God is Near Us: The Eucharist, the Heart of Life
Overview
The Second Vatican Council says, “We ought to try to discover a new reverence for the Eucharistic mystery. Something is happening that is greater than anything we can do. The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the church is directed; it is the font from which all her power flows.”
This profound statement about the Eucharist stands at the center of this book by Cardinal Ratzinger. He compellingly shows us the biblical, historical, and theological dimensions of the Eucharist. The Cardinal draws far-reaching conclusions, focusing on the importance of one’s personal devotion to and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, for the personal reception of communion by the individual Christian as well as for the life of the church. For Ratzinger, any transformation of the world on the social plane grows out of the celebration of the Eucharist. He beautifully illustrates how the omnipotent God comes intimately close to us in the holy Eucharist, the heart of life.
With the Logos Bible Software edition of God is Near Us, you have an abundance of resources that offer applicable and insightful material for study. You can easily search the subject of Christian unity and access an assortment of useful resources and perspectives from a variety of pastors and theologians.
- Introduction by the editors
- Bibliographical references
Top Highlights
“We do not want God as near as that; we do not want him so small, humbling himself; we want him to be great and far away.” (Page 75)
“Resurrection means quite simply that the body ceases to be a limit and that its capacity for communion remains” (Page 81)
“The Eucharist is a sacrifice, the presentation of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross.” (Page 44)
“Body, in the language of the Bible, denotes rather the whole person, in whom body and spirit are indivisibly one. ‘This is my Body’ therefore means: This is my whole person, existent in bodily form.” (Page 79)
“Communion and adoration do not stand side by side, or even in opposition, but are indivisibly one. For communicating means entering into fellowship.” (Page 97)
Not only does Ratzinger shed his customary theological light on many subjects, but as he does in other books, he applies his insights very directly to Catholic life and devotion. Coming at this time, this book is part of the effort of many to see the Eucharist restored to the center of Catholic piety and devotion.
—Fr. Benedict Groeschel, C. F. R., author, The Rosary: Chain of Hope
- Title: God is Near Us: The Eucharist, the Heart of Life
- Author: Joseph Ratzinger
- Editors: Stephan Otto Horn and Vinzenz Pfnür
- Translator: Henry Taylor
- Publisher: Ignatius
- Publication Date: 2003
- Pages: 160
Joseph Ratzinger, better known as Pope Benedict XVI, is one of our time’s most revered Catholic prelates, scholars, theologians, teachers, and authors. He has spoken on many crucial subjects, including sexual consumerism, modern gender roles, marriage, the priesthood, and the future. As a teenager, he studied classical languages and, in 1939, entered the minor seminary in Traunstein. Though he was drafted into the German antiaircraft corps in 1943, he reentered the seminary in 1945, when World War II ended. On June 29, 1951, Joseph Ratzinger was ordained to the priesthood in the Cathedral of Freising on the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. He received his doctorate in theology in 1953, from the University of Munich. Starting in 1959, Ratzinger taught theology at the University of Bonn.
At 35, Joseph Ratzinger was appointed chief theological advisor to the archbishop of Cologne, Cardinal Joseph Frings, and he maintained that title for four years. After many years of teaching at several German universities, Ratzinger was appointed by Pope Paul VI as archbishop of Munich and Freising in March 1977 and, in June 1977, was elevated to cardinal. In November 1981, Ratzinger was summoned by Pope John Paul II to Rome, where he was named prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, president of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, and president of the International Theological Commission.
On April 19, 2005, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger was elected to be the 265th pope. He took the name Benedict XVI, after St. Benedict of Nursia. Since that time, he has continued to receive worldwide respect and has been a spiritual influence to Christians and non-Christians alike.