This weekend is the celebration of Corpus Christi. This great feast highlights for us the reality of the real presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. That Jesus, the Son of God, is the Eucharist. That He has given us His Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity under the appearance of bread and wine. That at Mass they are transformed and their very substance has become that of the presence of God. We as a Church take the words of Jesus at the Last Supper very seriously. For the last few centuries the Church has had Eucharistic processions as part of this feast day. We will have one at the conclusion of the 10:30 am Mass that goes around the block returning to the altar for a time of adoration and then benediction to conclude the celebration of Corpus Christi.
The sense of celebration continues as the priests of the diocese will be gathering for
Priest Unity Days with Bishop Battersby in La Crosse. This annual summer gathering is a time for fraternity, prayer and further education/formation aided by a speaker and presentations. Pray for all the priests these days and their travels to be together.
On June 28th at 10 am in the Cathedral Bishop Battersby will ordain three men to the
priesthood for our diocese. So pray for soon to be Frs. Joseph Glatczak, Matthew Szymanski and Brian Ward. On Sunday they offer their “first Mass” which is a Mass of thanksgiving at their home parish. Fr. Joseph Glatczak is from St. Paul parish in Mosinee and his Mass will be at 4 pm. That will allow me to be a part of that celebration along with other priests, family and friends along with the parish of St. Paul that has supported him over the years of his preparation. This is a good time to call for prayers for priestly vocations for our diocese. Perhaps during your time of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament you can storm heaven asking for more priests.