with whom we are in dispute? How can we dare sit down and break bread in God's name while at the same time knowing that 800 million people go to bed every night without enough food?
The Eucharist is not some sort of magical ritual. It is an occasion for us to strengthen our friendship with God and with our sisters and brothers in our community, in our parish and on this planet. The Eucharist helps bring about the Kingdom of God, a reality that is currently in process.
It would seem to make very little sense to take part in a Eucharistic celebration and at the same time not to be concerned about the welfare of our fellow human beings. The Eucharist is about fellowship. It is the ultimate act of love.
Mass attendances in Ireland have fallen dramatically over the past 20 years. Might this be because people no longer see the link between the Eucharist and the practical living-out of a Christian way of life?
Liturgical reform is all well and good, but if there is not a living and real experience at our Mass, how can people identify with what they are celebrating?
Jesus appears to his disciples in an ordinary context. They are at work fishing and then they join him for breakfast. They recognise Jesus out of their love for him but also through his action in giving himself to them.
Tomorrow is an opportune time for all of us to ask ourselves how real the Eucharistic celebration is for us in our daily lives.
MC