9 INTRODUCTION pation in the heavenly banquet of the King. It is heaven on earth! At Mass, we get to “eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink his Blood.” (John 6:53) I’ve often heard people say that Catholics don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus. At Mass, we get to take Jesus – Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity – into our very bodies. He becomes part of us, one with us. It just doesn’t get any more personal than that, my friend. That’s how I respond to the second comment above. When someone says they’re not getting “fed” at Mass, I remind them that they are being fed with the Bread of Life – Jesus. There is no greater food. No matter how bad the music is or how boring the preaching is or how unfriendly the congregation is, Jesus is present. I don’t mean to disregard anyone’s genuine feelings about their experience. I just want to stress that there is a greater spiritual reality that needs to be understood. Let me address briefly the first comment, “I don’t get anything out of Mass.” Like most everything in life, you only get out of it what you put into it. And if what you’re putting into Mass is little or nothing, then that’s what you’ll get out of it. How well are you listening? How much do you understand about the things that are being said and done? Have you studied the deeper meaning behind the words, the rituals, the gestures? That’s what this little book is for – to help you gain a little deeper understanding of the Mass. As you read this book, there are a few things you need to know. First, a bit of history. Each chapter in this book is a radio script. Each script runs one minute in length. I produce these for the radio, so I’ve had to boil down tons of information into a very short period of time. That’s why you won’t find any of these little teachings to be anywhere near an exhaustive explanation. But each one is a start. My goal is to give you a little nugget that will entice you to dig deeper. I truly hope you will. One of the great things about my Minute in the Church books is
20459CD
To see the actual publication please follow the link above