The Church in the Archdiocese of Douala celebrates this Sunday, June 02, 2024, the ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time, as the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, more commonly known by its Latin title, “Corpus Christi” (the Body of Christ). The Entrance Antiphon of this day’s Mass says: “The Lord fed his people with the finest wheat and honey; their hunger was satisfied.”
Corpus Christi is a special feast for the Body and Blood of Christ introduced into the calendar of the Universal Church in 1264 when Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote the prayers and hymns for this feast.
Church historians tell us that this feast of Corpus Christi became a mandatory feast in the Roman Church in 1312. But nearly a century earlier, Saint Juliana of Mont Cornillon, promoted a feast to honor the Blessed Sacrament. The story goes that from an early age Juliana, who became an Augustinian nun in Liége, France, in 1206, had a great veneration for the Blessed Sacrament, and longed for a special feast in its honor. She had a vision of the Church under the appearance of the full moon having one dark spot, which signified the absence of such a solemnity. She made known her ideas to the Bishop of Liége, who ordered that the feast be celebrated in his diocese.
Pope Urban IV, after extolling the love of Our Savior as expressed in the Holy Eucharist, ordered the annual celebration of Corpus Christi on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday.
The most obvious religious tradition associated with this feast is the Corpus Christi Procession, which includes the carrying of the Blessed Sacrament, visible in a vessel called the monstrance, which comes from the Latin word monstrare, meaning “to show”. In most places today, the procession will include stops at outdoor altars, called stations, where there will be prayers, songs and blessing with the Sacrament.
What is the purpose of this feast of the Eucharist? This feast allows us to give God collective thanks for Christ’s abiding presence with us, which is made visible in the Eucharist. It is also an opportunity for us to seek a better understanding of the sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ and to order our attitude to it accordingly, since the Eucharist is a sacrament of life which, if misused, could bring the opposite effect. As Saint Paul says to the Corinthians: “It follows that if anyone eats the Lord’s bread or drinks from his cup in a way that dishonours him, he is guilty of sin against the Lord’s body and blood. .. For if he does not recognise the meaning of the Lord’s body when he eats the bread and drinks from the cup, he brings judgement on himself as he eats and drinks. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and several have died.” 1 Cor. 11: 27-30.
As I march through my neighbourhood in procession this day behind the Blessed Sacrament and alongside hundreds of my brothers and sisters, these words of Saint Augustine are ringing in my ears: “Eat the bread of heaven in a spiritual way. Come to it freed from sin. Even though your sins occur daily, at least see to it that they are not mortal. Moreover, before you approach the altar note well what you say: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” If you forgive others, God will forgive you. Amen.
First Reading: Exodus 24: 3-8.
When Moses came to the people and related all the words and ordinances of the Lord, they all answered with one voice, "We will do everything that the Lord has told us." Moses then wrote down all the words of the Lord and, rising early the next day, he erected at the foot of the mountain an altar and twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel. Then, having sent certain young men of the Israelites to offer holocausts and sacrifice young bulls as peace offerings to the Lord, Moses took half of the blood and put it in large bowls; the other half he splashed on the altar. Taking the book of the covenant, he read it aloud to the people, who answered, "All that the Lord has said, we will heed and do." Then he took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, saying, "This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words of his."
Comment:
The first five books of the Hebrew Bible are Genesis, which deals with the origin of the world, of mankind and of the people of Israel; Exodus, from where the passage for our meditation is taken, which recounts the escape of the people of Israel from Egypt and their wanderings in the desert for forty years; Leviticus, which contains the laws on holiness and worship and the role of the priestly ministry, Numbers, which gives a census and the lists of those who came out of Egypt, and Deuteronomy, the second law laid down by Moses before the people of God entered and took possession of the Promised Land.
Chapter 24 of the Book of Exodus, from where the text of our meditation is taken, gives the account of the ratification of the covenant between God and his people at Sinai. The acceptance of God’s ordinances by the people is sealed by a rite of blood. For ancient peoples, blood symbolized life. By being sprinkled with the sacrificial blood, the people understood themselves as being joined in a life bond with the God to whom they swore their allegiance, which is symbolized by the altar at the foot of the mountain. In this rite, Moses is the sole mediator.
The ceremony takes place on the slope of a mountain. Although Moses alone is the intermediary, God and his people are the main personalities. The ceremony has two parts – the reading and accepting of the clauses of the Covenant, then the offering which seals the pact. When Moses sprinkles the blood of the sacrifice on the people, he is consecrating them, making them the property of God and a kingdom of priests. The Covenant therefore gives the people the right to belong to the holy nation, which is God’s possession.
At the Last Supper, when instituting the Eucharist, Jesus uses the same terms, that is, “blood of the Covenant”, thereby indicating the nature of the new people of God, of you and me, who have been redeemed and have become the holy people of God. The Fathers of Vatican II say that by instituting the new covenant, Christ called a race made up of Jews and Gentiles, which would be one, not according to the flesh, but in the Spirit, and this race would be the new People of God.” (Lumen Gentium).
Let us say this prayer, my brothers and sisters, so that God can help us to remain faithful to the new covenant Christ instituted for us. “Father, for your glory and our salvation, you appointed Jesus Christ eternal High Priest. May the people he gained for you by his blood come to share in the power of his cross and resurrection by celebrating his memorial in the Eucharist, for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.”
Second Reading: Hebrews 9: 11-15
Brothers and sisters: When Christ came as high priest of the good things that have come to be, passing through the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made by hands, that is, not belonging to this creation, he entered once for all into the sanctuary, not with the blood of goats and calves but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the sprinkling of a heifer's ashes can sanctify those who are defiled so that their flesh is cleansed, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works to worship the living God. For this reason he is mediator of a new covenant: since a death has taken place for deliverance from transgressions under the first covenant, those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.
Comment
In this passage, the sacred writer tells us that the old temple, the old covenant and the sacrifices of the old law of Moses are inadequate and he turns to Jesus Christ who has brought to pass all the promises relating to a full recognition and worship of God. He has brought a new sacrifice acceptable to the Father, a new covenant, a new sanctuary. His obedience to his Father has gained him the right to enter heaven where he now intercedes for us. He invites us to share in his sacrifice; it flows into all Christian living and worship as the new covenant that rids us of our sins and invites us to the Father.
The sacrifices of the Old Law could only provide temporary benefits, whereas Christ’s redemptive sacrifice obtained for us, once and for all, the good things to come, that is, the heavenly and eternal benefits proper to those who abide by his word. Christ achieved our redemption by offering his blood. This does not have a temporary value – like the blood of animals shed each year when the high priest entered the Holy of Holies: Jesus secured eternal redemption. In the Old Law, the Jews were cleansed by the blood of the sacrificed animals from legal impurities that prevented them from taking in the liturgy, but Christ’s blood does much more, for it cleanses us of our sins.
Let us say together this prayer which the Church includes in the prayers to be said after Mass: “I beseech thee, most sweet Lord Jesus, may your passion be the virtue which strengthens, protects and defends me; your wounds, food and drink to nourish, inebriate and delight me; your death, everlasting life for me; your cross, my eternal glory. I make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.”
Gospel acclamation: “Alleluia, alleluia. Your word, O Lord, is truth; consecrate us in the truth. Alleluia.”
Gospel: Mark 14: 12-16. 22-26.
On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples said to him, "Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?" He sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the city and a man will meet you, carrying a jar of water. Follow him. Wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, 'The Teacher says, "Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?"' Then he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready. Make the preparations for us there." The disciples then went off, entered the city, and found it just as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover. While they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to them, and said, "Take it; this is my body." Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many. Amen, I say to you, I shall not drink again the fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God." Then, after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Comment
Saint John Paul II declared October 2004 through October 2005 as the "Year of the Eucharist." In his Apostolic Letter Mane nobiscum Domine, he called on us to take the Corpus Christi procession seriously: "This year let us also celebrate with particular devotion the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, with its traditional procession. Our faith in the God who took flesh in order to become our companion along the way needs to be everywhere proclaimed, especially in our streets and homes, as an expression of our grateful love and as an inexhaustible source of blessings."
As I mentioned in the introduction to this day’s reflection, Corpus Christi – the Body and Blood of Christ – is a feast that is at the center of the Church. It is at the center of our faith. It is celebrating Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. The Blessed Sacrament is a symbol of Jesus’ love for us.
When we receive the Blessed Sacrament we reinforce our friendship with Jesus Christ. We are not involved in a show when we take the Blessed Sacrament out into our streets. No. It is our way of telling the world that we love our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ really present in the Blessed Sacrament. We are telling the world what a friend we have in Jesus.
When we receive Jesus at communion, he is deep in our hearts and we are present to him in a very special way. When we receive him, he empowers us for healing. We are empowered to heal relationships in which there is hatred and the absence of love. We are empowered to offer love to those who have no one to show them love. As we walk behind the Blessed Sacrament this day, Christ is empowering us to build a community of love in our Church rather than sow seeds of discord and division. The Body and Blood of Christ must change us into better people, into loving people, into people who listen to those who do not have anyone to listen to them; into people who spread love and joy around them.
The change that the Blessed Sacrament brings to our lives must stand as a witness to our faith. Today, therefore, it is important for us to ask ourselves in what way the Blessed Sacrament has changed us. As we receive Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, let us ask ourselves what it means for Christ to be at the center of our lives today. “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I in him”, says the Lord.
Let us pray: “Lord Jesus Christ, we worship you living among us in the sacrament of your body and blood. Be for us in the Eucharist strength to live the mystery of your presence. May we offer to your Father in heaven the broken bread of undivided love. May we offer to our brothers and sisters a life poured out in loving service of that kingdom where you live with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.”
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