"Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” Sometimes, you see a son or daughter following in the steps of their father or mother. It can be in a trade or even sports. Tiger Woods and his son come to mind. It’s amazing how similar their golf swings are when viewing them side by side. I enjoyed working with my Dad, a contractor, but another Father caught my attention and wouldn’t let go. Praise God.

Jesus did this in His humanity. “And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them” (Luke 2:51) He learned from Mary and Joseph what it meant to be the Son of His Heavenly Father. When His parents found Jesus in the temple, the Gospel says that Jesus “grew in wisdom and knowledge.”

We are blessed in the Catholic Church to hear from our Heavenly Father’s lips daily. The Father speaks to us in his Word at holy Mass. Over the years, even from high school, I have found something that makes the Holy Word in Mass so important.

A professor in the seminary told us the Early Fathers of the Church taught that Jesus is present in the Liturgy of the Word as He is in His Body and Blood on the altar after the Consecration. Our bodies, minds, wills, and hearts become the body, mind, will, and heart of Jesus.

We are one body with the Lord in Holy Communion. How wonderful to listen with an open heart and allow God to speak to us in His Holy Word and Mass. I always listen for a word or phrase that strikes me and will enable it to work on me throughout the day.

God never stops speaking to us.

When have you been blessed after listening to the Word during the Eucharist? 

Lord, Jesus, thank you for always being present to us every day in your Holy Body and Blood. Amen.