On Saturday, December 10th we celebrated First Communion for over 100 children. We held the Mass outside of the Chapel because our Chapel can usually hold between 200-250 people. In Mexico, they also have godparents for Communion. So, figure 100 children, 2 godparents and 2 parents, then add in grandmothers sisters, brothers, cousins and friends and you have about 700 people gathered for this event! All went well and the children did very well...its always the parents that are the trouble at these things...in any culture!
One of my altar servers who received First Communion
Here's my homily for the day...and yes, I played guitar during the homily!
First
Communion
Deo gratias, Aleluya
Deo gratias, Aleluya
Good Afternoon Church! God is good, Amen? We gather
here today to celebrate a sacrament that unites all of us. We gather today to celebrate the First
Communion of over one hundred of our children.
That is Good News, Amen? If the boys and girls are excited about
receiving Communion today, Say amen nice and loud…Amen! Yes, today is an
emotional day because today these boy and girls will be more fully part of our
community. There is a responsibility in
being a parent, and there is a responsibility in being a member of the
community. The Word of God reminds us
today that we are all part of the Body of Christ, that each one has a gift to
offer at the service of the community, and that Jesus is the Bread of Life and
that if we believe in him that we will have eternal life. Turn to the person next to you and say, this
is Good News!
Saint Paul reminded the Romans that all in the
community are united in the Body of Christ.
Each member is important, but each member does not have the same
gifts. Some have the gift of prophecy,
others the gift of service, and others the gift of preaching. Each person needs to use their gifts for the
building up of the community. The same
is true today in our community in Queretaro.
All of us gathered here today have gifts from God. Do you use your gifts from God to build up
the Church? Parents, do you encourage your children to use their gifts to honor
God? Did your children learn to do this
because they saw you using your gifts to build up the Church? Today we are telling these young people that
they are now more fully part of the Body of Christ. While receiving Communion is special, it is
not the end of the journey. It is only
the beginning. I receive Communion so
that it can help me be a better person and to use my gifts to support the
community. Everyone should think of
Communion this way: I receive Communion so that I can give back to my
community. Repeat after me, I receive
Communion so that I can give back to my community. Every time we receive Communion we are close
to Jesus and close to one another. It is
Communion that unites us in our faith.
So, if Communion is so important, why do so few people receive Communion
each week? Maybe today, as we support and witness our boys and girls receive
their First Communion, each of us may think about our own life and desire to
receive Communion with great love, honor and respect, Amen?
Deo gratias,
Aleluya
Deo gratias,
Aleluya
In
the Gospel of John, Jesus tells the people that he is the Bread of Life. That he is the bread come down from
heaven. If we eat of his flesh and drink
of his blood then we shall live forever.
Who wants to receive eternal life here?
I do! All of us here get hungry
from time to time, Amen? We might eat every three or four hours only to be
hungry again. We will always be
physically hungry. Jesus tells us that
with him, we will not be spiritually hungry.
When we receive Jesus in Communion, we will be satisfied. We will be nourished. We will be well fed spiritually by his
presence in the Eucharist. So if we know
that when we are physically hungry that we need to eat, why don’t we do
something when we are spiritually hungry?
Every Sunday we have the opportunity to receive Jesus in the
Eucharist. Every Sunday we have an
opportunity to be spiritually nourished.
I would think that people would be running to Church each Sunday and
saying, I’m going to receive Jesus, I’m going to receive Jesus. As Catholics, we have a precious gift in the
Sacrament of the Eucharist and yet so many Catholics do not receive this gift
each Sunday. Jesus said, I am the Bread
of Life, all who come to me shall not hunger.
Today our young people are going to receive Jesus for the first time and
hopefully this will not be the last time they receive Jesus. And so parents, let me ask you
something. Would you not go to any
lengths to make sure that your child is safe and cared for? Do you hope the best for your children? If
so, then providing spiritual nourishment for your children is your
responsibility as a parent. Your children will grow physically, mentally and
emotionally over the years and you will make sure that they grow in these areas
of importance. But your children also
need to grow spiritually. Going to Mass
and receiving Jesus each and every week will help them, and you, grow
spiritually over the years. We all have
one life to live, but our eyes should be fixed on the prize of eternal life,
Amen? Turn to the person next to you and say, I am working for eternal life!
So
today is an important day for all of us, Amen?
It’s important for the children who will receive Jesus for the first
time. It’s important for the parents who
help their children grow physically and spiritually. It’s important for the community because now
we have more participants in the Eucharist and more people who can share their
gifts with the community. It’s important
to Jesus because now over one hundred young people will be closer to him as
they eat his body and drink his blood.
It is an important day for everyone, Amen? And so with great gratitude we sing;
Deo gratias,
Aleluya
Deo gratias,
Aleluya
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