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"I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth." That's pretty straightforward for most Catholics. But examining the creed said every Sunday at Mass, nowhere does it say anything about the Eucharist, the lifeblood (pun intended) of the Catholic faith. How much do we actually believe in the Transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ?

Because if we truly believe, we wouldn't be so nonchalant as we stroll up to the front of the church to receive the Eucharist. We wouldn't be glancing at our watches as the priest or deacon cleans the vessels, just waiting from them to walk back to their chair so we could bolt before the closing hymn. We wouldn't think that the careful steps taken by the priest with the ritualistic aspects of preparing, distributing and purifying after the Eucharistic meal were at all superfluous.

The truth is, we don't truly appreciate our belief in the Real Presence. If we did, we would be on our hands and knees as we came anywhere near the True Presence of God in the flesh. We wouldn't be able to talk, to breathe, to look at the Body and Blood of the one Lord Jesus Christ. But we don't. I don't.

I hope, I have faith, I trust that the belief will come. I see the devotion and the honest belief of others as they lay prostrate in adoration, or the care and love with which they receive the Eucharist. But I am not worthy. None of us are worthy of Jesus Christ and the love He has for us. But we trust anyway. We have faith anyway. We hope anyway.

Now, more than ever, it is more important that we recognize our unbelieving, and pray for belief – to admit our sins, our addictions, our faults and our crosses, and to unite with broken and lost people of all faiths, all backgrounds and all lifestyles as one Body of Christ. Because my faith, alone, is nothing. Your faith, alone, is nothing. But the faith and the hope and the love of the universal Church can stand as a beacon of light for all in the darkness if we accept what we lack, pray for what we need, and live lives of love for God and for others.

Eric Kopfle lives in Charlotte and describes himself as a recent college graduate who "represents the younger generation of Catholics keeping the faith in a world that is increasingly anti-religion."