The love of Jesus in the Eucharist is a Marian grace

Father François-Marie Léthel, OCD, Consultor to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, gave an interview to Vatican News about Eucharistic communion, whether virtual or real. Below is an excerpt:

Father Léthel: Our Holy Father, Pope Francis asked that we reread his homily of March 17, 2020 in which he warned that the virtual should not replace the real. Spiritual communion, which the Holy Father has invited us to do every day during the shelter at home, does not replace real Eucharistic communion, but on the contrary is all oriented towards the desire for Eucharistic communion.

VN: Is this because the Eucharist is "the source and summit of the Christian life"?

FL: That’s right, and also because it is the True Body of Jesus, so it is a communion with Him. Often in the history of the Church, in the history of holiness, it is lay people, especially women, who have pushed pastors to take new steps. We have the example of Saint Juliana of Liège, in the Middle Ages, who urged the bishop of Liège to institute the feast of the Blessed Sacrament; Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Thérèse of Lisieux who pushed to obtain daily communion; and of course the bishop and the priests followed. So I think that now it is important to listen, not in spirit of opposition or demanding, but in this sense of beautiful communion and complementarity of vocations.

VN: What you say about women is challenging: is it their own mission? Can we see in it a reference to the Virgin Mary?

FL: They are women who, even though they can’t be priests and celebrate Mass, often have a great love of Jesus Eucharist, of the Body of Christ, which, I think, is a feminine and Marian grace. Mary is the person who loved Jesus the most, who had the most intimate bodily contact with Him since she carried Him in her womb, and I think that there is in the Christian woman, whether she is married or consecrated, a particular meaning, a particular love of the Body of Jesus. 

Adapted from an interview by Adelaide Patrignani - Vatican News