First Holy Communion with help from St. Faustina

Paschal Candle.

Front of Easter Chasuble

Easter Chalice and Burse. All hand-embroidered.

Some of the detail of the embroidery in the chalice veil.

Back of Easter Chasuble.

Dear Friends and Family,

Today--and this past week--were full of graces. Too many to put down in one post. So I will focus on one that made me especially happy today: giving First Holy Communion to a boy at St. Edward the Confessor today.

After much study and preparation, he passed his examinations with me during Lent, and was cleared to receive first Confession and First Holy Communion. First Confession took place some weeks ago, and he has since polished his soul a few times in preparation for Holy Communion. In fact, he was the first one in line this morning before Mass, and then helped prepare items with the altar boys.

Since he had the special blessing of receiving Our Lord for the very first time on this blessed day, I preached using several texts from Our Lord's words to St. Faustina. First Holy Communion is an amazing blessing, but it is also the start of more intense spiritual formation. So I preached first on the visions of Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven--and what is at stake for every soul, urging him to train hard
in order to help other souls reach Heaven. To his credit, he listened attentively. Then, I shared some of the texts on Holy Communion:

After Holy Communion today, Jesus told me how much He desires to come to human hearts. “I desire to unite Myself with human souls; My great delight is to unite Myself with souls. Know, My daughter, that when I come to a human heart in Holy Communion, My hands are full of all kinds of graces which I want to give to the soul. But souls do not even pay any attention to Me; they leave Me to Myself and busy themselves with other things. Oh, how sad I am that souls do not recognize Love! They treat Me as a dead object.” (1385)

“Oh, how painful it is to Me that souls so seldom unite themselves to Me in Holy Communion. I wait for souls, and they are indifferent toward Me. I love them tenderly and sincerely, and they distrust Me. I want to lavish My graces on them, and they do not want to accept them. They treat Me as a dead object, whereas My Heart is full of love and mercy. In order that you may know at least some of My pain, imagine the most tender of mothers who has great love for her children, while those children spurn her love. Consider her pain. No one is in a position to console her. This is but a feeble image and likeness of My love.” (1447)

Our Lord comes to us in Holy Communion full alive, with His Heart infinitely vulnerable to our love and adoration, or lack thereof.

When He came, a short while later, to this young man for the very first time, I think--based on what I could see exteriorly--that the Lord was quite happy. After Mass I brought the young man into the Sanctuary and knelt with him in quiet thanksgiving for some minutes, inviting him to pray with me that Jesus would help him become a saint. Then, after a few photos, we went to the hall to partake in the joyful reception.

What a wonderful privilege it is to be a priest!

May Jesus and Mary watch over each of you, bless you, and guide you.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,
Fr. Pillari