A PASTORAL LETTER FROM ARCHBISHOP ETIENNE The Work of Redemption Eucharistic Belief and Practice in the Archdiocese of Seattle INTRODUCTION In my first year in the focus on the heart of our Archdiocese of Seattle, I have been faith and the center of our parish able to celebrate Mass in dozens of our life: the Eucharist. The Eucharist is an parishes and missions. Everywhere I have been, I inexhaustible source of grace, the Paschal Mystery have encountered vibrant, faith-filled communities of Christ’s dying and rising daily renewed for our of believers. Whether large or small, urban or rural, salvation and for the salvation of the whole world. The our parishes devote much care and attention to Eucharist is the living presence of Christ in our midst. their liturgical celebrations. The reason for this is That presence does not, must not leave us unchanged: quite simple: “The Church draws her life from the Receiving the Body of Christ, we become the Body Eucharist.”1 The Eucharist is central to our life as of Christ. The Eucharist unites us to Christ, and, in Church and as individual Christian believers. In a very Christ, to each other. And the Eucharist commits us to real way, we cannot live without it. the poor, sending us forth in service and love. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every aspect When it comes to the Eucharist, we can always of our lives, including our worship. For us Catholics, go deeper. No matter whether we have spent years the pandemic, along with the “Eucharistic fast” it exploring Eucharistic theology, or are still preparing imposed, has revealed in a new way how central for our first Holy Communion, there is always more the celebration of the Eucharist is to who we are as to discover about the Eucharist. And no matter the Church and as community. Even when we are unable resources of our parish communities, with care and to gather physically, we gather spiritually: Parishes attention our liturgies can always be improved, to continue to put the celebration of the Eucharist at the reflect more clearly the Christ who truly presides at forefront of parish life through livestreams on social every celebration of the Eucharist. During the coming media. But we have also come to realize, perhaps as year, I ask every Catholic and every parish community never before, that there is no substitute for gathering to commit themselves to deepening our understanding to celebrate the Eucharist together, and receiving the and experience of the Eucharist, and strengthening sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood as part of a our Eucharistic liturgies. community of believers. In a spirit of encouragement, and with a desire As I come to the end of my first year in Seattle, I for a more profound and visible unity around the invite all of us in this local Church to a renewed altar of the Lord, I am sharing this pastoral letter on 1 Pope St. John Paul II, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 1. 1 Stephen Brashear 2 A PASTORAL LETTER FROM ARCHBISHOP ETIENNE Stephen Brashear Through the the Eucharist and Paschal Mystery declaring the coming year of Christ’s death and a special Year of the Eucharist resurrection, God has redeemed for the Archdiocese of Seattle. I hope the us. This is the very heart of the Good News following reflections will help provide a roadmap for which the apostles proclaimed and which the Church the months ahead. proclaims today.3 This free gift of God gives meaning to our lives: Indeed, “our birth would have been no gain, LITURGY AND THE had we not been redeemed.”4 And through the liturgy, this great work of redemption is ongoing. In the liturgy, WORK OF REDEMPTION Christ continues to act on our behalf. When the Church At the beginning of Sacrosanctum Concilium, the gathers to celebrate Eucharist, something happens: Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of the Second Christ, truly present, acts through, with, and for us, Vatican Council (1963), we read: continuing the work of redemption. The liturgy, “through which the work of our redemption There is much to reflect on in that brief passage is accomplished,” most of all in the divine sacrifice of the from the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. I want Eucharist, is the outstanding means whereby the faithful to highlight three points which can help us to focus may express in their lives, and manifest to others, the on mission, especially during the coming months as mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church.2 we work through a pastoral planning process as an archdiocese. 2 Sacrosanctum Concilium, 2. 3 Cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 571. 4 From the Easter Proclamation, “Exsultet,” Roman Missal. 3 1. The faithful express the mystery In the liturgy, the work of our redemption is of Christ. The liturgy is not something the happening even now. Through the liturgy God calls priest does and the people passively receive. As and forms us as missionary disciples. That is why our Catholics, liturgy is the very language we speak. participation is so important: Gathering to celebrate the liturgy Sunday after The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ’s Sunday is our primary means of coming to know faithful, when present at this mystery of faith, should Christ and of expressing that mystery through the not be there as strangers or silent spectators. On the offering of our time and devotion. Our gatherings contrary, through a good understanding of the rites in turn reflect the mystery of Christ, who acts and prayers they should take part in the sacred action, through us in the world today. Through our conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full conscious participation in the Eucharist, we learn to collaboration. They should be instructed by God’s word, live in closer communion with Christ. and be nourished at the table of the Lord’s Body. They 2. The faithful manifest the mystery of should give thanks to God. Offering the immaculate Christ to others. Living in closer communion victim, not only through the hands of the priest but also with Christ, we manifest his presence to all we together with him, they should learn to offer themselves.7 meet. The work of evangelization, of sharing the joy of our encounter with Christ, is the task of When it comes to the liturgy, it is not enough simply every Christian. As Pope Francis has written, “All to be present, because we are not to be “silent the baptized, whatever their position in the Church spectators” or consumers, but devout collaborators or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents with Christ in the holy work of redemption. Our active of evangelization, and it would be insufficient to participation in the liturgy is a reflection of our active envisage a plan of evangelization to be carried participation in the mission of Christ. Gathering time out by professionals while the rest of the faithful and again to celebrate the liturgy, we experience and would simply be passive recipients. The new participate in Christ’s self-offering in the Eucharist. evangelization calls for personal involvement on And even as we share in the fruits of his sacrificial the part of each of the baptized. Every Christian is love, we are called to make that love the model of our challenged, here and now, to be actively engaged own lives: We are called to offer ourselves for others. in evangelization; indeed, anyone who has truly The liturgy is not only the model for our lives, but experienced God’s saving love does not need much forms us to live our day-to-day lives with this same time or lengthy training to go out and proclaim sacrificial love of Christ. that love.”5 This is what is meant by the phrase This way of life is captured beautifully in the “missionary disciples”: we are sent forth with a Morning Offering prayer: “Jesus, through the mission to proclaim the Gospel to others, even as Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, we never cease to be disciples, learning the ways works, joys and sufferings of this day … in union of the Lord. Our greatest proclamation of the with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.” The divine life Gospel is an authentic witness of life. of Christ shared with us in baptism is nourished in us with every Eucharist that we may complete the 3. The faithful manifest the real nature mission of Christ in our lives. The Catholic life is a What does this mean? It of the true Church. Eucharistic life. We, too, are to be blessed, broken, means that the faithful, all of us, are the Church. multiplied, and shared so that others may come to The Church is not merely an institution; still less know Jesus Christ (see John 6:1-15). Our faith is to be is it a building. The Church is the Body of Christ, integrated into every aspect of our life, because as in each of her members, living and active, on earth Catholics we no longer live for self, but it is Christ and in heaven. In the gathering of the community who lives in us (see Galatians 2:20). around the altar to celebrate the Eucharist, we In helping the faithful to exercise their important have a glimpse of what the Church truly is: “both role in the liturgy, and bring it to life in their daily human and divine, visible yet endowed with lives, pastors have a serious responsibility.