Readings:
Deut. 8:2-3,14-16; 1 Cor. 10:16-17; John 6:51-58
Mass
is God
1.
Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and
Blood of Christ – the Corpus Christi. In the Eucharist, Christ is offered and
received and in him the church continually lives and grows. The Eucharist is
the source and summit of Christian life. By means of the Eucharist the unity of
God’s people is signified and brought about, and the building up of the body of
Christ is perfected. We hold the blessed Eucharist in highest honor by taking
active part in the celebration of the most august sacrifice of the Mass.
2. The Sacrament of the
Body and Blood of Christ is so important and essential to us Christians that we
must do whatever it takes to attend Mass and receive Holy Communion regularly
and frequently. There is a story told of a merchant, who traveled, miles and
miles, every Sunday to attend Mass in a parish when there weren’t many
parishes. One day the pastor asked him where he resided. “Florida”, he
answered. Then the pastor asked how he was able to attend Mass in Baltimore
every Sunday, with limited means of transportation, as it was then. The man
stopped short and looked at the priest with amazement. He told him, “Father,
if there is only one Mass in the whole world, a man must endeavor to attend
that Mass even if it means crawling on his knees, because Mass is God.”
In today’s gospel reading Christ stressed, “Unless you eat the flesh of
the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within
you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and
I will raise him on the last day.” (Jn. 6:54). By eating the Body of Christ
and drinking his Blood, we become the living Christ. We are enabled to discover
our closeness and blessedness; and we acknowledge our brokenness and our
strengths. We, like Christ, begin to put the needs of others above our own
fears. Thus we, like Christ, become food for the world. We are Christians
because of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ but Catholics because of
the Eucharist. Food is an absolute necessity for the growth of our bodies. And
the Eucharist is an absolute necessity for our spiritual life.
3. This brings to mind the
story of Cardinal Newman. He was devoted to the Eucharist. Newman was a reputed
scholar and had been a holy Protestant pastor. He studied Catholic doctrine
carefully and struggled for many years before becoming a Catholic. A few days before
his conversion, one of his friends tried to dissuade him from the step he was
about to take, “Think over what you are doing! If you become a Catholic, you’ll
lose a handsome income of 4,000 pounds a year.” Newman’s reply was: “And
what are 4,000 pounds compared to a communion?” (New Horizon). Pope
Francis reminds us that “The Eucharist is the spiritual lifeblood of the
Christian because in receiving it we consume the glorified body of the Risen
Lord, whose life then transforms us, elevates us and empowers us to become like
him. The Eucharist grants us a share in the Divine and Human Savior of
the world, whose gift of himself imparts eternal life to those who love him.
That is why Jesus says, “If any one eats of this bread (my flesh), he will live
forever.” (Jn. 6:15).
4. One of the core
teachings of the Church on the Eucharist is that “Our Lord is truly, really and
substantially present in the Holy Eucharist. Hence, we believe in the real
presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, not just a symbol of his Body and Blood
but, his real Body and Blood through the process of transubstantiation during
consecration. Christ told his disciples, “Whoever eats my flesh and
drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me
and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will
have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven.”
(Jn. 6:57-58). Many of his disciples stopped following him because of this
teaching, but Christ did not beg them to stay. Instead he asked his apostles:
“Do you also want to leave?” (Jn. 6:67). According to Pope St. John Paul ll,
this teaching “Is at the heart of the Church, the secret of her vigor; she must
keep watch with jealous care over this mystery and affirm it in its fullness.”
Taking this teaching seriously means that we must prepare ourselves for the
fruitful participation at Mass. It is recommended that we read, beforehand, the
readings of the Mass, examine our consciences, confess any mortal sins we are
aware of in order to receive our Lord and Savior Jesus timely, worthily and
devotedly. After receiving Holy Communion, our Lord is present in us as long as
the species remain. This can be as long as 8 to 10 minutes. According to the
Sacred Congregation for the sacraments and divine worship, “The faithful
are to be recommended not to omit to make a proper thanksgiving after
communion. They may do this during the celebration with a period of silence,
with a hymn, Psalm, or other song of praise, or also after the celebration if
possible by staying behind to pray for a suitable time.” If we truly
believe that we receive Jesus Christ, His body, blood and divinity he will
change us and make us holy, forgiving, loving, merciful, compassionate,
devoted, caring and charitable. We will become what we eat.
5. It is incumbent on us
to protect and safeguard the sanctity of this sacrament. If you see someone
take communion and not consume it, please call the attention of the priest. If
you invite a non-Catholic friend to worship with you on a Sunday, please do not
invite him/her to holy Communion. If he or she is interested in the Catholic
teaching, let you pastor know so that he/she may be registered in RCIA, be
catechized first before being invited to the table of the Lord.
6. After Mass, we are
dismissed to “Go forth, the Mass is ended, or Go and announce the Gospel of the
Lord or Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life”. This means we are sent
forth to take the Christ that we have received in the Eucharist to our communities,
our cities and our neighborhoods. Like Jesus, we must share him, the Bread of
Life with the poor, the homeless, the sick, the saints and sinners alike. We
are to make the Bread of Christ, broken and received by us available fresh for
others at all times. The Christ that we receive in the Eucharist is a sign of
unity. It calls us to hold each other accountable and show that we are one in
Christ, for “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free
person, there is not male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
(Gal. 3:28). Let us offer this Bread to those who need healing for their broken
bodies, forgiveness and conversion to sinners, companionship to the lonely,
food to the hungry and reconciliation, justice and freedom to prisoners. May we
receive strength and nourishment from this food so that we may live forever
with our Lord. Amen.
Rev.
Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP
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