"What return can I make to the Lord for all that he gives me?" This reflection invites us to the prayer of thanksgiving. Recalling God's gifts will invite us to reflect on them and so appreciate them, leading to gratitude.

The disciples who abandoned Jesus because of the doctrine of the Eucharist would have done better to pause a moment and reflect instead of rejecting his doctrine as a hard saying. Then they might have experienced more clearly the love involved in his word "give": they might have come to an appreciation of the gift which Jesus was offering them.

Thus today's readings challenge us to appreciate all God's gifts, particularly the gift of the Eucharist. In allowing a vernacular liturgy, Vatican Council II took a great risk, the risk of familiarization. In general, the risk was worth it, as we are now better nourished by the Word of God. But perhaps we must realistically admit the downside: over the years reverence for the Eucharist has declined. Where our Catholic Churches were once places of deep silence and prayerful worship, many have lost something of that tradition. We would benefit from a restoration of that reverential atmosphere.