Pope at General Audience tells Christians to offer their lives to the Lord

Pope Francis on Wednesday began a series of catecheses dedicated to the Liturgy of the Eucharist inviting the faithful to offer their lives to the Lord, in order to receive from him the grace to grow in holiness and serve the coming of his Kingdom.

The Pope was addressing those present in the Paul VI Hall for the weekly General Audience.

Please find below the English Summary of his catechesis:  

Dear brothers and sisters: In our catechesis on the Mass, we now turn from the Liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Following the Lord’s command at the Last Supper to “do this in memory of me”, the Church at every Mass makes sacramentally present the sacrifice of the New Covenant sealed by Jesus on the altar of the cross. The Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the Preparation of the Gifts of bread and wine which will then be consecrated in the Eucharistic Prayer and received by the faithful in Holy Communion. The rite of the Preparation of the Gifts invites us to present our own lives as a spiritual offering together with the gifts we bring to the altar. The Prayer which concludes this rite voices our confidence that the Church’s offering will be transformed by the Holy Spirit and become a sacrifice pleasing to the Father, in union with the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. At every Mass, may we experience the Preparation of the Gifts as an invitation to offer our lives completely to the Lord, in order to receive from him the grace to live ever more fully our vocation to grow in holiness and to serve the coming of his Kingdom.