The Gift
After some amazing grace-filled days the 51st International Eucharistic Congress is over. Our team is waiting for our connection flight in Doha, Qatar. Some are praying their morning meditation, other checking emails; others are having a quick bite. Final exams wait for us in the Eternal City.
Now that we have a quiet pause in the airport, we look back and realize that we received so many blessings from God these last two weeks. I think we received three very special gifts.
Before I left Rome, a brother told me, “I really would love to go with you to the IEC, but I can`t. So, when you are there before the Blessed Sacrament, please pray for me, so that I may become a man of the Eucharist”. When he told me that, I made that prayer my own; I also want to be a man of the Eucharist. That theme was always present in my heart during our journey. I think that this was the first gift from God that we received in this trip. We had two weeks of our lives completely centered in the Eucharist. What way to prepare to the priesthood as we approach our ordination.
Another gift we got from Jesus was each new friend we made in the Eucharist. I am so grateful to have met them. We will never see many of them again, but will be united always in the Body and Blood of Christ. Others we hope to see in Budapest 2020! Their lives are a true gift for us.
Finally, the third gift was to be able to learn so much from the Philippine culture. Our lives were so enriched with their simple, deep faith. Also their hospitality and charity left a profound mark in our journey.
I want to wrap up this blog series thanking everyone that made this experience possible. First, Jesus in the Eucharist, the main protagonist of the trip! Then, I thank Bishop Dennis who invited us, and our superiors in Rome who gave us permission to accept the invitation. Also, special thanks to Br Luis who organized the whole trip and took such good care of our team. I am grateful also to the friendship and example of my other three Eucharistic companions: Br Manuel, Br Stephano, and Br Christopher. Likewise, I want to say thank you to the consecrated women, lay people and legionaries from Manila. Finally, my gratitude goes to Br Lucio, who helped me review my articles before posting them.
Thank you for following us and I hope to see you in the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest 2020!
