Fullness of faith is lived through a sacramental life

In my last column, I had written about the encounter between Jesus and the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Essentially, the encounter was a celebration of the Eucharist. The Risen Jesus was teaching that he is present not only through fleeting apparitions, but also in his Word and in the Breaking of the Bread.

Jesus and the Most Holy Trinity encounter us today in Sacred Scripture and in life-changing and deeper ways through sacred words, gestures and symbols, i.e., the sacraments. Like the early Christians, we need the sacraments. As Deacon Chris Nichols put it, “We are experiencing [during this pandemic] a spiritual famine.”

In a conversation with Father Dan DiNardo, a retired priest of the Camden Diocese, I expressed the hope that this time of absence of the public celebration of the sacraments will make us hunger more for them – “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” Father Dan quipped, “It is better than ‘out of sight; out of mind.’”

A tragic consequence of COVID-19 would be that Catholics would be accustomed to living our faith without the seven sacraments. Without the sacraments, our Catholic Christian faith is incomplete. We are now impoverished. The fullness of faith is lived through a sacramental life that transforms us and feeds us on the journey to eternal life (see, for example, Jn 6:52-59 and Mt 28:16-20). Faith is experienced not only in the heart and professed on lips; it is also lived through the gathering of the People of God who encounter the God through words, signs and gestures that help us grow in grace and unity.

At the Last Supper, Jesus commanded: “Do this in memory of me.” Saint Paul echoes this command as something we celebrate and pass on (this is the meaning of tradition) until the Lord’s coming (see 1 Cor 11:23-26). (By the way, Paul’s account of the Last Supper is the first in Scripture; he wrote his letters before the Evangelists wrote the Gospels.)

Clearly in the early church the sacramental life, charity and solidarity were essential, regular practices of faith (see, for example, Acts 2:37-47 and Acts 4:32-37). Jesus states that love is the identifying mark of Christians: “By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:35). In his parable on the Second Coming, Jesus clearly states that service to the needy is an encounter with himself and is the door to eternal life (see Mt 25:31-46).

Finally, the Apostolic Fathers (the great teachers of the faith who immediately succeeded the Apostles) attest to the importance of a sacramental faith and solidarity. Saint Justin, in 155 A.D., describes vividly the celebration of the Eucharist. Saint Irenaeus (130-202 A.D.) in his treatise, “Against Heresies,” gives a beautiful theological explanation of the Eucharist as both nourishment and a pledge of our resurrection.

During this pandemic, faith is still being lived at home and in other ways. However, it is complete and most nourishing when we celebrate the sacraments and live in active charity and solidarity.

Father Matthew R. Weber is pastor of Holy Cross Parish, Bridgeton.