Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Women in Religion
Why I Choose the Eucharist Over the Sermon

Why I Choose the Eucharist Over the Sermon

Last updated on: October 12, 2026 at 6:40 pm by Lois Kerschen

Why I Choose the Eucharist Over the Sermon 2026-10-12T18:40:17-07:00 Lois Kerschen

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Choose the Eucharist, Not the Sermon

What are we supposed to get out of Mass? Some great enlightenment? A fill-up of our spiritual tank? A chance to touch base with God, as in, “Hi, God. It’s me, Margaret.” There are, perhaps, multiple answers to that question.

In my town, there is a Catholic church, but no Lutheran or Episcopalian church, or any other denomination except nondenominational, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the Latter-day Saints. So, a few Lutherans, including a retired Lutheran minister, and the occasional Episcopalian come to our services.

One of our Lutheran regulars joined our Bible study and was always good for questions like “Who started the Catholic Church?” She really liked our pastor because his homilies were so down-to-earth and, to her, the homily was the most important part of the service. She told me that she would feed on it all week for her spiritual sustenance.

Feeding upon the Word

That declaration gave me pause. It’s a very Protestant answer because the sermon is the highlight of the service for them. They do not have the Eucharist except in a periodic, symbolic way, so their center point, their purpose for attending as I understand it, is to “hear the Word.”

First of all, let’s clarify the difference between a homily and a sermon. The terms can be used interchangeably, but technically, there is a difference. According to Busted Halo, “A homily is a short, conversational talk tied directly to the day’s predetermined scripture readings, while a sermon is a longer, more formal and structured speech that explores a broader theological or moral theme.”

drawing of pastor giviing sermon

Image by Евгения from Pixabay

In Catholic churches, the priest is supposed to give a homily based on the day’s readings. The idea, probably, is to avoid hellfire and brimstone sermons and political activism – just review the stories and explain any sticky parts for the edification of the congregation.

Sadly, some priests use that instruction as an excuse to avoid teaching Church morals as applied to modern dilemmas. Your congregation may not want to be reminded of the rules, and if you don’t upset the congregation, the offering basket will be full. Too many priests follow the Joel Osteen example of preaching the prosperity gospel: God loves you, so God wants you to be rich and happy. Just play nice with each other and all will be well.

Feeding Upon the Eucharist

It is fortunate for Catholics that our main emphasis is not on the homily because that would be misplaced. Yes, we need instruction, but that is not the Mass’s main purpose. We celebrate Mass to receive consecration and communion. On weekdays, there often is no homily because we don’t come for one.

We attend Mass for communion. That is the focal point. Everything leads to the Eucharist. After the Eucharist, there is nothing left to do but reflective prayer, the tidying-up, and saying “Mass has ended. Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.”

Perhaps because I am a cradle Catholic, I have difficulty understanding Protestantism. I’ve never understood how they can do without the sacraments. As to Catholics who leave the Church, I wonder the same thing. Of course, if you don’t believe in transubstantiation, the Eucharist is only symbolic, so no big deal.

I understand that Protestants threw out confession because they think one’s sins should be between each person and God, not between a penitent and another human, even if the human is an ordained representative of God. They failed to understand that confession is a marvelous healing tool with multiple benefits that cannot be gained by simply having a chat with God.

Besides, how many people who eschew Catholic confession actually follow through and have those private conversations with God about their sins and their intention to repent? Very few, I suspect, except those most spiritually sincere. So, those outside the Catholic Church are doing without a very valuable experience.

Eucharistic Miracles

image of priest's hands holding Eucharist

Image by RobertCheaib from Pixabay

Protestants are also missing out on all the Eucharistic miracles as catalogued by St. Carlo Acutis.

The power of the Eucharist is obvious when you consider the evidence. How can anyone ignore all that or purposely choose to deny themselves a connection to this miraculous event?

There is a video about the Eucharist on YouTube that everyone should see:

It’s just seven minutes long (and you could probably skip the first two minutes), but it demonstrates what’s really going on at every Eucharist – Christ saying, “This is My Body, this is My Blood” while surrounded by angels and saints.

Once you’ve seen this video, the Eucharist will never be the same for you. You’ll get serious about it. You’ll be in awe of it. You will really wonder how anyone can do without it or how anyone can think that the homily is more important.

I may be ignorant of the deep theological differences between Protestants and Catholics, but, in my simplicity, I know I don’t want to do without the Eucharist. I choose the Eucharist over the sermon. I choose to be Catholic.

St. Carlo Acutis, pray for us.

Religious Events

Previous Post

September 12, 2026

Changing the Culture's View of Motherhood

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Patheos Catholic Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 July 2026 May 2026 December 2025 November 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 November 2023 September 2023 July 2023 June 2023 February 2023 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What is Paul's longest letter, with the fullest explanation of the gospel?

Select your answer to see how you score.

1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians James Romans