Bountiful Care

PHOTO: MARY VAN BALEN
Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
our God is merciful.
The Lord protects the simple
when I was brought low, he saved me.
Return, O my soul, to your rest
for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
Ps 116, 5-7

Holy Thursday liturgy is filled with beautiful readings. Exodus recounts the first Passover; 1Corinthians depicts the Last Supper and focuses on the breaking of the bread and sharing of the cup, the institution of the Eucharist. John’s gospel also tells of the Last Supper but presents Jesus as servant, washing the feet of his disciples and instructing them to do as he did: humble themselves and serve others in his name.

The Eucharist is central to my spirituality. When my life is filled with stress and hurt, when I cannot feel God with me and wonder if I am forgotten, I long for the Eucharist. I cannot explain why or how I believe, but I do.I know that in sharing the sacrament with the rest of the people of God, I am filled with the life of the Holy One in a way that brings me strength and hope. It has nothing to do with scholastic laboring to explain away the Mystery with words like “transsubstantiation” or “accidents” and everything to do with Divine Longing and Love.

That is why I chose these verses from today’s Psalm instead of the readings that paint the more familiar pictures of the Last Supper. God IS merciful and protects us all. When I am distressed, without hope, and physically exhausted, God renews my heart. When I swallow the bread and feel the wine warming my body, I know I am loved.

The gift of self, which Jesus gives to us in so many ways, especially in the Eucharist, is Love spilling over. It is God’s life becoming our own. When I am out of love, patience, hope, or energy I know I can rely on the Holy One providing me with God’s own.

The Eucharist, the example of love and service, the protection of the People of God all point to the reality of God’s unending love. I proclaim with the psalmist: Return, O my soul, to your rest, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
© 2010 Mary van Balen