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ELISHEBA BLOG

Laura, Ivonne, and Rick
​write about their lives in the Eucharist.
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Eymard and Spiritual Fatherhood

2/4/2023

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By: Rick Hernandez
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We often speak about the beautiful gift that is to have a good father and mother. Having good parents can make a big difference in any child’s life, for we know that a good parent will listen in acknowledgment of our dignity and provide us with guidance as required. A good parent will support, correct, praise, and admonish as needed, and set rules and boundaries that ensure our safety. The goal of the good parent is to establish a loving environment where they can share of their love, experience, and wisdom. A good parent is indeed a treasure.
 
We know very well that we have not all been blessed with great parents, and I pray for all of us who are, in reality, physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual orphans. We pray for a parental figure to care for us, help us, and nurture in us that which is needed for us to develop rightly. Sometimes we get to select who is that person in our lives, but sometimes the person selects us.

And it is a blessing to have not only those parental figures who nurture our physical and mental well-being, but also spiritual parents who nurture our spiritual well-being. Some of our spiritual parents are here on earth, and some watch over us from Heaven.
 
Every February 4th, the Eymardian family (Sacramentinos) celebrates the birthday of our founder, Saint Peter Julian Eymard. He is known to the world as the Apostle of the Eucharist, but for us, Eymardians, we know him as our spiritual father.
 
What is a spiritual father? The Catholic Dictionary defines a Spiritual Father as “one who counsels and directs a person in the spiritual life. It is generally a priest, the spiritual father is often designated by ecclesiastical authority to guide the members of a religious community or confraternity, students for the priesthood, or in general, persons specially dedicated to Christian perfection or the Church’s apostolate.”
 
A spiritual father listens in acknowledgment, provides guidance as required, and supports and corrects. Through our spiritual father’s lessons, we are taught how to grow in the spiritual life. As I read through the writings of Father Eymard, I often imagine myself sitting by his side and asking for his guidance in a quiet conversation...

Me: “Father Eymard, tell me. Am I personally loved by God?”

“Allow me to share with you a great treasure I have discovered: I hope you will reap good fruit from it. God loves us personally with a great benevolent love, with an infinite and eternal love. This benevolent love consists in willing purely and exclusively what is good and what is best for the person who is so loved. In God, benevolent love is personal. God loves a person, loves you as if you were his only daughter [son], because his love is one and infinite... “ (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Letter to Mrs. Camille d’Andigne on March 4, 1865)
 
“Our Lord’s sentiments toward us are at least those of a good father; why deny Him this quality? Besides, see how our Lord manifests His personal love for each one of us. Every morning He comes to see each one of His children in particular, to converse with them, to visit them, to embrace them. Although He has repeated this so many times, He is as gracious and as loving at His last visit as He was at the first. He is as young as ever and is not tired of loving us and giving Himself to each one of us. Does He not give Himself whole and entire to each one? And if a greater number come to receive Him, does He divide Himself up? Does He give less to each one? If the Church is full of adorers, can they not all pray to Jesus and converse with Him? Is not each one listened to and his prayer granted as if he were the only one in Church?” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Excerpt from “The Real Presence”)
 
“Such is the personal love of Jesus for us. Each one may take it all for himself and wrong no one; the sun gives all its light to each and everyone of us; the ocean belongs whole and entire to each and every fish. Jesus is greater than us all. He is inexhaustible.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Excerpt from “The Real Presence”)
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“Correct what is imperfect, know and admit to God and yourself that you are full of pride.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard)
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​Me: “Father Eymard, tell me. How can I recognize God?”

“….in the Blessed Sacrament, Our Lord Himself is the light which manifests Him as our model and reveals His beauties to us.   He is Himself His light, His means of being known, just as the sun is itself its own proof.  To make Himself known, He has only to show Himself.  Recognition of Him need not come from its being reasoned out.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard)
 
“A child does not have to discourse with himself to recognize his parents.  Our Lord reveals Himself through His presence, just as parents do. But as we grow to know His voice better and as our hearts become more sympathetic to Him in emptying themselves of what is not Him, our Lord manifests Himself in a clearer and more intimate manner, which only those know, who love Him. He gives the soul a divine conviction which overshadows the light of human reason. Look at Magdalene:  one word from Jesus and she recognizes Him. He acts in the same way in the Blessed Sacrament:   He says one word only but it rings in our very hearts:  “It is I!….”   We sense His Presence, we believe in it more firmly than if we were to see Him with bodily eyes.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard)
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​Me: “Father Eymard, I get so tired and become burdened by life. Most of the time I do not know what to do. How do I grow my spiritual life?”

“When we work hard, we must eat well… Receive communion often, and Jesus will change you into himself” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard)
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“Don’t speak about responsibilities in relation to our Lord, but about thanksgiving, that’s better. Begin with this principle: the poorer I am, the more I need God.” “Always keep your heart free of anything that might trouble it. No sadness, distress or worry about the future. Your future is God and God loves you. You are all his; you are consecrated to him. Work and sleep quietly in Jesus’ little boat.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Counsels for Spiritual Life, page 184)
 
“You must not run after sacrifices, as sacrifices in themselves. This would be like a servant who is unwilling to remain next to his master; worried and impatient, he prefers to go out and work for him, rather than remain with him. That’s what happens when we love our sacrifices as sacrifices, when we place our life in them, when we make them our center – preferring to work for God, rather than work with God.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard to the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, Paris, August 27, 1861)
 
“Come as you are and offer that self of yours to God.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard)
 
“The virtues of Our Lord are not acquired all at once. Their practice costs. Devote yourselves to them without fear, with courage and perseverance. They must be your adornment on the day on which He will present you to His Father for the celebration of the heavenly nuptials in Paradise in presence of His angels.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - The Divine Eucharist - extracts from the writings and sermons of Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Page 520)

​Me: “Father Eymard, all that you are saying sounds quite difficult.”

“The cross is not a punishment; it is a consolation. The saints have understood this. That is why they are attached to it.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Venerable Pierre Julian Eymard - Page 181)
 
“Belong entirely to God through love, entirely to your neighbor through a gracious charity, entirely to the divine Eucharist by the offering and sacrifice of your whole self.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Letter to Mrs. Stephanie Gourd, October 1859)
 
“May your heart ever belong to God through purity of intentions, by attachment to his love, by trust in his divine mercy. Often make aspirations of love towards this good master. These aspirations are for the soul what breathing is to the heart. They are its life.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Letter to Mrs. Josephine Gourd)

“It is easy to give our heart but to give our thoughts, our judgment, our intelligence, that is a more difficult sacrifice.” and “To dwell in Jesus is to leave oneself behind, to strip oneself of self to give oneself as one gives wood to fire.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Letter to Mrs. Giraud-Jordan in 1865)
 
“Could anything be more appropriate than to give oneself to the One who has given us everything! What could be more comforting than to give oneself to Jesus as he gives himself entirely to us! Oh! Why then are we so inconstant, so greedy, so ungrateful toward this good Master? Nevertheless, he asks us for the total gift of ourselves only in order to make us happy and to be able to give himself to us in the same way.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Counsels for Spiritual Life, pages 79-80)
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“Know for certain and for all time that of yourself you can never accomplish anything, neither here nor there, neither today nor tomorrow, neither for this one nor for that one; so go ask God’s help before beginning—anything.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - The Divine Eucharist - extracts from the writings and sermons of Saint Peter Julian Eymard - Page 131)


Let us learn from the many lessons Saint Peter Julian Eymard shares and grow, that we may fulfill our call to a well-developed spiritual life. Let us live a rich Eucharistic life steeped in thanksgiving for all our Lord Jesus has done for us. May we all grow to emulate Saint Peter Julian Eymard and become spiritual fathers [mothers] to those in need of our love and guidance.
 
Let us pray: Our Lord, Jesus Christ. We thank you for your loving gift of self in the Eucharist. Thank you for giving us Saint Peter Julian Eymard to help guide us to you. Father Eymard, thank you for your heroic gift of self, the lessons on recognizing Christ Eucharistic, and the advice on how to live the Eucharistic life. May all your spiritual children help bring about a Eucharistic revival. That the heart of our Lord Jesus, in the Most Blessed Sacrament, be praised, adored, and loved with grateful affection, at every moment, in all the tabernacles of the world, even to the end of time. Amen.
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Rick Hernandez

Rick Hernandez is a commonsense Catholic, Lay Associate of the Blessed Sacrament and a Director for Elisheba House. He lives in Trinity, Florida, with his wife Ivonne and their children. He also writes for the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament's Daily Eucharistic Reflections and for Catholicmom.com.

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Do This in Memory of Me: Keep Your Love Burning

1/28/2023

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By: Laura Catherine Worhacz
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“I accept your heart and give you my own, on condition that you keep the fire of your love burning. As our Lord has spoken, so must you do. He made you completely as you are, so that you can be totally his.” – (Saint Peter Julian Eymard, Paris 1863)
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Dearest Eucharistic Family,
 
This past week my husband found out on Facebook that a second cousin from Upstate NY was in a severe car accident and in ICU. We called his wife to extend our concern. We hung up the phone as if we received a spiritual “pep talk” after hearing, “God has a plan, and we will learn from this. So many have come to bring me food and comfort; I do not know how people live without God; Jesus is with us holding our hands through this trial; we are strong in God and will get through. Our parish priest and community are with us...” We received this message from our cousin in a genuine, joyful tone. A faithful heart amid suffering came from a dedicated sacramental life—a life that lives for God, one’s own family, and community—responsibly stewarding the privilege to be in Christ Jesus through the heart of Mary. 
 
We called our cousin to extend our love and received a loving, faithful heart of hope and gratitude in return.
 
It is beautiful to witness the love of God found in Christ Jesus, our Lord. 

“Now who is going to harm you if you are enthusiastic for what is good? But even if you should suffer because of righteousness, blessed are you. Do not be afraid or terrified with fear of them, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks.” ( 1 Peter 3:13-15) 

For sure, we are baptized into our eternal reality. The Eucharist is our hope to be purified into the Sacramental grace, our doorway of hope in the midst of suffering. In the above excerpt, we hear the words of Saint Peter Julian advising us, to be totally given to Jesus. To be love, burning with zeal, like fire in a heart that longs to return love for love. 
 
It seems like an eternity from one Daily Mass to the next. Prayer reminds us of the Liturgy and the Eucharist we have received. In this pattern of prayer with Mary, we remain faithful to be totally given to God.
 
We are weeks away from another Lenten Season. We have time in ordinary time to listen to the voice of God in his Word to prepare for another desert experience. As we open our hearts, let us be elevated with the Sacred Host; raise our hearts to see Heaven now. By death, we find life anew and a doorway of grace to what has been hidden in our hearts. 
 
Our hearts beat with the Sacred Host by the Incarnate life, and we are called out of ourselves daily to let Jesus be known through our existence. The scriptures this past week remind us of conversion, the conversion of St. Paul and his fatherly care to St. Timothy and St. Titus. It brought to mind so many who have ministered to me to learn the teaching of our Catholic faith. The greatest gift I have ever received was finding myself in church, where there was the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament almost 25 years ago. It was then an intimate relationship with Christ through the heart of Mary was found. As Catholics, we are blessed to be in a spiritual conversion forever. Baptized in this life unto the next, purgatory, and please God, the fullness of Heaven. 
 
May all we have found in the mystery of God be professed in every situation, in all we do and speak. Our words are important and may invite another soul to come to know the love of God found in the Holy Eucharist. 

“We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” (Romans 8:28-29)
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Laura Catherine Worhacz

Laura Catherine Worhacz is a Lay Associate of the Blessed Sacrament and author of Consecration to Jesus Through Our Lady of The Blessed Sacrament. She is also the Director of Mothers of The Blessed Sacrament. She lives in Trinity, FL with her husband and their two daughters.

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What Do You See?

1/21/2023

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By: Ivonne J. Hernandez
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​It always amazed me how, whenever I was pregnant, whether I was walking down the street, shopping at the mall, or going to Mass on Sunday… no matter where I went, there seemed to be pregnant women everywhere. It is like being pregnant gave me a special radar to hone in on those who were in the same boat as me. We would notice each other and share a smile that said, “Hang in there… I see you. I see your pain, your sacrifice, your love. I see the difficulties you are dealing with in a world that refuses to make room for you and the child inside you, a world that values productivity and speed as you slow down. Hang in there, my friend; you are not alone.” The rest of the time, which has been the majority of my life, I am sure many pregnant women have walked by without me noticing, without me seeing them… without a glance of love to acknowledge their plight. When I’ve done this, I have sinned in what I have failed to do, “through my fault, through my fault, through my own grievous fault….”

Sins of omission are very difficult to deal with, and we should put in extra effort to identify them, lest we compound the omission by omitting to look for them. Acknowledging the limitations of our human nature, we must put checks and balances in place to help us cover all our bases… especially the areas most prone to neglect. The call to love our neighbor requires this; we must not delay. God does not ask the impossible of us. He has given us to one another to help “cover our six.” Just like a pregnant woman has eyes to notice other pregnant women, a person in a wheelchair sees others without mobility. The mother of an autistic child sees her neighbor’s undiagnosed child with empathy. The hard of hearing has more patience with the loudness of the old man standing in line behind him. We can not expect, as individuals, to have eyes that see what is hidden from us; we can only see what we see. But we can choose to see more by actively seeking the company of those different than us.

We must have the courage to expand our view to see all the dimensions of human suffering. What stops us from doing this? A phrase in Spanish comes to mind… “ojos que no ven, corazon que no siente,” which translates to “eyes that don’t see, heart that doesn’t feel”…or… “what you don’t know, can’t hurt you.” If we are already suffering, looking to our neighbor in a similar situation brings us comfort; we know we are not alone. But seeking to see suffering we are not going through ourselves right now? That requires courage; that requires love. It requires the courage to be willing to be moved with compassion, to be moved to action fueled by love. Once we see, we can not say we did not know. Once we see, we can not ignore anymore.

One day, as I walked out of a store with my cane, a young man held the door for me and offered to help me with my bags. I gratefully accepted, and we talked as he pushed my shopping cart toward my car. He asked me what was wrong with me; why did I need a cane to walk? After I told him, he shared that his mom also has an illness that makes it difficult for her to walk. He didn’t know that not long before he showed up, I was feeling frustrated that this store did not have an automatic door, nor did it have attendants to help me. I was already tired from shopping and now needed to exert more effort to get my stuff to the car. God heard my cry, and he called the young man. If this man had not experienced his mother’s suffering, he might have walked on by without noticing I was tired, for my suffering was not evident to all. It is not like I had fallen on the ground; almost everyone would leap to help in that circumstance. No, my physical and mental pain was hidden from most. His mom’s illness had been the instrument God used to open this man’s eyes and heart to see me this day, to help me and bring joy and light to my day.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. For as Christ’s sufferings overflow to us, so through Christ does our encouragement also overflow.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)
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​Why does a good God allow suffering? I might not know the full answer, but I know that on that day when I was walking out of a store, the suffering of the young man’s mother and my own worked together to bring greater glory to God. When we look at the Cross, we see what is required of love. Let us open our eyes and expand our worldview. Let us not be afraid of allowing the suffering of others to break our hearts, for Christ is ready to heal and strengthen us, to then use us in His service… to help us bring sight to the blind and bring comfort to the afflicted.

“I, the LORD, have called you for justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, To open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.” (Isaiah 42: 6-7)
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Ivonne J. Hernandez

Ivonne is a Lay Associate of the Blessed Sacrament, President of Elisheba House, and author of The Rosary: Eucharistic Meditations. She lives in Trinity, Florida, with her husband, Rick, and their children.

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  • Home
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