What a great weekend we had, with 111 young parishioners receiving Christ in the Eucharist for the first time. As I have said before, seeing their excitement fills my heart with joy, which is one of the main reasons why I, as pastor, make it a priority to be the one who gives them their First Holy Communion.

As I said in my homily, parents have a great responsibility to help these children continue receiving Christ in the Eucharist frequently: attending Mass every Sunday and holy day of obligation; showing them by example the importance of going to confession so as to receive Holy Communion worthily; instilling in them a deep reverence for the Blessed Sacrament; and so much more.

While the Church is clear that parents are the primary educators of their children—and therefore their responsibility is paramount—this is also a shared responsibility of the whole Christian community, and in a particular way of the parish. And as I have said before, the parish is not an institution; the parish is you and me—the people.

So a question we should all ask ourselves is whether these children—and all the children of our parish—would learn a proper Eucharistic devotion by watching us. When we walk in front of the tabernacle or arrive at our pew, do we genuflect properly (does our right knee touch the ground)? Or if we are truly unable, do we make a profound bow? Before and after Mass, do we keep a reverent and prayerful silence, or are we chatting and on our phones as if we were in a theater? Do we arrive early and stay until Mass is completely finished? (A good way to judge is this: if we arrive after the priest has left the sacristy, we are late; and if we leave before he is greeting people or has returned to the sacristy, we are leaving early.)

How we receive Holy Communion is also important, especially if we want to give a good example. The Church allows us to receive Holy Communion either standing or kneeling, and either on the hand or on the tongue. And whichever way we choose, we can receive reverently—or miss the mark. Just yesterday I had people try to grab the Eucharist from my hand (which is a serious no), bite my fingers, move as I was about to place the Eucharist on their tongue, and even stop the line to draw attention to personal devotions.

Please don’t take this as mere criticism, or as “priests versus laity.” I have also seen many of you receive Our Lord with deep reverence, and behave in church in a way that makes me examine whether I am giving the same witness. Still, it is good to evaluate our attitudes and behavior from time to time, and that is the point of this reflection. I pray that, as a parish, we will have a Eucharistic devotion that is edifying to our youngest parishioners.

Absence from the parish
Tomorrow I will fly to Chicago for the joint meeting of the Midwest and Eastern Canon Law Conferences. In my role as Judicial Vicar and advisor in canonical affairs, it is important for me to stay up to date, which is why I try to attend three conferences each year: this one; the Speculum Iustitiae Conference in La Crosse, WI in August; and the Canon Law Society of America convention in October.

I am grateful that the Diocese has provided the assistance of three parochial vicars, which allows me to step away from the parish for these meetings—though you may have already heard that Fr. Crotty will be leaving in early August. I should be back on Friday, ready for another blessed weekend in the parish, especially as we celebrate Mother’s Day. Please bring your mom to Mass, because we will have a special blessing for mothers.

• Next meal: June, 7 following the Corpus Christi procession.