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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025
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Praise forEucharistic Amazement
“What a beautiful journey, rich in Sacred Scripture and the witness of saints through the ages! Whatever your age, depth of learning or faith, Father Stice guides you to experience with childlike wonder Jesus’ gift of the Holy Eucharist and to see with fresh eyes of faith this loving Gift meant to change your life.”
—Most Reverend Joseph E. Kurtz,Archbishop Emeritus of Louisville
“Every Eucharistic Revival needs to be rooted in Eucharistic amazement. Incorporating accessible insights from great saints and the liturgy itself, Father Stice opens accessible paths toward ‘a sense of awe, love, and childlike trust in the goodness and power of the Eucharistic Christ, and a desire never to be parted from him.’”
—David D. Spesia, Executive Director,USCCB Secretariat of Evangelization and Catechesis
“Eucharistic Amazement lives up to its title by rekindling awe for the tremendous gift of Christ’s presence under the appearances of bread and wine. These reflections have encouraged me to more consciously prepare to receive special graces tied to the liturgical year.”
—Sara Perla, The Catholic Project,Catholic University of America
“With insightful reflections and some lessons from the saints, Father Stice reminds us of how we are unified and transformed by love in an encounter with the gift of the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.”
—Cardinal Wilton Gregory, Archbishop of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, DC
“We need a deep sense of ‘Eucharistic amazement,’ as Saint John Paul II would say, in order to taste the abundance of life that Jesus promised. However, we oftentimes suffer from ‘Eucharistic numbness.’ Father Randy’s book helps to reduce that disconnect, so we can experience all that we’re made for.”
—Tanner Kalina, Catholic Evangelist, Cofounder of the Saints Alive podcast on the Hallow app, author of Aching for Greatness
“With unequaled ease and singular theological precision, Father Stice has written a most precious book. The author reminds us that we are created for the Eucharist, for communion with Jesus Christ, and how ‘greatly we desire Him’ (Saint Teresa of Avila). This classic is suited for both private edification and parish renewal. It is equally timely and timeless, necessary and most life-giving reading for every Christian. Enthusiastically recommended!”
—Rev. Emery de Gaál, PhD, Professor of Dogmatic Theology, University of St. Mary of the Lake
“Father Randy interweaves the Catholic intellectual, liturgical, and theological tradition of ages with the practice of real saints and suggestions for concrete helpful practices by lay people today—thus engaging minds and moving hearts. Eucharistic Amazement is depth and richness of content delivered with brilliant simplicity.”
—Carmen Fernández Aguinaco, Former Multicultural Specialist of the Secretariat for Divine Worship, USCCB
“Of the many words used by Catholics to describe the Mass, ‘amazing’ may rarely be heard—unfortunately. But it is this Eucharistic ‘amazement’ that Saint John Paul II sought to enkindle in his last encyclical. Father Stice is thus in good company with his present work, and John Paul II would surely appreciate the book’s eye-opening insights—as should all Catholics.”
—Christopher Carstens, Editor, Adoremus Bulletin
“Father Randy brilliantly lifts us out of the tragic fog of Eucharistic confusion so we can clearly see Christ present in the here and now. This study provides a life-changing path for those seeking to discover the truth of God’s amazing gifts to be found within our liturgy.”
—Jimmy Dee, Director of Evangelization and Faith Formation, Tennessee Knights of Columbus; Vice Chairman, Board of the Catholic Men's Leadership Alliance/Heroic Men
“Wow—Father Randy Stice hit a home run with this enlightening, easy-to-read journey of the Real Presence of the Eucharist. Practical applications coupled with a plethora of references from the Bible and the saints allow readers a true opportunity to grow in their faith and nurture their Eucharistic amazement.”
—Dickie Sompayrac, President, Knoxville Catholic High School; 2024 Recipient of the Lead. Learn. Proclaim.Award from the National Catholic Educational Association
“Sacrosanctum Concilium, Vatican II’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, charged those with pastoral duties to assist believers in achieving full, conscious, and active participation in the liturgy. Father Stice has taken up this duty admirably by helping Catholics explore the mysteries of the liturgy through the contemplative insights of saints and doctors throughout Church history—including John Chrysostom (d. 407), Augustine (d. 430), Pope Gregory the Great (d. 604), Teresa of Avila (d. 1582), and Faustina Kowalska (d. 1938). Eucharistic Amazement opens a door into the transhistorical nature of the liturgy that unites all of us with the communion of saints.”
— Dr. C. Colt Anderson, Full Professor of Christian Spirituality, Fordham University
EUCHARISTICAMAZEMENT
Title Page
EUCHARISTICAMAZEMENT
Experience the Wonder of the Mass
Father Randy L. SticeForeword by Lawrence FeingoLd
Copyright-page
Library of Congress Control Number: 2024932062
ISBN 10: 0-8198-9137-1ISBN 13: 978-0-8198-9137-2
The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
One Scripture text in this work is taken from the New American Bible, Revised Edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C., and is used by permission of the copyright owner. All rights reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Excerpts from the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America, copyright © 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.— Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Modifications from the Editio Typica copyright © 1997, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops—Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with permission.
Art and design by www.kenjames.studio
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
“P” and PAULINE are registered trademarks of the Daughters of St. Paul.
Copyright © 2025, Randy L. Stice
Published by Pauline Books & Media, 50 Saint Pauls Avenue, Boston, MA 02130-3491
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www.pauline.org
Pauline Books & Media is the publishing house of the Daughters of St. Paul, an international congregation of women religious serving the Church with the communications media.
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Contents
Foreword
The total gift of himself that Christ gives us in the Eucharist ought to lead us “to profound amazement and gratitude,” an amazement that should “always fill the Church,” as Saint John Paul II says in his encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia1John Paul II’s goal in writing this Eucharistic encyclical is to “rekindle this Eucharistic ‘amazement.’”2All of us need this rekindling, because we are all tempted to take for granted the riches we are given in the Eucharist.
The beginning of philosophy, according to Plato and Aristotle, is wonder, which is enkindled by reflecting on what transcends our understanding. This is even more true for theology. Theological wonder is caused by the gap between what our eyes see and the magnitude of what we recognize by our faith. Amazement in the power of the Eucharist led the martyrs of Abitene, who were arrested during the persecution of Diocletian for going to Sunday Mass, to say, “Without Sunday, we cannot live.” Eucharistic wonder is nourished by growth in Eucharistic faith, which in turn needs to be nurtured by prayer rooted in sound catechesis and the faith of the saints. We encounter all of this abundantly in this admirable book by Father Randy Stice.
Eucharistic wonder begins with the Real Presence: Jesus is here with his entire personal being in every tabernacle, and we receive him—Body, Blood, soul, and divinity—in every Holy Communion. The sacrifice of the Mass is no less a source of wonder. Although we were born two thousand years too late to stand at the foot of the cross with Mary and John, Jesus instituted the Eucharist so that his paschal mystery can bridge the centuries to become mysteriously present in every Mass, enabling us to truly participate in his sacrifice today.
Chapter 4 speaks of the marvel that the faithful, through their royal priesthood, participate in their own way in offering Christ’s sacrifice to God the Father, a sacrifice made present on the altar through the sacramental words of the ministerial priest acting in the person of Christ. The faithful participate in Christ’s sacrifice by offering themselves and their loved ones with him, for we are a part of his Body. The Second Vatican Council, in its document on the priesthood, says that “priests must instruct their people to offer to God the Father the Divine Victim in the Sacrifice of the Mass, and to join to it the offering of their own lives.”3How many of the faithful have learned this from their priests? Father Stice takes this responsibility seriously, and he helps the faithful to follow the teaching of Sacrosanctum Concilium:
The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ’s faithful, when present at this mystery of faith, should not be there as strangers or silent spectators; on the contrary, through a good understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in the sacred action conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full collaboration By offering the Immaculate Victim, not only through the hands of the priest, but also with him, they should learn also to offer themselves.4
Through the Mass we also come to participate in the mysteries of Christ’s life that we celebrate in the liturgical year, as Father Stice explains in chapter 5. We are given graces to grow in longing for his coming in Advent, to be born anew with him at Christmas, to be transfigured with his transfiguration, to be vigilant in temptation, pray, fast, and do works of mercy with him during Lent, to rise with him to new life at Easter, and to be filled with the Holy Spirit with the apostles at Pentecost.
The best way to foster Eucharistic devotion is to look to Mary as the model of Eucharistic amazement. John Paul II ends Ecclesia de Eucharistia with a profound meditation on what it would have been like for Mary to participate in the Eucharist and receive her Son. Through Holy Communion the faithful receive in their bodies the same humanity of the Word that Mary received in her womb at the Annunciation and welcomed anew in every Holy Communion. Our “Amen” with which we receive him, like Mary’s fiat, should express our wonder that the Creator, having become man, wishes to become present where we are and dwell in our bodies. Mary also exemplifies the sacrificial dimension of the Eucharist, as she offered her Son while standing at the foot of the cross on Calvary. What Mary offered then—her Son as the Divine Victim to atone for the sins of the world—is offered by the Church in every Mass. Mary would have grown in grace and intimacy with her Son in an unparalleled way through every Holy Communion, as she received the Son whom she had nurtured in her womb and accompanied to Calvary. Let us ask Mary to help us to share in her Eucharistic life ever more deeply.
Lawrence Feingold
Notes
1. John Paul II, Ecclesia de Eucharistia (Boston: Pauline Books & Media, 2003), 5.
2. John Paul II, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 6.
3. Vatican Council, Presbyterorum Ordinis (December 7, 1965), The Holy See, Vatican.va. 5 https://www.vatican.va/ archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican _council/documents/vat-ii_decree_ 19651207_presbyterorum-ordinis_en.html.
4. Vatican Council, Sacrosanctum Concilium (December 4, 1963), The Holy See, Vatican.va, 48. https://www.vatican.va /archive/hist_councils/ ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const _19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html.
Introduction
This book is the fruit of my personal path to discovering a sense of Eucharistic amazement. I was raised a Protestant and was first drawn to the Eucharist while teaching English and sharing the Gospel in Communist China. It was while there that I began to read Catholic classics and was especially influenced by The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis. The last section is on the Eucharist, and Thomas’ emphasis on the Real Presence, the importance of holiness, and devout preparation started me thinking about the Catholic understanding of the Lord’s Supper.
Sacred Scripture was key to my reflection on the Eucharist, especially the Bread of Life discourse in John 6. I was attracted by the intimate personal relationship Jesus promised: “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them” (Jn 6:56). These words of Jesus in John 6:53 struck me powerfully: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.” I remember thinking to myself that this was not something that I wanted to be wrong about!
