Text for the Eucharistic Synod this fall in Rome

Oh boy, is this one gonna be good!! The German pontiff is definitely not sitting on his hands, let's get down to business boys!

Focus is "The Eucharist: Source and Summit of the Life and Mission of the Church," and it details (among other things)

"Instrumentum laboris" of the 11th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops

The prime purpose of the Instrumentum laboris is to provide the synod fathers with their “working document” and reference point in further discussion on the Eucharist, which, as the heart of the Church, spurs her on in communion to a renewed missionary dynamism. There is no doubt that reflection will be fruitful, because the spirit of collegiality, characteristic of the synod, will foster consensus on the propositions which are destined for the Holy Father. In the process, further benefit will also result in liturgical renewal, exegetical research and theological study which has taken place since the Second Vatican Council.

The submissions, summarized in the Instrumentum laboris, demonstrate the desire of the People of God that the work of the synod fathers, gathered around the Bishop of Rome, the Head of the Episcopal College and President of the Synod, together with others coming from the Church community, contribute towards a rediscovery of the beauty of the Eucharist as the Sacrifice, Memorial and Banquet of Jesus Christ, the Saviour and Redeemer of the world. The faithful are awaiting appropriate guidance so that the Sacrament of the Eucharist, the Bread-Come-Down-from-Heaven (cf. Jn 6:58), offered by God the Father in his only-begotten Son, might be celebrated with more dignity; that the Lord might be adored with greater devotion under the species of bread and wine; and that the bond of unity and communion might be strengthened among those who are nourished by the Lord’s Body and Blood. Such an idea is to be expected, since Christians, who participate in the Table of the Lord and are enlightened by the grace of the Holy Spirit, are a living part of the Church, the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ. They are his witnesses in everyday life and in the workplace, always attentive to the spiritual and material needs of others and active in constructing a more just world, where every one will have a share in our daily bread.

Inspired by the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Woman of the Eucharist, the synod fathers approach their work in a spirit of readiness and willingness to do the will of God the Father as well as in an attitude of openness to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. They will be sustained by their bond of communion with the clergy and faithful, who, in this Year of the Eucharist, continue, with renewed zeal, to pray, celebrate, adore and bear witness to the fruitfulness of the Eucharistic mystery through a Christian life and fraternal charity, thus proclaiming with renewed apostolic vigour—to those nearby and those far away—the beauty of the great gift of faith contained in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, source and summit of the life and mission of the Church in the Third Millennium of Christianity.

And that's just a fragment of the introduction to the document... it is a very rich document, but I would encourage everyone to take the time to read over it. Even if you cannot sit and read every word, at least go over the headings and skim the paragraphs. It will show you more clearly than anything else what the focus of this pontificate will be, a return to Christ, a return to the Church, a return to authentic liturgy that is Christ-centered and not people-centered, a return to proper catechesis about the meaning and experience of the Eucharist - a return to Catholicism, pure and simple.

I cannot believe that I will be in Rome for this amazing close to John Paul II's final legacy of the Year of the Eucharist! Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever! What a time to be alive!

+John Paul the Great, pray for us!