12nd Stage - Conclusion: a Eucharistic and missionary life
Conclusion: a Eucharistic and missionary life
The consecration is in view of the mission
All consecration begins with a calling from God with a view to being set apart. We see this in the vocation of the patriarchs, judges, and prophets in the Old Testament, as well as in the choosing of the apostles in the New Testament. From the outset, this calling is directed towards a mission in service of God's people.
Consecration in the true sense is the work of God. As with all divine election, it is inseparable from mission. In both the Old and New Testaments, whenever God calls, it is to send. There is no consecration without mission. This is particularly clear with the consecration of Jesus himself, the Anointed of God.
The Eucharistic analogy
In his 2005 letter to priests, his last one, John Paul II said: «If the whole Church lives by the Eucharist, then priestly existence must, in a special way, have an «Eucharistic form». The words of the Institution of the Eucharist should therefore be for us not only a formula of consecration, but also a «formula for life».»
The term “consecration” first appeared in the history of the Church with Tertullian, in the context of the Eucharist to express that the wine is changed into the Blood of Christ. It is God who consecrates.
Four essential elements of consecration
signified by the 4 verbs used: the bread is taken, blessed, broken and given by Jesus. While they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it and gave it to the disciples, saying: “Take, eat; this is my Body”. (Mt 26, 26) We find them again: at the multiplication of the loaves, the institution of the Eucharist, the pilgrims on the road to Emmaus, etc.
It corresponds to the 4 parts of the Eucharistic liturgy.
whatever the era and rite: the offertory (he took it), the consecration (he blessed it), the breaking of the body (he broke it), and the communion (and gave it to them).
These are the 4 mysteries of our lives
The 4 mysteries of our lives
He took it
All consecration begins with a personal experience of encountering Christ who “seizes” people. Phil 3:12 12 I have not yet reached perfection, but I am continuing my race to try to grasp, since I myself have been grasped by Christ Jesus.
It's baptism! Reactivating the experience of the outpouring of the Spirit, an updating of the grace of baptism offered to all Christians.
Ephesians 1:4-6, 11 04 He chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. 05 He predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—, 06 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the Beloved. 11 In him, we have become God's special domain, predestined according to the plan of the one who carries out everything he has decided..
2. He blessed him
In humility, in the total gift of oneself, including one's weaknesses and poverty, and in the deep conviction that, without the Lord, no one can do anything (cf. Jn 15:5), the Lord can transform everything, as he did at the time of the multiplication of the loaves (cf. Mk 6:37-44). It was enough for a young man to give him five loaves and two fish for a huge crowd to receive food.
Ephesians 1:3 03 Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! He has blessed us and filled us with the blessings of the Spirit, in heaven, in Christ.
3. He broke it
Just as Jesus broke bread to share with his disciples, so he breaks within the one he calls that which prevents him from giving himself to the world and to men. Through these breakings, the Lord wishes to purify him in order to make him available for the mission.
He broke with St Claude, Ste MM, Charles de Foucauld, Pierre Goursat…
3. And gave them
Election and consecration are in view of the mission.
Just as the baptised person does not consecrate himself but is consecrated by the Lord, so he does not send himself on a mission: he is sent. Availability is therefore a natural consequence of consecration. He who declares himself ready to offer himself without reservation to the Lord can only be available to serve Him where He pleases and to do what He pleases.
And so our journey of preparation for consecration to the Heart of Jesus comes to an end. To go further, we then recommend the Deepening Journey:
