Any gesture merits a response. If offered a high-five, you return the gesture with a completed high-five. If offered the mind-blowing gesture of the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ, what is your response?
Chris Stefanick, a well-known Catholic author, speaker, and television host, had the task of sending over 60,000 Catholics out as one of the closing keynote speakers at the National Eucharistic Congress.
Before giving the crowd three practical ways to respond to the gesture of being offered the body of Christ, he began by detailing God’s deep love towards humanity.
“The good news [is] that there is a God... that shows us that life has purpose. It’s not a cosmic accident," he said. "It’s even better news that this God, who gives life purpose, is love.”
Stefanick then depicted the love of the Father in a way that resonated with many in the audience. He told a story about his son who had wandered off during a camping trip. After searching the forest for 20 minutes, Stefanick ran into a pond near the campsite and began looking for his son’s body.
This is when a prayer spontaneously came from his mouth, “Lord you have done so much good for me...take it all back right now and give me my son.”
The Father cries out for us just as Stefanick cried out for his son. When we wander off from His love, He says, “Take everything, take my life, I’ll be your food in the Eucharist, I’ll be waiting for you in confession, I just want my son, I just want my daughter to come home!”
“This is the love that we are reminded of at every communion,” he said.
Ultimately, God’s answer to all our questions and every time we wander off is simply reaching out with the Eucharist and saying, “Body of Christ.” God’s answer requires a response.
Stefanick gave three actions that are a worthy response to this mind-blowing gesture:
1) Share the gospel of Jesus Christ with confidence.
“If God opens a door, you open your mouth, that's it, you’ll figure it out as you start talking,” Stefanick exclaimed.
Nothing inside of Catholicism makes sense outside of the context of a love story and we as Catholics need to get back to the basics of our faith and simply share the love story.
2) Rejoice in His love.
Quoting scripture Stefanick said, “Rejoice in the Lord always, I say it again, rejoice!”
Jesus offered his life for us; we owe it to God to be a joyful people. The reality is that the world is a total mess and that is why we must be joyful.
3) Become Saint ______ (insert your name here).
Sharing a quote from Blessed Carlo Acutis he said, “Pray to want to be a saint, and if you don't want to do that, pray to want to want to be a saint.”
Stefanick shared that sanctity is irresistibly beautiful and that beauty is more powerful than always having the right answer to a question about the faith.
He said, “Do the things you would do if you were a saint. Imagine! Pretend to be that saint, just play the saint, and give it a couple of years and watch what happens.”
Finally, as his last words he said, “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord. Two-thirds of God’s name is ‘go’.”