Prayer formulated by H.E. Mons. Claudio Gatti on 26th November 2006

This is the prayer that H.E. Mons. Claudio Gatti, Bishop ordained by God, formulated spontaneously before the Eucharist that bled on the occasion of the feast of Christ King of the Universe.

Oh Jesus, true God and true Man, Son of God, of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, Savior and Redeemer, our brother, we bow before You, Jesus, recognizing that You are our God. We adore You, dear Jesus, really present in the Eucharist and, at this moment, we address signs and sighs of love, from our heart, like fiery darts, to all the tabernacles of the Earth, where You are really present.

Jesus, during the procession, while I accompanied You and saw my brothers and sisters bowing before You and the flags fluttering in the wind in your honor, I felt sadness. You are the King of the Universe and I would have liked a large multitude of people to be present at your passage, but for now you have to settle for this small group. However, with the eyes of the soul, I saw Your triumph, in the most famous square of the world: I saw You pass under hundreds of flags, on a huge and colorful carpet of flower petals, praised by thousands of people and I also saw millions of people who could see You through the media. Then my heart rejoiced, not for me, not for us, but for You: it is right that in Your name and Your presence all men bow their heads, bend their knees and recognize you as Messiah and Savior.

Thank You Jesus, because You incarnated for the love of us and You chose a kind of life so incomprehensible from the human point of view: the long years of your silence and the few years of your public life, immersed in your apostolate. You taught us that You, or God, have the absolute leading role in History: only thanks to Your presence and Your power, You start and end situations that are in conformity with Your will. Your action goes through so many human errors, so many human limits, so many human imperfections and, of all this, we are aware of it.

You, Lord, have known how to keep Your Church firm, even if wounded by men. In fact, today it is still present and alive in the world because You support it. Your words: "Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Mt 28:20) are realities that you implement day after day. If it had depended on us men, the Church would no longer exist, instead, despite everything, it will live until the last day because you, Jesus the Eucharist, are nourishing and strengthening it, with your Eucharistic presence.

Thank you, because you have allowed us to taste and know the beauty, the greatness, the necessity and the importance of the Eucharist. You have brought us closer and closer to living the Eucharistic mystery. Before we could not understand it, but now we taste, understand, and participate in a more profound and conscious way to the Holy Mass.

Thank you Jesus for all the gifts and all the Eucharistic miracles you have worked in this place. Today we commemorate the one of November 26, 1995, according to your style. So many men flocked here only out of curiosity and because they thought they would be seeing something sensational, instead they just were before Your presence and reacted badly. The simple shepherds of Bethlehem behaved better when they saw you as a little baby, a baby in a humble cave, and rejoiced because you were born. They recognized you as Messiah and Savior without the ostentation of Your divinity, but in the weakness of an infant in need of assistance and care. I must admit, with renewed pain and suffering, that even the leaders of the Church did not want to recognize Your presence. But you are God Almighty and, in spite of everything, that day you brought forth, from Your pierced heart, torrents of grace that nourished, helped and supported the Church. You govern and sustain it with a strong hand, with a resolute heart, with an unshakable will, despite the fact that many of its shepherds are far from You.

Thank You Lord because, despite everything, You continue to be present and to be patient. It is true, sometimes we are impatient, sometimes we grumble and show our tiredness, because what You have promised just seems not to come closer, but even to move away. You read in our hearts and know that, despite everything, we believe and love You: we grumble and love You, we grumble and we recognize that You are our God. That's why, Lord, don't blame us for certain attitudes but, patiently, accept them and make sure that we can go on and I say it again, even if we, sometimes, grumble.

Thank you Jesus, because You called us, You held us close to your heart and because You wanted us to drink daily from your pierced heart from where water and blood, grace and blessing always flow for those who want it.

Thank you Jesus, because you are here, before us, and you are opening to us the treasures of your mercy.