Pope's Audience: "Mass is not simply listened to; it is celebrated and lived".During the Angelus from Sunday On July 28, Pope Francis deepened on the gestures, repeated in the Eucharist, narrated in the Gospel in the passage of the miracle of the loaves and fishes.
In the gesture of the child in the Gospel, who offers Christ the loaves and fishes he has, the Pontiff saw an example that "we always have something good to give". In the Eucharist, "this is underlined when the priest offers on the altar the bread and wine, and each one offers himself, his own life." Although it seems that we give little, the Holy Father explained, God works miracles with what we give.
This is precisely why we must remember to "give thanks," Francis pointed out. A thanksgiving that consists in "saying to the Lord with humility, but also with joy: 'All that I have is your gift, and to thank you I can only return to you what you have first given me'".
The Pope and the gesture of sharing
However, the Pontiff warned that a further step must be taken: "sharing". At Mass this gesture becomes a reality in Communion, "when together we approach the altar to receive the Body and Blood of Christ." This is, Francis said, "a very beautiful moment that teaches us to live every gesture of love as a gift of grace, both for the one who gives and for the one who receives: an occasion to grow together as brothers and sisters, ever more united in charity."
As usual, the Pope concluded his meditation by posing some questions for personal reflection: "Do I truly believe, by God's grace, that I have something unique to give to my brothers and sisters, or do I feel anonymous, 'one among many'? Do I thank the Lord for the gifts with which he continually shows me his love? Do I live sharing with others as a moment of encounter and reciprocal enrichment?"
Finally, Francis asked the Virgin Mary to "help us to live each Eucharistic celebration with faith, and to recognize and savor every day the 'miracles' of God's grace."
