The Hunger

Easter Sunday the Church was packed.  Lots of people I had not seen before or had not seen in a long time were filling up the pews.  Besides being Easter, there may have been a bump because of the new Pope.  Will these people continue to come?  As long as they hunger for the Eucharist, they will come.  If the hunger is not there, they will drift away again until Christmas.  People say to me that if the church would ordain women or change its stance on some sexual matter, then the people will come back.  For a short time, yes.  But only that hunger will get them to keep coming back.  These people who stay away don't fear hell if they skip mass.  That is the worst reason to come.  The Eucharist is central.  When someone says that they are taking a vacation from church, the hunger is just not there.  You can read scripture at home.  You can watch mass on television.  You can go to a big evangelical friendly mega-church that has a user friendly message for you.  But only the Eucharist will bring these once in a while people back to the Catholic mass on a regular basis.  If it is Jesus, we have a chance.  If it is only bread, why bother?