Anastasia Redmann ’26

At one of my younger sibling’s First Communion Mass, I remember hearing the priest give this analogy: when you were younger, your dad, mom, sibling, grandparent, or someone else probably said to you the words, “I love you.” And I bet you didn’t hear them just once growing up. It was likely repeated a million times, “I love you. I love you. I love you.” As you got older, there came a point where this phrase certainly wasn’t new to you anymore. You had already heard it so many times for so many years, but each time it was nonetheless heartfelt and really meant something to you. You didn’t just need to hear “I love you” once, but kept hearing it throughout your childhood, as your parent or grandparent or whoever kept reminding you of their love for you, and each time it was special and personal.

In the same way, the Eucharist, the Host that is really Jesus present for us, is Jesus’ “I love you” to us. And He does not just tell us this once, such as at our First Communion and then expect that we’ll remember it. He knows that we already know that He loves us. It’s not a surprise to hear it. But still, He loves us so much that He wants to keep telling it to us, over and over and over again, like a parent to his or her child. Every Sunday. Even every weekday, at daily Masses like this one. Yes, each Mass may look almost exactly the same. The same words and actions are repeated, but just like the words “I love you” never grow old, Jesus’ ultimate act of Love, His total gift of Himself to us in the Eucharist, is new and exciting each time. At Mass, try to hear how Our Lord is telling you personally, every time, “I love you.”

I don’t know about you, but in my experience, even the words, “I love you,” said by the same person can have very different meanings depending on the situation. If my mom’s a little disappointed in me, for example, it might come out like, “I love you….” If she’s happy, “I love you!!” Or if she’s confused, “I love you?” In a similar way, because God is truly alive, the Mass can resonate differently with us depending on where we are. Sometimes, a certain word or phrase can strike us differently even if we’ve listened to it a billion times. Sometimes, just the routine can be calming because it is so familiar. So today, as your ears hear the same words, and your eyes watch the same actions done again, know in your heart that today’s “I love you” is unique and special, and no less meaningful because the words are the same as they were last time.