You Are What You Eat

In the fitness and nutrition world we often say, “You are what you eat.”

For example, eating excessive carbohydrates (especially simple sugars) and saturated fats, is not good for you.  It sets the stage for being overweight.  It increases the probability of being obese, diabetic, and even developing heart disease.  Conversely, eating a well-balanced diet of fats, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and water is conducive to being healthy.

The faith dimension to a meal

But when we think of eating from a faith perspective, we are talking about the Eucharistic meal.  The Eucharist is the “source and summit” of our Catholic spirituality. The Church teaches that the bread and wine “by the words of Christ and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, become Christ’s Body and Blood” (CCC 1333).

However, the majority of Catholics, it seems, do not accept this belief. Surveys indicate that approximately 70% of Catholics in the United States do not believe in the true presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. This has led Church leaders in the United States to initiate an effort to revive that core belief of our faith.

Eucharistic Revival

The Church is currently in the second year of the National Eucharistic Revival. It is a movement to restore understanding and devotion to this great mystery to help Catholics renew the worship of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.

That first year (2022) of the revival focused on diocesan renewal. Individual dioceses across the country offered events promoting and inspiring understanding of the Eucharist. The current year (2023) of the revival is focusing on fostering Eucharistic devotion at the parish level.

The third and final year culminates in two major events involving Catholics across the entire country. In the summer of 2024, thousands are expected to participate in the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage.  It begins from each corner of the country and ends in Indianapolis for the National Eucharistic Congress July 17–24.

Following the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage and Congress, from July 25 until Pentecost 2025, “the Holy Spirit will send us out on mission to share the gift of our Eucharistic Lord.”

The True Presence

All kinds of books, articles, pamphlets, and lectures are available that address the what, why, when, where, and how questions about the Eucharist and Christ’s True Presence. And, of course, “The Catechism of the Catholic Church” provides an extensive exploration of The Sacrament of The Eucharist.

Many of these resources highlight the traditional and historical significance of the belief in the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. Scripture references in Mark 14:22-24, Matthew 26:26-28, Luke 22:19-20, 1 Corinthians 11:23-25, and the Bread of Life discourse in John chapter 6 expand on the reality of what the bread and wine become.

The true presence has been the belief and teaching of the Church from the very beginning of Christianity. Scripture, early Church history, the Church fathers, and the Didache (an early catechism dated between 50-150 AD), support this was what the Church taught and Christians believed.

In short, the True Presence is not a new belief.  It is a dogma – “a truth appertaining to faith or morals, revealed by God, transmitted from the Apostles in the Scriptures or by tradition” that Catholics must believe.

A personal perspective

There is nothing I can really add to what the available resources offer.  Rather, I want to, instead, provide a simple personal perspective that underscores the importance of the Eucharist for affecting “you are what you eat” spiritually through the impact it can have.

I was received into the Catholic Church over 40 years ago.  Some 30 years ago I became an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion (EMHC), and have since given communion to thousands of Catholics at mass, in hospitals, and in nursing homes.

I am constantly impressed by communicant’s reactions (as well as my own) in both receiving and giving Jesus’s Body and Blood. In reflecting on those experiences, several themes emerge as to the impact of receiving Jesus Christ’s Body and Blood.

• The Eucharist can serve as a reverent break from the ‘busyness’ of our lives. It provides a sacred focus of attention and emotion – a stop, look, listen, and reflection moment. It can provide a sense of order and peace to an often chaotic day.
• Many Christians emphasize the importance of a personal relationship with Christ. The Eucharist can increase that union with Christ. In receiving Him, He receives us as Jesus states in John 6:56 “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.”  We become one with God- a true Communion. It is reflective of Jesus statement in Matthew 28:20 that he will be with us “always.”
• Jesus is encountered, offered, and received in the Eucharist. Communion enables us to know Jesus at a spiritual level – at the most intimacy – to know Him as a friend. It can be viewed as a sacrament of fellowship. We become united spiritually with Jesus and it can be a three-way fellowship – Christ, the Church, and me.

More Themes

• The act of communion can bring a joy that can enable us to overcome the sadness in our life.
• The Eucharistic Sacrifice at Mass is a communal event. It can facilitate a sense of belongingness within a Church community.
• Receiving the Eucharist can strengthen us spiritually. It feeds us as “soul food” and strengthens us to move forward on our faith journey out on mission. In turn, it strengthens us against serious sin and restores our dignity.
• Frequent communion can bring out the better angels in us and assist us in gaining virtue. When we eat the Eucharist it can infuse in us the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity (love).
• The Eucharist can be viewed as necessary “holy nutrition.” In John 6:53-54 Jesus says “… unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.”  One meaning of “Give us our daily bread” in the Lord’s Prayer is that our daily bread is Jesus’ Body and Blood (CCC 2835).

A final note

These impacts or benefits are just those reflective of my experience. I am sure there are many more, especially at one’s personal level.  I also believe we can only obtain such benefits if we firmly believe in the True Presence. Otherwise, we are just eating a wafer and sipping wine.

I once had a Protestant friend, who is a former Catholic.  One of the reasons he left the Church was because he could not accept the True Presence. He thought it was not logical and that it went against science (shades of Jesus’ followers leaving him in John 6:64-66).  I challenged him by asking him how is this belief any more of a stretch than believing in a personal God, the Incarnation, or that Jesus is God and was resurrected? It is all part of the same Christian mystery of faith.

As a simple summing up, the Eucharist can be the needed vehicle for our transformation. When we eat the Body and Blood of Jesus we move toward sanctification in the image and likeness of God. We can, indeed, become what we eat. It is a sacrament of hope in our chaotic world. What a gift!