Father Jim Baron is Director of Mission and Strategic Planning for the Diocese of Colorado Springs. He is currently in residence at St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish.

In last month’s issue, I exhorted us to take back Sunday as the Lord’s Day. Two specific ways we do this is to go to Mass and enjoy actual rest. As much as keeping Sunday holy is an act of obedience to the Lord’s commandment, it is also a treat to us. This month, I think it is helpful to focus more on why that is true.

It’s pumpkin season! Those wonderful, plump, orange balls of fall can be seen almost everywhere we look this time of year. They are relatively easy to grow in our diocese and are fun to watch in the garden.

Welcome to the second installation of Revive Alive, a series of teaching and reflection on the Eucharistic Revival in the Diocese of Colorado Springs. In addition to the monthly feature on Reclaiming Sunday as the Lord’s Day, these reflections are intended to offer some thoughts on the gift of the Eucharist and how we can embrace this life-giving gift as disciples of Jesus Christ. God wants to renew us and his Church through the Eucharist. Hopefully these will be of some help!

DENVER. The Colorado Catholic Conference, the legislative and public policy arm of Colorado’s four Catholic bishops, has issued a new Voter Guide ahead of the Nov. 8 election. The guide is available online in English and Spanish at www.cocatholic.org/resources/voter-guide/.

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the chalice, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. — 1 Cor 11:26

The gift of the Eucharist and the celebration of the sacrificial banquet always include the offering of bread and wine. It has always been essential to the celebration of the Sacrament that the priest offering the Mass receives both the Sacred Body and Precious Blood. The practice of the early Church was to offer the laity communion under both kinds as well. This practice eventually fell out of use for numerous reasons by the 12th century (“Norms for the Distribution and Reception of Holy Communion Under Both Kinds,” 17-18).