Considering The Presence Of Christ In Our Church And In Our Lives
The author of the Letter to the Ephesians beautifully proclaims the presence of the risen Christ in these words: “The one who descended is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill the entire universe” (Ephesians 4:10). Christians know that the Risen and Exalted Christ fills the entire universe with his presence; his power and active presence extend to all the universe. The risen Christ is no longer limited to time and space. He is able to touch peoples’ lives even if they are completely unaware that it is the risen Christ.
With the best of intentions, nevertheless, a false Eucharistic theology developed in the 1700s that spoke of Christ as a “prisoner in our tabernacles” and that “Christ becomes lonely when we don’t pay him a visit.” How can he who fills the universe be a “prisoner” anywhere? How can he who is filled with the utter fullness of the presence of God’s love be lonely again? This theology was intended to encourage people to make visits to the Blessed Sacrament, but unfortunately the emphasis was misplaced.
If Christ truly fills up the universe as Ephesians proclaims, then people can meet the risen Christ at any time in any place. And if they hear the Word, they will hopefully be converted to Him and become his disciple.
For Christians, we believe that Christ is also most definitely present in and through his Church, the People of God, His Body, both the visible Body of Christ on earth united with the Church in heaven. We encounter the risen Christ when we gather as Church, a Church that is both holy and sinful, a church that is both filled with God’s Spirit and yet always in need of being reformed (Vatican II).
At Easter the most beautiful sign of the presence and activity of the risen Christ is our newly baptized and confirmed membership. They remind us in the clearest way that Christ is no longer in the tomb. He is indeed risen and alive! Not only is He alive, but actively calling women, men and children to be his disciples in our day.
The newly baptized are living signs to us of the presence and power of the risen Christ in our midst. They are also gifts to the Church of Christ’s presence who says to each of us “It was not you who chose me; no, it was I who chose you to go and bear much fruit.” We are thankful to our new members for answering Christ’s call. We welcome them to dine with us at the Eucharistic table with open arms. We hope they will take an active part in our faith communities all the days of their lives. Let us not forget that they will need our support following their baptism just as much as they did before.
Those members who become one in the communion of faith with us through confirmation and Eucharist remind us of Christ’s prayer of unity on the night before He died – “Father, may my disciples be one as you and I are one, so that the world may come to believe that it was You who sent me.” They remind us of the importance of working for unity among us. Unity and Communion are the greatest signs of God’s presence among us for God is one – Father, Son and Holy Spirit, joined together in an eternal dance. They invite us into their eternal dance of love, peace-making, harmony, unity, reconciliation, forgiveness from the moment of our baptism and for all eternity. We are thankful for those who want to share fully in the sacramental life of our Church. We also pray for their churches who first taught them about the Lord Jesus. May they remind us to pray daily for Church unity and to do all we can to bring about unity among the churches in our localities.
Each of us as baptized Christians is called to be a sign of the presence of the risen Christ to one another through the love, kindness, forgiveness and respect we show to each other. Christ shines forth through his Church, the Temple of God’s Spirit. Although the risen Christ does indeed fill up our universe, he chooses to make his presence touchable through His people and the sacraments.
May the Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ fill our hearts this Easter and always!
