Since the beginning of the National Eucharistic Revival, a particular saying of Jesus has resonated in my heart:
“You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot” (Mt 5:13).
This was the reason for the National Eucharistic Revival: if we lose our love for Jesus in the Eucharist and our belief in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, then we lose our “saltiness.” We lose the very character of what makes us Catholic, and any effectiveness we desire to have bears no effect on our world. The National Eucharistic Revival was a great “re-seasoning” of our Church, an invitation to worship and to fall in love with Jesus in the Eucharist and reclaim our identity.
While this saying has resonated in my heart, it is only the beginning of a larger teaching. Jesus continues:
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father” (Mt 5:14–16).
Our love of God cannot remain hidden; God desires to shine his light into a dark world through Christ in each of us. The goal of the National Eucharistic Revival was not merely to fall in love with Jesus again and reclaim our Christian character, but it was also to go out into the world, give this light to others, and help them to come to know Jesus. We cannot hide this light.
Our Lord asks us to let the light that has grown inside of us shine out before others as a lighthouse in a stormy and dark world. We are called to be Eucharistic Missionaries, giving what we have received. The three-year National Eucharistic Revival was not a program with a beginning and an end; it was the beginning of a movement that must continue in our country, inviting Catholics to re-encounter Jesus in the Eucharist and then share that love with those who do not yet know Christ.
Eucharistic Missionaries are the next way the movement of the National Eucharistic Revival continues. It is a continuation of the grassroots evangelization that was a significant characteristic of the Revival. Eucharistic Missionaries are Catholics who are passionate about the Eucharist and desire to invite others to encounter our Lord there. They do not seek to change the world; they seek to invite others who are close to them to encounter Jesus. This simple way—grassroots evangelization sustained by the Eucharist in our communities—has a multiplier effect that will bear profound fruit in our world.
There are four commitments that a Eucharistic Missionary makes over the course of a year. These four commitments line up with the four pillars of the Year of Mission in the National Eucharistic Revival:
Eucharistic Encounters:
A Eucharistic Missionary engages in regular encounters with Jesus in the Eucharist through a weekly holy hour and a daily Mass, in addition to their Sunday Mass obligation. At this daily Mass, they pray for ongoing Eucharistic Revival in the United States. These Eucharistic Encounters help sustain a Eucharistic Missionary in his or her work.
Eucharistic Identity:
A Eucharistic Missionary is continually forming their identity in Jesus Christ through ongoing spiritual formation, education, and service to their parish and community, especially those on the peripheries. The National Eucharistic Congress provides resources and formation materials for Eucharistic Missionaries. This helps a Eucharistic Missionary remain rooted in their faith while still growing.
A Eucharistic Missionary commits to an annual formation period prior to the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Jesus Christ and to ongoing formation throughout the year. They commit to regular, monthly confession, recognizing that sin wounds our nature, injuring human solidarity and who God created us to be.
Eucharistic Life:
A Eucharistic Missionary is grounded in their family, neighborhood, and parish, and is both nourished by this community and a contributor to this community.
They form intentional relationships with those closest to them, stepping out of themselves to truly love their neighbors.
A Eucharistic Missionary commits to joining a small group so they can grow with a community of people over the course of the year. They also commit to investing in their family, neighborhood, and parish through volunteering, acts of service, and walking with others in faith. They learn the names and stories of those people they are closest to each week.
Eucharistic Mission:
A Eucharistic Missionary desires to give to others what Jesus has given to them. This work is sustained by periods of fasting and almsgiving and is lived out explicitly by a Eucharistic Missionary walking with one person on his or her journey of faith through the Walk With One initiative.
These are simple commitments, but they have the potential to radically change the life of the Eucharistic Missionary and their family, neighborhood, and parish. There is no end point for the Eucharistic Missionary initiative—it is an ongoing invitation for Catholics who desire to commit to a deeper mission tied to the Eucharist and feel the call from our Lord to be salt and light to those around them.
We are salt and light and, in a world that can increasingly seem dark, Jesus is calling us to be a light set on a lamp stand, giving light to all around us. The Eucharistic Missionary becomes that light to their family, neighborhood, and parish. If this resonates with you, become a Eucharistic Missionary. Formation begins on May 18—sign up and learn more information.
Together, we can let our light shine before others so that they will know who Jesus is and can come to know him, love him, and then go forward to let their light shine brightly as well.
