THE CHURCH IN CORINTH

Saint Paul was very much concerned that the Christians in Corinth were not treating
one another as brothers and sisters especially in celebrating the Eucharist. He told
them that as Christians they are the first ones to show examples of loving) one another
without discrimination. He wrote to them "The cup of blessing that we bless is it not
of sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break is it not a sharing in the
body of Christ? Because the loaf of bread is one we though many are one body for we
all partake of the one bread Indeed our body does not consist of one member only but
of many parts. So the eye cannot say to the hand, 'I don't need you Again the head
cannot say to the feet, 'I dont need you This is true to all other parts of the body.
It is also this way with you You are the body of Christ, if one member suffers, all the
others also suffer. If a member is honored, all the other members are happy, too. All
the members should take care of one another because each one of you is a member of
the same body of Christ."
Based on 1 Corinthians 10 16-17-14-27

When we celebrate the Eucharist, we become one with our Lord Jesus and with one
another through the power of the Holy Spirit This is why when we receive Jesus in the
Eucharist, we call it Holy Communion. We share and partake of the same Body and
Blood of Jesus, our Lord. We are united to Him as members of His one Body, the
Church Hence, the Eucharist is the sacrament of unity. With the help of the Holy
Spirit, we can pray to Jesus to thank Him for the blessings we have received
especially for the gift of Himself in the Eucharist But we also express our gratitude to
Jesus by loving and forgiving one another. In this way, we stay united with one
another, which is what Jesus wants for all people Although each of us is different
from one another, we all share the same dignity as the beloved children of God, our
Father We have become brothers and sisters to one another through Jesus, the only
Son of God and our Brother Jesus mode this possible through offering Himself to us
especially in the Eucharist. This is what He wants to see among us: that in the
Eucharist, we become what we partake and celebrate.

JESUS APPEARED TO HIS FRIENDS

There were many stories about how the disciples met the Risen Jesus and the
following story was just one of them: The Risen Jesus showed Himself to some of His
disciples, again by the Sea of Galilee. The disciples had been fishing all night without
catching anything. Toward sunrise. Jesus was standing on the shore but the disciples
did not realize it was Him. Jesus called to them, "Have you caught anything?" They
answered, "No," Jesus told them to throw the net to the right side of the boat. So they
threw out the net and then they could not pull it in because their net was filled with
fish. The disciple whom Jesus loved cried out, "It is the Lord!" When Peter heard this,
he jumped into the water and swam to the shore. Meanwhile, the others brought the
boat to the land, dragging the net full of fish. Jesus had built a fire on the beach and
was already cooking fish on it for breakfast. Jesus said to them."Bring some of the
fish you just caught." So Peter went over and dragged the net ashore full of fish. Jesus
said to them."Come, have breakfast. "And none of them dared to ask him, "Who are
you?" because they knew it was really Jesus who was with them. Jesus came over and
look the bread and gave it to them, and He did the same with the fish. Their hearts

were filled with joy that, indeed, Jesus is alive! We celebrate and receive our Risen

Lord Jesus in the sacrament of the Eucharist. We believe that the bread and wine we
offer truly become the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus through the power of the
Holy Spirit. We believe that the Eucharist is food for our soul. It is what gives us the
strength and courage to do good even when it is difficult to do so. The Eucharist gives
us eternal life as Jesus promised. That is why we refrain from eating and drinking any
food or drinks (except water) one hour before we receive Jesus in the Eucharist. This
is called the "Eucharistic fast. "This is to remind us that what we really hunger and
thirst for is Jesus Himself more than for regular food or drinks. We also believe that
the Risen Jesus is truly present in the person of the priest who leads the people in
giving thanks to God. He is also present among us, the people who gather to celebrate
the Eucharist. We hear Him speak to us as we listen to the reading of the word of God
and when we listen to the homily given by the priest. We believe that Jesus is truly
alive. We believe that the Spirit of our Risen Lord Jesus is always with us. He is
especially with us each time we gather together in the Eucharist to celebrate God's
love.

JESUS FORGIVES THE SINFUL WOMAN

A Pharisee named Simon invited Jesus to eat with him in his home It was the custom
to greet guests with a kiss. It was also a custom to provide water so guests could wash
their feet. (At the time, people wore sandals and the streets were very dusty.) But
Simon the Pharisee did not do these things when Jesus came into his house.
Meanwhile, a woman whom people called a sinner learned that Jesus was eating at the
Pharisee's house. So she went there, carrying a jar of perfume. She cried and her tears
wet Jesus' feet. Then she wiped them dry with her hair, kissed them, and rubbed
perfume on them. Seeing this, the Pharisee who had invited Jesus thought. "If this
man were really a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. He
would know that she is a sinner." Jesus said to him, "Simon, I have something to tell
you And Simon the Pharisee replied, "Speak, Teacher" Seeing this, the Pharisee who
had invited Jesus thought. "If this man were really a prophet, he would know what
kind of woman is touching him. He would know that she is a sinner." Jesus said to
him, "Simon, I have something to tell you And Simon the Pharisee replied, "Speak,
Teacher". "A money-lender had two people who owed him money One owed him
money equal to payment for five hundred days work and the other only for fifty days'
work Since neither one of them could pay their debt, he forgave them both. So, which
of them will love him more? " Simon answered, "I suppose, the one to whom he
forgave more" "Your judgment is correct. "Jesus said to him. Then he turned to the
woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? When I entered your house, you
didn't provide water for my feet. But she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them
with her hair You didn't give me any kiss, but she hasn't stopped kissing my feet since
I came in. I tell you that, even though she has committed many sins, they have been
forgiven. Great, Indeed, is her love." Then he said to the woman, "Your sins have
been forgiven." We sometimes forget how to forgive. In spite of this, God always
forgives us because He loves us. To show His love and forgiveness, Jesus gave us the
sacrament of Reconciliation (also called sacrament of Penance or sacrament of
Confession), In this sacrament, we tell God and the Church how sorry we are for all
the bad choices we have made. When we return to God by truly being sorry for our
sins. God and His Church welcome us back. God's forgiveness makes us feel good
again inside That is why it is good to receive Reconciliation several times a year God
wants to fill our hearts with the gifts of His Spirit. The gifts of the Holy Spirit make it
easier for us to choose well. We choose to love others because we love God