Resurrected Food!
By now you have already found all the Easter Eggs, indulged in every food you gave up for Lent, and are now preparing for spring! First, I hope you all experienced the joy of Easter and will continue to celebrate this joy throughout the Easter Season – which lasts longer than just one day a year!
But how do we keep the Easter Season alive and well in our hearts? One thing we can do is to be more attentive to the Scriptures, especially during the next set of Sunday Masses. You’ll realize something very impressive that relates to our Grace Before Meals mission. If you stay attentive, you’ll hear how Jesus, even after His Resurrection, is a BIG FOODIE! In fact, he seeks “Resurrected Food!”
Now, what could that possibly mean? Well, I’m just making up a term that describes how food is given a whole new meaning (i.e., a new life) when we consider the purpose of the food.
For example, this Sunday you’ll hear about how the disciples, on the Road to Emmaus, came to recognize the Lord in the breaking of the bread. That line in the Gospel became such an important verse that people literally find Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration – the type of prayer where people meditate before the Blessed Sacrament exposed in a monstrance.
This “Road to Emmaus” and the “Breaking of the Bread” are important concepts for many prayer groups – including priestly fraternity prayer groups. I’m part of an Emmaus fraternity group, composed of a few priests in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. As part of our spiritual exercises, we gather with several other priests to feed BODY, MIND, and SOUL!
In other words, we gather about once a month to meditate on scripture passages in a type of prayer called Lexio Divina. At other times, a smaller group of priests shares personal experiences, that is, we sometimes bare our souls to each other and speak from our hearts to encourage one another. Finally, every meeting ends with a meal, of course!
As priests, we need that Emmaus time to encounter God when we break open the Scriptures; when we break down the walls that keep the Truth from coming into our souls; when we break away from our busy schedules and break out the fancy plates (on occasion) and share a meal – with each other and with Our Lord.
As a family, do you consider yourselves as walking along the road of Emmaus together? In other words, when you gather around your table, do you talk about things that make your hearts burn with excitement and love? In this Grace Before Meals movement, I’d like families to consider not just the food they put on the table, but what they talk about at the dinner table.
For that reason, I’d like to highlight a fun feature on our website. It’s basically a list of dinner questions and conversation starters. If you already purchased the book, Recipes for Family Life, you’ll see a section called “Let’s Talk,” which simply covers some fun and interesting topics to engage good and wholesome conversations in your family. I know that’s the hard part of family meals, but if we can break through that barrier, we will experience food in a whole new light. Our tag line for this movement sums it up: Stronger Family. Better Food.
That’s my hope and prayer for you and your family in this continuing Easter Season. I pray that your food takes on a whole new meaning for your family, as it does for the priests in my Emmaus fraternity group. We must imitate the disciples who encountered Christ on that pilgrimage to the table – where He broke the bread and they recognized Him!
Food Renewed
Recently I was asked to celebrate the baptism of Rachel Pohlmeier at St. Bernadette Catholic Church in Arlington, Virginia. Rachel is the fourth child of Keith and Melissa Pohlmeier, joining Rebecca, Thomas, and Andrew.
Keith is the brother of one of my best friends, Fr. Erik Pohlmeier of Little Rock, Arkansas. It’s always an honor to share in this sacrament that initiates a life of grace for the child. It’s also impressive to see the parents and godparents renew their own baptismal promises – which are basically promises to walk with the child on this road of Emmaus.
Along with the sacred nature of this celebration, I also must admit, I enjoy the receptions as well! At this particular reception, Melissa presented some interesting party food ideas. She even had Rachel’s big sister help prepare one of the dishes (check out the photo). These foods were made from basic ingredients, but with a twist to give them new life! Melissa is also a creative photographer with a wonderful gift for taking pictures of children for Christmas cards and other announcements. Check out her website and these fun ideas for “resurrected foods!” For the recipe, [click here].
Discovering Jesus and Sharing Your Discovery!
Families sometimes forget they can also find Jesus at their dinner table if they “break bread together,” like the Emmaus disciples who recognized Jesus. Family members can do that by doing what the disciples did. They talked about Jesus, His life, His death, and the mystery of the Resurrection. Go ahead and not only say Grace Before Meals, but feel free to ask your children some questions about their faith. And don’t be afraid to share yours with them.
Let us pray: Lord, help our families to find You at this dinner table so that we, like the disciples, can spread the Good News and inspire a burning faith in the hearts of all believers. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Ask Fr. Leo for fatherly advice.
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