Reviving a world unaware of its need for God’s love

Last June, the Catholic Church in the United States embarked on a Eucharistic Revival to bring hope and ultimate purpose to many Catholics who no longer attend Mass or claim affiliation with the faith. Latest statistics show that most Catholics do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The ever-growing secular and material world has desensitized many to their need for God. Coupled with post-pandemic confusion and indifference, our world finds itself desperately unaware of its need of God’s love. The Catholic Church recognizes these challenges and hopes to provide these “lost sheep” with a personal and profound encounter of the love of God through devotion to the Eucharist, thereby creating an environment where hearts and minds are deeply converted and healed by His eternal love and joy.
 
The world is in desperate need of this love. Growing global political crises, social turmoil, increased radical ideologies, and the need for recovery from the pandemic’s shadows of darkness has sprouted an abundant harvest of lost souls. Through this Eucharistic Revival, the Catholic Church aims to emphasize the truth and practices of our eucharistic faith so as to spark a joyful rediscovery of the Real Presence of Christ. As Pope St. John Paul II exclaimed, “Spalancate le porte a Christo!” (“Open wide the doors to Christ!”) In Italian the word spalancate has a more powerful meaning; literally, it means to “smash or tear down” the doors to Christ!

The last few years’ impediments and challenges have awakened the Church’s need for healing and conversion. More than 30 percent of Catholics have not returned to the pews since the pandemic. The statistics reveal that more than 40 percent of millennials are now self-identifying as “nones,” unaffiliated with any religion. This generation of young Catholics finds the faith to be purposeless and irrelevant. The truly saddening reality is the loss of faith in Christ’s eucharistic presence. The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that the Eucharist is the “source and summit” of the Christian life and explains, “For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch” (1324-27).

Dioceses across the country are prioritizing eucharistic adoration and creating events to invite back the so called “nones” as well those Catholics who lack catechesis. It’s an opportunity for formation and discipleship to create missionaries who will take to the peripheries that message of the love of God reflected in Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist. Our faith is personal, but it is not private. We are all called to go out and share the Good News!

One-Pot Tomato Basil Pasta

Ingredients:
• 4 quarts water
• 12 oz pasta of choice
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• 1 - 25 oz jar of Cucina Antica Tomato Basil sauce
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 red or yellow pepper, chopped
• 1 bunch kale, stemmed and chopped
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, sliced

Instructions:
1. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add in the pasta and cook according to package instructions. Remove cooked pasta from heat, drain in a colander, and set aside.
2. Rinse out saucepan and return to the stovetop. Heat olive oil over medium-high. Add in onion, bell pepper, and garlic powder, and sauté for 6-8 minutes or until fragrant. Add in kale and allow it to wilt.
3. In the same saucepan, add the cooked pasta and tomato basil sauce. Heat until warm and bubbling.
4. Remove from heat and top with kalamata olives and fresh basil.