Corpus Christi Sunday!

Corpus Christi Sunday!

The famous theologian, Hans Urs von Balthasar (the most important Roman Catholic theologian of the 20th    century) says it this way: "When receiving the Eucharist, each person must remember that he is falling into the arms of God like someone dying of hunger in the wilderness of this life."

Today we celebrate the solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ! Corpus Christi Sunday! This feast is the heart of our church and of the lives of each of us. The Catechism of the Catholic Church 1322 says the     Eucharist is "the source and summit of the Christian life." Most of the Sacraments take place in the Sacrament of Eucharist.

The first reading from the book of Deuteronomy (8:2-3,14-16), Moses reminds the Israelites that God cares for them. Moses warned against forgetting that it is the Lord who provides the Land's prosperity. The manna from heaven, which sustained them in the desert for forty years, reminded them that they had to live and be nourished by the Word of God. The second reading from Second Corinthians (10:16-17), St. Paul says, “The loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf” (10:17). Here we see the great expression of the need to belong – communion with Christ. Jesus gives us his flesh and blood, his very life; he sacrifices everything for us. In the Gospel of John (6:51-58), Jesus says, “For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him” (John 6:55-56). Hopefully, we all have this true hunger and thirst for Christ so that we might live our lives with a deeper sense of purpose.

All the stories of the Old Testament led to the sacrifices of Calvary. In the book of Genesis 14:18-20, Melchizedek, the priest-king of Salem, blesses Abraham and offers bread and wine. He prefigures Jesus, the Eternal High Priest and King, who is going to offer body and blood, the sacrifice on the Cross. We read in the book of Exodus about God’s rescue mission (Chapter 7-12). The Israelites were slaves in Egypt for hundreds of years. Despite all the plagues, Pharaoh refuses to let the people go. After the announcement of the final plaque, the Lord instructed   Moses concerning the celebration of the Passover: the sacrifice of the unblemished lamb and a meal. The blood of the lamb needs to be put on the doorposts, so the angel of death will pass over their homes. The second part of the meal: consume the lamb. This is the way they are protected from death and have been delivered from slavery.  Every year at the Passover, the father of the family tells the story of the exodus and tells the family that God    delivered them. Every year, they celebrated with an expectation of God’s ultimate saving work.

At the Last Supper, Jesus took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins." And he    commanded them and said, “Do this in memory of me” (Mt 26:26-28; cf. Mk 14:22-24, Lk 22:17-20, 1 Cor 11:23-25). Then he completed the sacrifice on the Cross.

Mass begins at home, the moment you decide to go to Mass. When you decided to fast for an hour to celebrate the Mass, you took another step; we began preparing ourselves for this great celebration. The priest prepares further. When he comes to the sacristy in silence of heart, he prays for the grace to celebrate Mass, and when he wears  vestments, there is a prayer for each piece of the garment. Then we start Mass with a procession. The first part is the liturgy of the Word of God, and the second is the liturgy of the Eucharist. What takes place in a good visit with a good friend is good conversation and a good meal. In the liturgy, we are refreshed and nourished and sent out to live the Eucharist in our daily lives.

Today, June 7th, we have a Eucharistic Procession at Immaculate Conception at 2 pm. Pope Francis has       emphasized on several occasions that Eucharistic processions are not just religious rituals but a powerful public witness of faith. He says, “When we take part in Eucharistic procession, we are saying: Jesus is in our street; He walks with us and among us.” Jesus gives us the greatest gift in the Eucharist; he wants us to believe in true   presence and proclaim it. The Eucharistic procession is one way to proclaim and bear witness.