February Monthly Gathering Recap
Those who were present at the February Monthly VCRJ Gathering were blessed by the insights of Mr. Ashely Morris, M. Th., Director of the Black Catholic Office of Intercultural Ministries of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, as he prophetically connected the Eucharistic Revival to the work of Racial Justice.
He reminded us that an authentic love and respect for the real presence in the Eucharist means that we believe that Eucharist both calls us to and empowers us to be able to do racial justice work. Eucharist is the transformative action of Christ that nourishes us for the sacrificial work of racial justice. It challenges us to “Go out and be the Eucharist for others.”
For additional reflection on the Eucharistic Revival, read Ashley Morris’ reflection : ‘God is with us’: A homebound experience of the Real Presence – Georgia Bulletin – Georgia Bulletin
Following the presentation, those attending discussed three questions during the breakout dialogues. Here are the themes from those discussions.
What resonated with you?
- The concept of Eucharist being transformative rather than transactional resonated.
- The work of racial justice is only possible if we are authentic Eucharistic people.
- The concept of being sacramentally sound and spiritually deficient.
What will you do with this personally?
- We need to be comfortable with each other first.
- It is important to not allow other people to tell you how to feel.
- We need to be models of Eucharistic transformation.
What do we do with this as a ministry?
- We need to be grassroots and get the word out — Catholic to Catholic and not wait for the clergy to take the lead.
- It is important the parishes get the formation needed to accept that racism exists before they can grow together.
- Have a local Eucharistic Revival at the same time as the national gathering, for those who cannot attend the national gathering.
Virginia Catholics for Racial Justice 