Gerard's Thoughts and Commentary

I awoke from what seemed like a dream…a morsel of the Sacred Host remained on my tongue.   It was like either an angel, maybe my guardian angel, had “fed” me Holy Communion, or it was Jesus, Himself.   I felt a spiritual presence. In biblical times, God and His angels visited mankind often in dreams.   To this day, though it was likely a dream, I leave open the possibility my Lord came to me that night – just as I receive Him each Sunday.

  I am humbled; I am in awe, kneeling but five feet from the monstrance – the vessel used to publicly worship and honor the Eucharistic Jesus Christ. Rays as of purified gold radiate and surround the body of Jesus within the monstrance.   It is like the Transfiguration of Christ – arrayed in dazzling brightness. Since childhood, I have always been close to Jesus, especially in the Eucharist.   I recall my First Holy Communion picture as I waited to receive the Lord for the first time. In the early ‘80’s, I quickly rose out of bed at 3 a.m. to converse with and adore my Savior in Adoration. The late Father J. Hardon, S.J. (1914-2000), catechist and prolific writer, spoke about “ The Real Presence ” in the Eucharist.   He explained, “We are to believe that the Eucharist is Jesus Christ – simply, without qualification. It is God become man in the fullness of His divine and human natures, body and soul, and in the fullness of everything that makes Jesus...

PATIENCE, PERSEVERENCE, PRAYER          For over 20 years, I had this indescribable feeling deep within my being, aching to see my birthmother.  I longed to meet her before she passed away.   This “feeling” never escaped me.  I wanted to know, touch and hug her.  I always knew God heard my prayers.  Might he also answer them?      I began searching for my birthmother in 1981.  Washington Adoptee’s Reunion Movement (WARM) was the official agency within Washington State to unseal court records.  I learned of my “non-identifying information” through WARM.      My birthmother was 21 at the time of delivery.  She had brown hair and blue eyes.  Nine siblings were in her Catholic family and she was of German ancestry.  I discovered my grandmother had tuberculosis and died of Alzheimer’s while my grandfather had heart problems and died of cancer.  ...