13. By virtue of its close relationship to the
sacrifice of Golgotha, the Eucharist is a sacrifice in the strict
sense, and not only in a general way, as if it were simply a
matter of Christ's offering himself to the faithful as their spiritual
food. The gift of his love and obedience to the point of giving his
life (cf. Jn 10:17-18) is in the first place a gift to his
Father. Certainly it is a gift given for our sake, and indeed that of
all humanity (cf. Mt 26:28; Mk 14:24; Lk 22:20;
Jn 10:15), yet it is first and foremost a gift to the Father:
“a sacrifice that the Father accepted, giving, in return for this
total self-giving by his Son, who 'became obedient unto death' (Phil
2:8), his own paternal gift, that is to say the grant of new immortal
life in the resurrection”.18
In giving his sacrifice to the Church, Christ has also
made his own the spiritual sacrifice of the Church, which is called to
offer herself in union with the sacrifice of Christ. This is the
teaching of the Second Vatican Council concerning all the faithful:
“Taking part in the Eucharistic Sacrifice, which is the source and
summit of the whole Christian life, they offer the divine victim to
God, and offer themselves along with it”.19 |