Dominus Est
Based on his experience of Eucharistic devotion under Communist persecution, Bishop Schneider, auxiliary Bishop of Karaganda, Kazakhstan and member of the Order of the Holy Cross, bears witness to the loss of reverence for the Real Presence in the Western world and makes concrete suggestions for the renewal of Eucharistic faith and devotion in our times.
“I have read the whole book with delight. It is excellent.” ~ Francis Cardinal Arinze, Prefect, Congregation for Divine Worship
“Now more than ever, it is necessary to help the faithful renew a living faith in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharistic species in order to strengthen the life of the Church herself.” ~ from the preface by Most Rev. Malcolm Ranjith, Secretary for the Congregation for Divine Worship
Bishop Athanasius Schneider of the diocese of Karanganda (near the Chinese border) visited the Children of Mary on July 24th, 2008. Many friends of the Children of Mary came to have coffee and meet the bishop that evening.
Bishop Schneider shared with us the situation of his local church which lived hidden during the soviet communist regime. He is now trying to implant the church in a visible manner, living in a context of Islamic majority and among a strong Russian-orthodox presence.
How Bishop Schneider Came To Visit Children Of Mary: We saw a video clip of him being interviewed about his book, Dominus Est, about reverence towards Our Eucharistic Lord. We were very impressed with his love for Our Lord and the humble manner in which he presented his ideas on how we can restore reverence to Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. After seeing the video, we sent him our CD and prayer cards and told him that if he were ever in the United States, we would love to have him visit us. A few weeks later he wrote and said he was coming!
We feel greatly blessed that this holy man came to visit us.
Note: Bishop Schneider is the author of the book, Dominus Est. The book includes interesting stories about some of the bishop’s experiences growing up in a soviet occupied country. For example, how he made his First Holy Communion in secret, stealing away at night, traveling by train to the church and returning to his home after dark the next night. We ask Our Heavenly Father to let this book spread throughout the Church and help restore love and reverence to Our Eucharistic Lord.
