Thursday of the Third Week of Easter
Today’s Reflection
Gospel: Jn 6: 44-51
April 27, 2023 | Thursday
No one can come to me unless he is drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise him up on the last day. It has been written in the Prophets: They shall all be taught by God. So whoever listens and learns from the Father comes to me.
For no one has seen the Father except the One who comes from God; he has seen the Father. Truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life. Though your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, they died. But here you have the bread from heaven, so that you may eat of it, and not die.
I am the living bread from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live forever. The bread I shall give is my flesh, and I will give it for the life of the world.”
Today’s Reflection:
“I am the bread of life… I am the living bread from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live forever. The bread I shall give is my flesh, and I will give it for the life of the world.” For today’s reflection, let us look back on our memories of the First Holy Communion. There was that intense excitement, practices, and drills of Mass gestures and responses, singing hymns, preparations for the First Confession ,memorizing the Act of Contrition, and the sublime longing to taste the Body of Christ. These are beautiful childhood memories worth remembering. Then the different stages of life start to unfold in our lives: the quiet, fast, and sometimes uneventful youth, adolescence, and adulthood marked and accompanied by the Real Presence of Jesus in that host we receive during Holy Communion. His mercy accompanies us through all these years and nourishes us, strengthens us, and in times of sickness serves as medicine of immortality. His presence lies in that small host that throbs for our salvation. Every time we partake in the body of Christ, He transforms us into himself, giving shape to our way of thinking, feeling, and loving. /Vulnerasti, 2023
