The Eucharistic celebration should call us into action

The Eucharist is good in and of itself. Christ nourishes us with His own body and blood. This is true, but I think we often miss a very important aspect of receiving the Eucharist. Namely, we are sent on a mission.  We are charged to go forth and bring the Gospel to the world. There is something amiss if we receive the Eucharist and then do not evangelize.
Most of us are American in the way we think and that way of thinking is often influenced greatly by consumerism. This means that we tend to see consumption as good and desirable. I think that can lead to replacing God with material goods, but that topic will be for another column.
I would like to propose that the Eucharist should compel us to go out and spread the Good News, care for the sick and lonely, console the sorrowful, etc. Attending Mass and receiving Communion are good, but if that is the end of the story it leaves much to be desired.
Imagine an army. It is encamped and there is a mess tent and a field hospital. Both very useful and important; however, there would be something disordered if this army never did battle or provided logistical support for the mission. The purpose of the field hospital is to help heal soldiers so they can perform their mission. The mess tent is to feed soldiers so they can fulfill their mission. They should not be sitting around eating and getting fat. Such an army would soon lose its identity.
We receive the Eucharist and that is a start, but it should be only the beginning.  St. James admonishes us in his letter, “Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.”  
It is  good that we worship weekly at Mass, but we are called to action by our participation in the Eucharistic celebration.  We are called to be doers of the word, and not just attend Mass and consider “the box” to be checked.  Let us be doers!
— Pat Arensberg is the Director of the Office for Evangelization and Family Life. Email him at [email protected]