“...and I will raise you up on the last day.”
These lyrics are familiar to anyone who has ever celebrated a liturgy in the Catholic Church. Suzanne Toolan, RSM, is an internationally known composer of liturgical music. Her communion song, “I Am the Bread of Life” has been translated into more than 20 languages. At the age of 84, she continues to compose music for Catholic repertory. Her music is timeless, prayerful, and full of her own enthusiastic spirit. I am sure we will continue to sing her music in our churches for years to come.
I chose “I Am the Bread of Life” for our communion hymn this weekend because of its obvious reference to the resurrection on the final day of glory. In today's Gospel, we hear John's recounting of Lazarus' rising from the dead. This "miracle of miracles,‟ so impossible for us to grasp intellectually, but if seen through eyes of faith, is the miracle that we base our faith on. And Jesus’ dying and rising from the grave is the reason to wake up each morning! Even the darkness of the grave cannot spell death if our hope is in the Resurrection. Our lives are but a moment in time - a blink of an eye - a turn of a season. But life eternal is our hope. Let us sing this hymn with energy and faith this weekend, remembering our own eternal life in God! “… If you believe in me, even though you die, you shall live forever.”
