The month of April, traditionally dedicated to the Holy Eucharist, is a beautiful time to reflect upon Eucharistic miracles. April begins by drawing us into the heart of two great mysteries of our faith: the institution of the Holy Eucharist on Holy Thursday and the radiant joy of Christ’s Resurrection at Easter. On the night before he suffers, our Lord presents us with his body and blood as a lasting gift of his love. In the glory of the Resurrection, we rejoice knowing that the living Christ who triumphs over sin and death is not a distant memory. Eucharistic miracles are more than reminders of His presence. They are joyful invitations to marvel anew at a Savior who is risen, victorious, and truly with us in the Blessed Sacrament.
This presence of the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament is a miracle that we celebrate at every Catholic Mass. “By the consecration of the bread and wine there takes place a change of the whole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord and of the whole substance of the wine into the substance of his blood,” teaches the Catechism of the Catholic Church. “This change the holy Catholic Church has fittingly and properly called transubstantiation” (CCC 1376).
Saint Bonaventure notes: “There is no difficulty over Christ’s being present in the sacrament as in a sign; the great difficulty is in the fact that He is really in the sacrament, as He is in heaven. And so believing this is especially meritorious.” The Catholic Church and several other Christian denominations support that Jesus Christ is really, truly, and substantially present in the Eucharist under the appearance of bread and wine. Saint John Damascene observes: “The bread and wine are not a foreshadowing of the body and blood of Christ — By no means! — but the actual deified body of the Lord, because the Lord Himself said: ‘This is my body’; not ‘a foreshadowing of my body’ but ‘my body,’ and not ‘a foreshadowing of my blood’ but ‘my blood.’”
To strengthen our belief in the “daily” miracle that is the Eucharist, God gives us extraordinary private revelations about unexplainable phenomena involving the Eucharist that can only be attributed to divine power. Throughout the ages and all over the world, over 100 of these wonders are approved by the authority of the Church for our ongoing devotion and fortification of our faith.
Although these Eucharistic miracles vary, many similarities exist. Some miracles include consecrated Hosts that bleed, transform into myocardial tissue, reveal the face of Jesus, remain incorruptible over extended periods of time, survive harsh elements, withstand attacks, sustain life, multiply, levitate, and relocate. The Church prudently investigates these supernatural happenings through special commissions or task forces to determine authenticity. In the past century, extensive scientific analyses are also included in their studies.
“Our faith is not founded on Eucharistic miracles, but on the proclamation of the Lord Jesus, received with faith through the action of the Holy Spirit,” explains the Most Reverend Monsignor Raffaello Martinelli. Therefore, we are not obliged to believe any of these events. However, he states, “Eucharistic miracles can encourage us to understand, appreciate, and love the Eucharist…They can help a person discover the mystery, the beauty, and the riches of the Eucharist.”
This month, please visit our “Weekly Challenge” section to explore several types of Eucharistic miracles and reflect upon how these private revelations can help us imitate our Eucharistic Lord. Please comment on your experiences with the Blessed Sacrament and the signs that strengthen your belief in the Real Presence.
