In an age of science, technology, and hands-on experience, it is easy to lose touch with the "mystical." This tendency threatens an important aspect of our identity as Church.

As Church, we are the people of God. We are made up of many ages, races, cultures, and even various denominations. Focusing on these aspects alone, however, can limit our understanding of Church to only what we can see and touch. Yet, as Church, we are a "mystical reality" with a destiny that reaches beyond what we can see and touch.

St. Paul used the analogy of the human body when he spoke of the unity of people in Christ. Though many and though different, we are one, just as a human body is one.

But Pope Pius XII in Mystici Corporis developed this concept even further. Teaching that in a mystical (mystery) way, we are the very body of Jesus in the world today. We are not only an institution; we are not just another organization. We are not even just a gathering of people. We are indeed Christ-the Mystical Christ remaining in the world, and in whom Jesus himself lives and through whom Jesus redeems the world. We the Church are not "left-overs" after Jesus' thirty-three years on earth. We are part of the main redeeming mystery of Christ. In Jesus, a redeeming component has entered the world, and we, the Church, are that presence of Jesus in today's world. Recognizing this is necessary to acknowledging and owning our identity as Church.

© Harcourt Religion Publishers/BROWN-ROA