Sharing a Meal – Like Jesus Did

So often in the Gospel we hear about Jesus sharing a meal with others: with his disciples or with strangers, with leaders of the people or with sinners and others marginalized by society. Jesus knew that sharing our time eating together is important for many reasons – especially for building and strengthening relationships. Modern research shows that families who regularly dine together reap many healthy, social, and emotional benefits. In our local communities, the Healthy KP Substance Use Prevention Coalition has promoted a “Family Sit-Down Meal Campaign” each fall as one way to lower rates of substance abuse in our community, as well as to promote mental health in these difficult times, especially for our youth.

This weekend you have been invited to share a meal with your church family, our parishes of St. Martha and St. Mary, as we share a picnic this Sunday from 11:30 – 2:30 on the grounds at St. Martha church. Even if you missed the chance to pre-purchase tickets, you can still purchase them at the event. In addition to our sharing a sacred meal every time we celebrate the Mass, occasionally we have opportunities like this to share in the other, more social aspects of meal sharing – like Jesus did.

Finally, our sharing in the table of the Eucharist nourishes our relationship with Christ himself, and it should also strengthen our communion with one another in the mystical Body of Christ, the Church. Based on St. Paul’s writings, the Order for the Commissioning Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion states, “Remember that, though many, we are one body because we share the one bread and one cup.”

To aid in our full participation in the shared Body and Blood of Christ, we have been gradually returning to the option of receiving under both forms, including the Precious Blood from a chalice. For those who are open to receiving under both forms, this has been a powerful spiritual and personal experience. While the full body and blood, soul and divinity of Christ is present under each form alone, “Holy Communion has a fuller form as a sign when it takes place under both kinds.” (From the Roman Missal.) Now that we have commissioned more Extraordinary Ministers of Communion (EMCs) and reviewed healthy practices with our experienced EMCs, we should be able to offer the chalice at every Mass.

When we introduced our process of returning to Communion under both forms in June, I offered two responses to those who might question the idea of sharing a common cup. First, this is providing an important option (not an expectation) for those who wish to receive from the chalice. Second, the leaders of our Archdiocese and our collaborative have been very cautious throughout the pandemic, and we would not restore this practice unless we have reason to believe that it is safe for most people to do at this time. Therefore, for anyone who does not have a compromised immune system, we need to return to this practice of the Church since ancient times.

Grateful for the opportunity to share a picnic meal with you this weekend, and to share in receiving Communion with you every week, I hope we will strive to “break bread together” in all the ways Jesus has given and encouraged us to do by his example.