When Jesus first revealed that he would give us his Body and Blood to eat and drink, some of his disciples found this teaching too hard to accept. Jesus went to the core of their difficulty. “Does this shake your faith in me?” Reason doesn’t lead us to acceptance of the Eucharist as truly Jesus. Only faith enable us to see beyond the visible to the reality. But it is faith in the person of Jesus who revealed the mystery. Peter stated it well. His many personal encounters with Jesus enabled him to say. “We have believed, and we recognize that you are the Christ, the Son of God.” (John 6:70). In other words, Peter accepted the words of Jesus, because of who Jesus is, even though he didn’t understand.

Because of our faith in the Risen Lord, we believe in what he taught and did. Our faith, like Peter’s, is based on our personal encounters with Jesus. If Jesus can change water into wine and raise the dead to life, why can’t he change bread and wine into his own Body and Blood. After all, he is true God and true Man. Faith is not subject to personal interpretation. It accepts the truth spoken because of the  person who speaks this truth.