Holy Thursday,2023

•                             Jesus washing the feet of the Apostles and instituting the Eucharist.
• Bread was always in the thoughts of Jesus--physical as well as spiritual.
• He did not want his people to go hungry 
• Multiplied bread twice to feed the crowd of 5000 fist and that of 7000, later.
• On the last night of his life, he made the bread to become the food not not for just a group of people but for all his believers;not for a day but for all the days in their lives.
• Not for the  satiation of their  physical needs but for all their needs.
• Offering not bread that has a limited life but his own life and blood that has no time limits.
• Jesus becoming wholly and totally a part of our lives.
• This  transformation is powerful and overwhelming---Jesus becoming present in our lives, everyday of our lives.
• Our reflections:
• My Jesus, You are everything that my life craves for.I find joy in your presence.Your presence will make me more available to others and help me to wash their feet. Lord , wash my feet and fill me with your life.
• Henri Nouwen: "Lord, I promise I will not run away , not give up, not stop praying, even when all seems useless,pointless and a waste of time and effort.I want to let you know that I love You even though I do not feel loved by you and that I hope in you even though I often experience despair.Let this be a little dying I can do with You.
•  Fulton J.Sheen: "All my sermons are prepared in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. As recreation is most pleasant and profitable in the sun, so homiletic creativity is best nourished before the Eucharist. The most brilliant ideas come from meeting God face to face. The Holy Spirit that presided at the Incarnation is the best atmosphere for illumination. Pope John Paul II keeps a small desk or writing pad near him whenever he is in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament; and I have done this all my life - I am sure for the same reason he does, because a lover always works better when the beloved is with him."

•  St.John Chrysostom: "How many of you say: I should like to see His face, His garments, His shoes. You do see Him, you touch Him, you eat Him. He gives Himself to you, not only that you may see Him, but also to be your food and nourishment"

• St Thomas Aquinas: “The Eucharist is the sacrament of love: it signifies love, it produces love. The Eucharist is the consummation of the whole spiritual life.”

  St Euphrasia: “To speak of the Blessed Sacrament is to speak of what is most sacred. How often, when we are in a state of distress, those to whom we look for help leave us; or what is worse, add to our affliction by heaping fresh troubles upon us. He is ever there, waiting to help us.”

• t Francis de Sales: “When the bee has gathered the dew of heaven and the earth’s sweetest nectar from the flowers, it turns it into honey, then hastens to its hive. In the same way, the priest, having taken from the altar the Son of God (who is as the dew from heaven, and true son of Mary, flower of our humanity), gives him to you as delicious food

• St John Chrysostom: “It is not the man who is responsible for the offerings as they become Christ’s Body and Blood; it is Christ Himself who was crucified for us. The standing figure belongs to the priest who speaks these words. The power and the grace belong to God. ‘This is My Body,’ he says. And these words transform the offerings.”

  St Cyril of Jerusalem: “Since Christ Himself has said, ‘This is My Body,’ who shall dare to doubt that it is His Body?”

• Little Flower on her First Communion: " That day our meeting was more than simple recognition, it was perfect union..We were no longer two.Therese had disappeared like a drop of water lost in the immensity of the ocean; Jesus alone remained.He was the master, the King."