A MESSAGE FROM OUR BISHOP MYRON J. COTTA
 
Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ -
 
My Dear People of God,
                  On the first weekend of the month of June, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. We begin the month by focusing on the summit of our Catholic Faith, the Holy Eucharist. The entire month of June can be a great time for all of us to strengthen our relationship with Jesus in the Eucharist.
  The month can provide a great opportunity for us to grow and form a greater appreciation of the Eucharistic celebration of the Mass. Approaching the Eucharist with a renewed sense of awe and reverence can move us to better participate in the celebration of the Mass. The month of June can provide the opportunity for ongoing faith formation in the way of the Liturgy of the Eucharist for the young and old alike.
  The Mass is where evangelization takes place. It is where we experience “the encounter.” It is the Risen Jesus, in the proclamation of his holy Gospel and the spiritual nourishment of his presence in Holy Communion, that we encounter at every liturgy. It is an encounter that provides the grace and mercy capable of changing hearts.
  The Mass offers us an opportunity to express our openness and desire to grow in holiness and to respond to the call of “ongoing” conversion of mind and heart. It is this desire that will empower us to be the faith community we are called to be, here, in Diocese of Stockton. It is this “call to holiness” that Pope Francis addresses in his recent apostolic exhortation: “Rejoice and Be Glad.” He states: “For every Christian, our mission on earth is to discover our path to holiness. Seeking God’s will for us, discerning his call and responding to it with an open and generous heart is how we attain holiness.”
  My friends, the more we appreciate and permit the gift of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Jesus Christ to transform us, the more we will find ourselves prepared to be sent at the end of every Mass to “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life!” The evangelizing power of the Mass will empower us to live our faith, and to witness to it, “out there!” This witnessing of the Faith, must first begin at home, then, it is to be taken out into the “marketplace” of our hurting society.
  May this month, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, grace us as we grow in our love of his True Presence in the Eucharist. May the Sacred-Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, pierced and glorified for each and every one of us, be our strength and consolation. May your summer be one in which you spend time to relax and find refreshment and renewal in the Presence of the Lord.
 
Reflect, Relax, and “Rejoice and be Glad!”
 
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.