Weekend of June 10-11, 2023

Dear Friends,

We celebrate this weekend the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, known also by its traditional Latin name, Corpus Christi. This great feast is an opportunity for us to focus on the great gift we have been given of the Eucharist, and to celebrate our Eucharistic Lord, who is the source and strength of our lives.

            As Catholics, we hopefully are always aware of the importance of the Eucharist in our lives, and of the need we have to thank God each day for the presence of the Eucharist in our hearts and in our world. The Eucharist is the quintessential reminder to us of the fact that, no matter what happens within us and around us, our good and loving God will never abandon us; the presence of his Son, Jesus, in the Eucharistic species is a guarantee of that. More than that, however, the Eucharist, as Saint Thomas Aquinas puts it so perfectly, is the “foretaste and promise of that which is to come,” that is, the life that will be ours for ever in eternity.

            Let us thank God on this wonderful feast for the gift of the Eucharist, and commit ourselves to become more like the One who shares his life with us in this gift, so that we can share his life-giving presence to everyone we meet.  

            We find ourselves beginning, with this great feast day, the beginning of our second year of the three year National Eucharistic Revival which the bishops of the United States commenced last year. Last year had as its focus the Eucharistic revival on the diocesan level; this second year, which begins today, has as its focus the Eucharistic revival on the parish level.

The National Eucharistic Revival website summarizes what we are doing in this time of revival nicely:

Our world is hurting. We all need healing, yet many of us are separated from the very source of our strength. Jesus Christ invites us to return to the source and summit of our faith in the celebration of the Eucharist. The National Eucharistic Revival is a movement to restore understanding and devotion to this great mystery here in the United States by helping us renew our worship of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.      

Scandal, division, disease, doubt. The Church has withstood each of these throughout our very human history. But today we confront all of them, all at once. Our response in this moment is pivotal.

In the midst of these roaring waves, Jesus is present, reminding us that he is more powerful than the storm. He desires to heal, renew, and unify the Church and the world.

How will he do it? By uniting us once again around the source and summit of our faith in the celebration of the Eucharist. The National Eucharistic Revival is the joyful, expectant, grassroots response of the entire Catholic Church in the U.S. to this divine invitation.

It takes time to kindle a living, loving relationship—and a relationship with Jesus Christ is no exception. That’s why the Eucharistic Revival allows three years for discernment, encounter, and grassroots response on the diocesan, parish, and individual levels.

            We will be celebrating this parish year of Eucharistic revival in several different ways here at Saint Timothy and Saint Bartholomew. You will be seeing and hearing more about what is to come in the coming weeks. As the official beginning of this year of parish revival we will be having Exposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament today, June 11, between the 9:15 and 12:00 Noon Masses in Saint Timothy upper church. Please join us for this time of quiet adoration and prayer before our Eucharistic Lord as we begin this year of grace and renewal.

This weekend we welcome the Little Sisters of the Poor, who are visiting us to make their annual appeal. I remind you of the great work the Little Sisters do in serving the elderly at Holy Family Home in West Philadelphia. The sisters perform their great ministry worldwide, without any financial assistance from the government. They depend solely on the providence of God and the generosity of good people like ourselves. I ask you, as always, to be attentive to the sisters’ message and to be as generous as you possibly can. The sisters will be at the entrances of the church, where you will be able to greet them and to give them your financial gift personally.

            Know that you and those you love are daily remembered in my Mass and my prayers.

                                                                                    Love and prayers,
                                                                                    Father Olivere