In his March 2007 apostolic exhortation on the Eucharist, "Sacrament of Charity" ("Sacramentum Caritatis"), Pope Benedict XVI wrote:

"In the sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus shows us in particular the truth about the love which is the very essence of God.... The church, which finds in the Eucharist the very center of her life, is constantly concerned to proclaim to all ... that God is love" (No. 2).

If God is love, how is that love revealed in the celebration of the liturgy?

We hear the texts of the Mass so often that we can grow immune to their intended impact. Sometimes it is helpful to review the very words we use in the Mass to notice how often they speak of God's love for us.

Most Masses include a Penitential Rite to remind us of God's love and forgiveness no matter how often we have sinned. We call out, "Lord, have mercy," and the word "mercy" refers to God's steadfast love that never gives up on us.

In the preparation of the gifts we present bread and wine along with our monetary offerings. We often think of these as our gifts to God, but even more basically they are God's gifts to us. We present a portion back to God from all that God has given to us as signs of his love.

In the Eucharistic Prayer, especially the Preface that begins the prayer, we recall the multitude of ways God has blessed us, both throughout salvation history and in our own time. All the efforts God has made through the centuries to bring about our salvation reveal God's love for us. Even creation itself is a result of God's love, for God created the universe and especially human beings to enter into a love relationship with us.

The core of the Eucharistic Prayer, however, brings us to the central way the Eucharist reveals God's love. Every Eucharistic Prayer recalls the paschal mystery, the death and resurrection of the Lord. Here the depth of God's love is revealed: "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son."

Pope Benedict referred to this in his encyclical, "God Is Love," saying:

"Jesus gave this act of oblation an enduring presence through his institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. He anticipated his death and resurrection by giving his disciples, in the bread and wine, his very self, his body and blood as the new manna" (No. 13).

Whenever we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the death of the Lord, and we experience the God who is love.

Father Lawrence E. Mick is a priest of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Ohio, and a freelance writer.