Devotion for today: Do we believe we are truly unworthy?

Today we continue our Year of Faith look at the Mass. We concluded last week’s reflections by examining the priest’s proclamation: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the Supper of the Lamb.” Edward Sri reminds us that at this point we realize the Mass is really a wedding feast, and our hearts should be longing for the union with our bridegroom which is soon to come in Holy Communion. We respond: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.” I wonder how many of us today honestly believe we are truly unworthy. We spend much mental space justifying our sins. We tell ourselves God doesn’t really view anyone as a sinner, just as a wayward son and then benevolently smiles at our transgressions and hopes we will get over whatever it is we hold sacred in this world. Sadly, our society propagates this lie. Society says that sexual sins of cohabitation, affairs, and pornography are not really offensive to God, so we go ahead and take communion, and in doing so, view ourselves as worthy. Society tells us it is ok to rid ourselves of unwanted pregnancies, aging parents, and anything else that stands in the way of our comfort and ease in life. Not so, I am afraid. We must stop and recognize at this point in the Mass that we are unworthy to receive Jesus, yet that will never stop Him from healing us of our sins. If we have committed a venial sin, we can simply tell God how sorry we are at this point and acknowledge that although unworthy, we believe in His very benevolent mercy. If we are living in mortal sin, we must not receive communion. It is not just a freebie given out to anyone in any stage of grace. Mortal sin must be confessed, repented, and stopped. It is a road block to our admittance into heaven, and we must save our souls by getting rid of it. If we believe we are unworthy, then we are truly living humble lives, and we are headed in the right direction. If not, we are living prideful lives and are fooling ourselves that we are ready for the judgment which awaits us all. Ask, and receive God’s healing word. Then go and sin no more.

Edward Sri tells us: But how can we mere human beings – and sinful ones at that! – dare to approach the all-holy, almighty God in this way? In response to  the invitation to the marriage supper of the Eucharist, we say a prayer that on one hand, acknowledges our complete unworthiness to receive our Lord, and at the same time, expresses confidence that Jesus calls us and can heal us….These words reflect the humility and trust of the Roman centurion who asked Jesus to heal his servant who is at his house, paralyzed and in distress. As a Gentile outside of God’s covenant, and as a Roman officer in charge of one hundred soldiers who were oppressing God’s people, this centurion humbly acknowledges that he is not worthy to have Jesus come to his home. Yet he expresses a great faith that surpasses many others in the gospels and amazes even Jesus: He believes Jesus can heal from afar, simply by speaking his word…(Mt 8:8). Jesus praises this man for his faith. Like the centurion, we recognize our unworthiness to have Jesus come under the “roof” of our souls in Holy Communion. Yet, just as the centurion believed Jesus was able to heal his servant so do we trust that Jesus can heal us as he becomes the most intimate guest of our souls in the Eucharist. (The Mass, Ascension Press, 2011)