--“The Eucharist: the Way, the Truth, and the Life”
by Michelle Sanderson, student at Archbishop Chapelle High School
“In the life of a busy student, it is usually difficult
to see the challenges that surround us. It is even more difficult
to do what we know is right when we are being pressured by
others to do what is wrong. When we receive the Body and Blood
of Christ, we are receiving the strength we need to overcome
those challenges. We are strengthening ourselves…”
Now that Pope John Paul II has declared this year the Year
of the Eucharist, many teenagers and parents alike should
realize the true meaning of the Eucharist. As defined by the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, Eucharist completes Christian
initiation. The Eucharist unifies all people throughout the
Christian community. In the life of a teenager, the Eucharist
is characterized in more or less the same way. While some
teenagers who do not know the meaning of the Eucharist only
see it as a piece of bread, others look deeper into the meaning
behind the Eucharist. As we look deeper into the meaning of
the Eucharist, it no longer is just a piece of bread; it is
Jesus. The Church teaches us that the bread and wine are changed
into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. Just as the bread
and wine change, we ourselves should learn to make good changes
in out lives. We should all learn to bring out the goodness
in others. We should learn to reform or change our wrong ways
of doing things into a better more Christian way.
In the life of a busy student, it is usually difficult to
see the challenges that surround us. It is even more difficult
to do what we know is right when we are being pressured by
others to do what is wrong. When we receive the Body and Blood
of Christ, we are receiving the strength we need to overcome
those challenges. We are strengthening ourselves and our way
of life. Once we take in Christ, we take in all the good that
he brings to us. With the gift of the Eucharist, we can become
better Christians. We all become better people after receiving
the Eucharist because it strengthens us to unite as one community.
In that one community of Christians, we learn to love as Jesus
loved, and to teach as Jesus taught. We can learn from one
another’s mistakes and help one another live a better
life through the Eucharist.
The Eucharist teaches true Christians the meaning of life.
The Eucharist teaches Christians that we are born to live
in unity with our Savior, Jesus Christ. The Eucharist not
only unites us as one under Jesus, but it also explains the
meaning of Christianity to us. The Eucharist symbolizes Jesus
dying for us to give us eternal life. It shows us the meaning
of our existence and why we are to live as Christians. Because
of the Eucharist, we can live as children of God. To teenagers
the Eucharist means life. It means living forever with the
one true Savior. The Eucharist is becoming one with the Lord
and living a truly Christian life. The Eucharist is the Way
of Life.
|
