A Homily for Friday of the Third Week of Easter
Friday, April 24, 2026
Prince of Peace Catholic Church – 8:00 Mass
Acts 9:1-20; Psalm 117:1bc, 2; John 6:52-59
Audio Recording
Today’s readings place before us two powerful movements of grace: the dramatic conversion of Saul and Jesus’ unmistakably direct teaching about the Eucharist. One shows us how Christ changes a life. The other shows us how Christ sustains that life. Together, they reveal that the Christian journey begins with encounter and continues with communion.
Saul begins the first reading as a man convinced he is doing the right thing. He is zealous, disciplined, and sincere—but sincerely wrong. He is persecuting Christians, even approving their imprisonment and death. Then everything changes when he meets the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. Suddenly, the one he thought was the enemy is revealed as the Lord.
This encounter blinds Saul physically, but it opens his spiritual eyes. He must be led by the hand. He must wait. He must depend on others. The proud persecutor becomes a humble disciple. And from that moment forward, his life belongs entirely to Christ. That conversion was so complete that this former persecutor would become the Apostle Paul, the greatest missionary the Church has ever known, and his Spirit-inspired letters would come to form a large portion of the New Testament itself.
Conversion is not always a dramatic experience like Saul’s. It is usually a gentle process that unfolds over time for most of us. Even faithful people can be moving in the wrong direction without realizing it. We are all in the process of continual conversion, and the Lord is always ready to interrupt our plans—not to punish us, but to redirect us.
Then in the Gospel, Jesus speaks words that shocked his listeners then and still challenge people today: “Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood has eternal life.” He does not soften the teaching. He does not explain it away symbolically. Instead, he repeats it with even greater insistence.
Why? Because the Eucharist is not a symbol. It is a gift of himself.
Saul’s conversion shows us how Christ can decisively turn a life in a new direction, while the Eucharist shows us how that conversion is nourished and deepened over time. Once the Apostle Paul encountered Christ, he spent the rest of his life proclaiming him—and being strengthened by him. The same is true for us. We do not live the Christian life by our own strength. We live it by receiving Christ himself.
Especially as we grow older, this truth becomes clearer. Our energy may lessen. Our plans may change. Our independence may shrink. But the Eucharist remains constant. Each time we receive Holy Communion, the Lord draws closer to us, strengthens us, and prepares us for eternal life.
Jesus makes a promise in today’s Gospel that should give us deep confidence: whoever receives him will be raised on the last day. That is not poetry. That is a promise.
The story of Saul shows us how completely Christ can transform a life, and the Eucharist shows us that he is still at work transforming ours.
So today, when we come forward to receive the Body and Blood of Christ, let us do so with gratitude and trust. The same Lord who stopped Saul on the road to Damascus now meets us at this altar—and he is still at work changing our lives, showing us where we need to change, and giving us the grace to follow him more faithfully.
God bless you.