Against Withholding the Eucharist

I love the Eucharist. Indeed, there is no time in my day when I feel more myself than when I am celebrating, with a community of faith, the mystery of love given to us on the altar. At this table, the spirit of God fulfills the promise of Christ by transforming the gifts of field and vine into the body and blood of the Lord. Here bread and wine -- gifts freely given to us, which we now return in offering -- become the presence of God. This occurs not through the power of the priest nor through the merit of those present, but through the fidelity of Christ, who constantly responds to the faith of the people of God with incarnate love. Here the gift of the Spirit is offered to us through this living memorial of Christ's death and resurrection.