“And behold I am with you always, until the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20
Cardinal Sean O’Malley has announced a Year of the Eucharist to bolster the faith of those who already believe in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist and to encourage those who struggle with this belief. Over the course of the next year and a half, the Cardinal invites all Catholics in the Archdiocese of Boston to learn more about the Eucharist and to spend more time before the Eucharistic Lord, asking Him to reveal Himself to you.
Read here the Cardinal's letter proclaiming the Year of the Eucharist.
UPDATE:
God often works in paradoxes. Just as we, in the Archdiocese of Boston, are about to commence the Year of the Eucharist, coronavirus took hold. One of the initial fallouts of this pandemic was the suspension of the public celebration of the Mass. For the past month, and for the indefinite future, the faithful cannot attend Mass and cannot receive the Eucharist. For me, and for my brother priests, this is probably one of the most painful dimensions of this pandemic.
Often, though, we don’t know what it is we have until it is taken away. Or, sometimes, when something is taken away from us, we yearn for it all the more. Not that God causes things like pandemics, but He can use them for good. This is the paradox: God can, and will, use this time of absence to increase our hunger for Him in the Eucharist. And He can, and will, use this time to help us better understand and truly believe that the Eucharist is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.
There is so much that is unknown to us right now. While this pandemic will eventually pass, we don’t know when and we don’t know at what cost. What we do know is we will be changed because of what we suffered and because of what we endured.
But know that God is very close, even now. In fact, the saints tell us that God is most near to us in times of darkness. Another paradox.
In light of this current reality, Cardinal Seán has decided to postpone the beginning of the Year of the Eucharist to commence on the Feast of Corpus Christi 2020, lasting until Corpus Christi 2021.
—- Bishop Uglietto
Year of the Eucharist Kick Off Video SPANISH Subtitles from Archdiocese of Boston on Vimeo.