The Source and Summit of Christian Life

The Church teaches us in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium #11, that the Eucharist is “the source and summit of Christian life.”

We are preparing to consecrate all the parishes in the Diocese of Allentown to the Eucharist on the Feast of Corpus Christi. So I thought it would be a good idea to reflect on the Eucharist and the central role it has in our Christian life, especially since many of us will be consecrating ourselves at the same time.

The Eucharist is central simply because it is Christ Himself, present in His saving Paschal Mystery, that is, His Suffering, Death, and Resurrection. This is the entire spiritual good of the Church. The Eucharist is the culmination of the action of God to sanctify creation in Christ. It is also the culmination of the worship human beings offer to the Father through Christ in the Holy Spirit.

As I noted, Vatican II calls the Eucharist the source and summit of Christian life. It is the source of Christian life because from it flows the grace and living power of God that make the Christian life possible. The Eucharist is like the spring that is the source of a mighty watercourse. Just as at the spring it begins to flow, so the Eucharist is the beginning of living in Christ.

Also, from the Eucharist flows all the energy and strength to begin any of our efforts in living in Christ: our efforts at prayer, our resolutions to be charitable, our commitments to sacrifice, etc. They all have their origin in Christ’s salvific action, which is present to us in the Eucharist.

So you can see why the Eucharist is central to our life of faith. But wait, there is more. The Eucharist is also the summit of Christian life. The summit is the highest point of the mountain; where the mountain climber is trying to get. He wants to climb to the top.

Well, our efforts in the Christian life reach their high point in the Eucharist. We lift them up and offer them to God in the perfect sacrifice of Christ in the Eucharist. Our life of prayer, our efforts to love others, our suffering and sacrifice, all are joined to Christ’s offering Himself to the Father and lifted up to God. They are made perfect by Christ’s perfect sacrifice.

As a priest, one of my favorite parts of the Mass is the Doxology at the end of the Eucharistic Prayer. The priest lifts up the Host and the Chalice saying: “Through Him and with Him and in Him O God almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is Yours, forever and ever.” I am lifting up and giving to God all my efforts in the Christian life and all the efforts of the congregation.

So when you go to the celebration of the Eucharist, bring everything you have been doing in your life of faith. Offer it to God and join it to this perfect sacrifice. Also bring all you want to do for Christ, and receive strength and divine life from this fountain of grace. This is a reason to go to the Eucharist frequently, at least every Sunday. Nowhere else do we come into contact with such a spiritual powerhouse.

When you go to Adoration of the Christ in the Eucharist, recall how central it is to your faith life and thank the Lord for giving us this great Sacrament, which is the source and summit of Christian life.

By Monsignor William Baker, Assistant Pastor of St. Peter the Apostle, Reading.