This month’s report contains pictures from several chapels of many joyful children who during the month of May received for the first time Our Lord Jesus Christ in Holy Communion. No doubt the joyful faces bring back memories of our own First Communion when we likewise received for the first time this sacrament capable of making saints.

Indeed, because there is an infinite amount of grace available, just one reception could make any one of us a saint. Yet why does this not happen? Why do we not receive the choicest graces from our Lord? The reason is that grace is given in proportion to the disposition of our heart and most of us are just not properly disposed. This disposition primarily depends upon two things; the manner in which we prepare and the way we act after reception.

In general many are accustomed to make their preparation by reciting certain prayers either as indicated in their prayer book or as memorized from their youth. But too often these prayers are recited merely by the lips with no feeling or knowledge of the heart and thus do not count for many graces. "This people honoreth me with their lips: but their heart is far from me. And in vain do they worship me, teaching doctrines and commandments of men." (Matt, 15.8.) God may send the nicest soaking rain, but unless the fields and gardens are prepared and kept in good shape the rain will do little else than cause weeds to grow all the more plentifully.

We must remember that the most sublime and holy act of our life is the reception of our Lord Jesus Christ in Holy Communion. His coming to us is the loftiest and most humble sign of His infinite love. Therefore a worthy preparation and thanksgiving is needed to show our appreciation of His condescension and the dignity we are raised to.

As we come to receive the Holy Eucharist, it is understood that we should be in the state of grace but it should also be understood that we be dressed becomingly. The neatness and cleanliness of our outward appearance is a sign of the purity our hearts. Thus it is fitting that we should be more careful in this regard as we come to church and enter the presence of God.

In preparing for Holy Communion we must also consider distractions. Most people have them but few really try to overcome them. One suggestion to help in this is to keep silence before and as you are coming to Church. If we are accustomed to gossip, tell jokes or speak about everything under the sun on our way to Church it should be no wonder that our minds are usually distracted during Holy Mass. A good practice would be to try and keep silent from the time of morning prayer until our thanksgiving after Mass is completed. At first this may seem strange but after awhile you will wonder how you got along without this golden silence.

The silence of the lips allows our minds to be active and we are thus able to busy ourselves with thoughts about our Savior Who is waiting in the tabernacle to enter our hearts. We ought to think of the gifts He will bring and the favors we want to ask of Him. Thus our silence too will be a pleasing prayer.

Silence may seem hard ¾ too hard to even try. Do try! Christ is worth the sacrifice and He will reward the efforts made accordingly. After making attempts you will notice a remarkable change in your prayers. Acts of faith, hope, charity, desire, humility and sorrow will have new meanings that you never considered before. Your prayer will be earnest and fervent because you have prepared by silence your mind to turn toward God and prayer will be easier.

In this frame of mind you will find it a pleasure to speak with God, especially as the most important moment of your life draws nearer and nearer. You will then approach the communion rail with desire to receive fervently your Savior, Who desires even more fervently to be received. The more pleasant and agreeable your reception is the more plentiful will be the tokens of His love.

The moments following communion are the most solemn and sacred of our lives. Christ rests in our hearts as our guest. We share a certain happiness that the Angels in heaven are not even given. Thus we should make the best possible use of these precious moments by making a fitting thanksgiving.

How should we make this thanksgiving? Quite simply it is done by speaking to God as if face to face. If a friend were to visit would we let him stand there without saying a word to him? Or would we turn away and talk to someone else or leave the house not caring what he does? No! We would go up to him and tell him how glad we are that he has come to see us. We would tell him to make himself at home and ask him questions. "How are you doing?" "What is new?" We would tell him what we are doing and discuss our plans for the future, or ask his help and advice in regard to these. We would entertain him as best we could and make his stay memorable.

Similarly we should try to entertain our divine Visitor. Maybe in the first moments we are at a loss as what to say being dazed or hardly realizing that it is God Who has come into our unworthy hearts. Christ will be pleased even with this our humble embarrassment. Then suddenly we will find words of joy to greet and welcome Him. We will thank Him and ask for the graces and favors that we need for body and soul.

Nor do we need worry about proper phrases and beautiful sentences. He is pleased with our plain, humble and sincere words. He has come not for His sake but for ours. He has come to be asked, to listen and to grant. He is loaded down with gifts that He wishes to heap upon us; gifts which He is more anxious to give than we are to receive.

Who does not have some favor to ask of his divine Guest? Who does not have temptations, trials and sorrows to face? Who does not have decisions to make or principal weaknesses to fight against? Do you not need the Help of God? Christ is present within you and you have nothing to fear with Him at your side. He brings the feeling of rest and safety. How wonderful it would be to experience this same rest and safety on your deathbed. Ask for a happy death. He wishes us nothing more sincerely than this favor.

We can also ask favors for our parents, relatives, friends and even our enemies. Can we repay our parents for all they have done? We ought to at least ask God to bless them. Also for our teachers and priests, we should ask God to bless and protect them all. We should especially remember the priest who baptized us. For our sake he has taken upon himself the gravest responsibilities. All his life he prays for us. Should we not say a little prayer for him? Likewise we should remember the poor souls in purgatory; some of whom we are bound to pray for (e.g. souls of our departed relatives and friends).

We should pray in our own humble words, which are more pleasing to God. Prayer books can help but are not absolutely necessary and may even be a hindrance to devout prayer. Prayer books are like life preservers. Good swimmers can swim far better without having their shoulders encumbered. Of course if we swim like rocks and cannot keep above the water such help may be necessary. But the best and most effective prayer especially after Holy Communion is one formed in our own words, otherwise known as mental prayer.

By following some of these hints for preparation and thanksgiving your Holy Communion can and will bear fruit for time and eternity. The rule of silence will become easier before and your prayer following will be said more earnestly and devoutly. Gradually it will be easier to speak with Christ in your own humble way. Then as by our prayers and disposition we show our appreciation of Christ’s visits more and more, the graces resulting from Holy Communion will become greater and farther reaching each time.

In some way all our Holy Communions are a preparation for our last Holy Communion. If we make the effort now we can be assured that our Lord Jesus Christ will enter our hearts and minds to console and strengthen us for our final battle and journey to eternity.

May God grant that our last thanksgiving may not be confined to a few moments, but that it may last forever in Heaven.