January 25

Fourth Week in Advent.—Wednesday

He that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me. S. John 6:57.

A THIRD use of the Holy Communion is union with Christ. For the difference between the Holy Communion and all other prayers that we use is that they are only steps on the road to Christ, but Christ comes into us Himself in the blessed Sacrament, to be the very Food and Drink of our souls. Now, as Christ's Body and Blood are very Christ Himself, when we eat and drink them we eat and drink Him, for He saith, "He that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me." "In Him," says the Apostle, "dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." In Whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and therefore, as all the nourishing power of bread and all the refreshing power of wine are taken into our bodies when we eat and drink them rightly, so when we receive the Sacrament rightly, we strengthen and refresh our souls by taking into them all the fulness and the treasures of God. Any good thing which is in God, which we need and which He sees to be fit for us, we can have in this holy Sacrament. We can have wisdom, patience, strength, courage, power to conquer sins and temptations, and to gain virtue and perseverance in good, by the grace of that Divine gift; for when we have received it, we can say, "I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me."

True Bread of life, in pitying mercy given Long-famished souls to strengthen and to feed; Christ Jesus, Son of God, true Bread of heaven, Thy flesh is meat, Thy Blood is drink indeed.

Feeding on Thee, all weakness turns to power, This sickly soul revives, like earth in spring; Strength floweth on and in, each buoyant hour This being seems all energy, all wing.