There is no loyalty to Christ without loyalty to the Holy Eucharist, because the Eucharist is Christ.

Palm Sunday March 28th, 2010

Today we join the millions of Christian voices throughout the centuries who have been faithful to Christ; and along with them, we too desire to shout our loyalty to Christ and even more to show it by our deeds. We call this week Holy, but it could also be called "Loyalty Week."

Sadly, in our day many Christians are like the faithless tragic figures we just heard about the Passion narrative, they have not remained faithful to Christ. Yes, they may give Jesus lip service, but in the end, they preferred comfort, convenience, laziness and emotional highs, instead of steadfast faithfulness, and so loyalty to Christ. Many Christians today preferred a get rich, feel good gospel, instead a Gospel which demands a sharing in the very sufferings of Christ, and so a share in His loving act of redemption. In others words, too many so-called Christians prefer a Jesus without the cross, love without sacrifice, cheap grace, no suffering and no self-denial.

Sadly, many Catholics as well, from Catholic politicians to Catholic news journalist, claim the name Catholic but deny Christ by denying His true Mystical Body, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church and her teachings. Yes, they receive ashes on their foreheads, they may even attend Holy Mass and receive communion, but they do so with no faith and thus commit the grave crime of sacrilege. They are not faithful to Christ because they are not faithful to the Vicar of Christ's, the Supreme Pontiff Benedict the XVI. We see this today in the recent vicious and untrue attacks against our beloved Holy Father. Just like with Christ, they don't care about the facts, they distort the facts to further their agendas. In the person of the Holy Father, Christ again is on trial.

Sadly, this lack of faithfulness is shown as well, by the many who will not take part in the beautiful ceremonies of Holy week, ceremonies that remind us of Christ faithfulness to us. Jesus faithfulness to us, took Him from heaven to earth, and then from the cradle to the cross and from the grave to the Resurrection. This week's ceremonies celebrate the great victory He won for us over sin and death by the same cross and the glorious true and historically real resurrection that followed. Too few Christians will take part in these ceremonies because they already do not show their faithfulness to Christ and to His Church by attending Holy Mass every week with full and actual participation; Holy Mass which makes truly present these saving events in our midst, and their power in our lives..."Father forgive them for they not what they do!"

This week reminds us clearly that we have a clear choice, and make no mistake about it, a clear choice of love, one that has eternal consequences. We can be loyal to Christ or disloyal to Him. There is a line that is being drawn in the sand which is becoming more and more pronounced in our day. Which side are we going to be on? True loyalty demands no middle of the road positions--in fact, you get run over in the middle of the road.

The hatred for Christ and His Catholic Church grows stronger. Will we be faithful to Christ? Will we truly love Him, or like the crowds on that first Palm Sunday, merely give Him lip service? For love is shown by deeds not by sweet words. For those who only give Him lip service, they will eventually cry out Crucify Him, Crucify His Church, Crucify His Pope, Crucify His priests, Crucify anyone one who follows Him; and for sure, crucify and mock, and even spit upon, anyone who would kneel or prostrate before a little white Host. They will turn against the followers and adorers of Christ just as those who turned against Christ on Good Friday.

When we look at the Crucifix and contemplate His Passion we see very clearly Jesus' great love for us; And we learn that our King will definitely be faithful to those who are faithful to Him, for He loves those who love Him. We who in faith, praise our King on this first day of the week--Sunday, and do so every first day of the week come hell or high water, we know that Jesus Christ will reward all of those who are faithful to Him, that is those who adore Him as the True and Living God. And so, we pledge our loyalty to Him no matter what the cost, even though many there are who prefer other things, the things of this world to Christ.

Today’s Holy Mass and every Holy Mass is a summary of Holy Week. On Palm Sunday we sing the praises of Jesus Christ; in every single Mass we praise our Lord. On the first Holy Thursday Jesus literally changed bread and wine into His Body and Blood and then gave to the Twelve His own divine power to do the same when He ordained them priests. In every single Holy Mass, through His priests, Jesus again changes bread and wine into His true flesh and blood, into His very self.

On that first Good Friday, Jesus died a bloody death for us; so too in every Mass this same sacrifice is made present to us in an unbloody manner so that we can, along with Jesus on Calvary, offer ourselves to the Father in a holy oblation of love.

On that first Easter Jesus truly rose from the dead; in this and every Holy Sacrifice of the Mass this same resurrection is made actually present so that we can share in its divine power and in its divine fruits.

This Holy Week, beginning with this Holy Mass is the time to recommit ourselves to Christ and fidelity to Him. He is offering us the graces to keep this commitment and to begin to make each and every Mass not only meaningful but effective in our life. If we aren't faithful to the Holy Mass and to the fact that the Eucharist is truly Jesus, God among us in His Human Resurrected body, then we cannot, cannot be faithful to Him our daily lives. Our Loyalty to Christ is in fact shown by our faithfulness to the Holy Eucharist.

There is no loyalty to Christ without loyalty to the Holy Eucharist, because the Eucharist is Christ. And if we truly believe this, then we must live out this belief in our thoughts, words and actions toward the Holy Eucharist. We must come before the Holy Eucharist as if it is God Himself, because It is. We must come before Him in faith, in purity of soul cleansed by confession; and in humility, we must adore Him and fall on our knees and even our faces before His Divine Majesty truly present in the Holy Eucharist, the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar.

It is a prideful people who refuse to fall on their knees before God. If at the name of Jesus every knee must bend, what about before the very person of Jesus. Those who refuse to adore God in the Holy Eucharist are not loyal to Christ....Judas' betrayal was due to His refusal to believe and so adore Jesus in the Holy Eucharist!!! All the apostles, except St. John, abandoned Jesus during the Crucifixion because they would not watch one hour. "Will you not watch one hour with Him?!"

Let us Promise Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, that we will be faithful to Him not only during this week, but during our whole lives by being faithful to His Holy Mass and His Catholic Church and her teachings. Let us adore our God truly among us in the Holy Eucharist with His same human nature which suffered the blows, insults and blasphemies of Evil unbelieving men. In fact, I proposed that we begin 24 hour, seven day a week perpetual Eucharistic Adoration in this very Church. Do we have the faith and the loyalty to Christ to commit to doing so?

Let us shout with our life as well as with our words, the concluding and heaven-shaking words of St. Paul in today’s second reading: JESUS CHRIST IS LORD! Let us proclaim with our whole being that HE IS NOT ONLY LORD OVER ALL THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH, but that HE IS LORD OVER MY ENTIRE LIFE, NO EXCEPTIONS and He is truly, personally, really present in the Holy Eucharist. So come, come let us in loyalty adore Him, let us give ourselves to Him and to the Father through Him. Let us be willing to go to the cross and face hell itself rather than to be unfaithful to our Lord in the Holy Eucharist.

May Mary, the first of all the faithful disciples of Christ obtain for us the grace to live this commitment of loyalty no matter what, even to the cross, even unto death. Amen.