Today the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of "Corpus Christi" - the "Body of Christ". The complete title of thei Feast is "Corpus et Sanquis Christi" - the Body and Blood of Christ". This Feast in honor of the true Presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament - His true Body and Blood contained in the Blessed Sacrament was instituted by Jesus Christ Himself when He said at the Last Supper: "Take and eat for this is my Body; take and drink for this is My Blood." The Church then established a special feast day to commemorate and honor the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ instituted in the Blessed Sacrament. Today is that day, June 26, which was established in the year: 1246 by Bishop Robert de Thorte of Liege at the suggestion of St. Juliana of Mont Carvillon. "This Feast was then extended to the universal Church by Pope Urban in 1264." St. Thomas Aquinas composed the office of readings and the customary procession was approved by Popes Martin V and Eugene IV. This Feast is celebrated in June, the first Sunday after the feast of the Holy Trinity (Modern Cathoilc Dictionary, by Fr. John Hardon, S.J.)
The most important aspect of this great Feast is that we participate in the eternal life of God when we worthily receive the Body and Blood of Christ in Holy Communion from the Priest:
"Jesus said to the Jews: 'Truly, truly I say to you, he who blieves has eterna life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down frm heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if anyone eats this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh!" Jesus also said that we cannot have life apart from the Eucharist when He said: "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man, you will not have life in you....and I will raise you up on the last day." Every knows we need to eat daily to sustain our life, do we know we need to feed our souls to stay alive!? We know now!!
Jesus was very clear here. It is His flesh He is giving to give life to the world. This is no symbol. St. Paul said whoever eats and drinks this unworthily is guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord. He eats and drinks judgment unto himself. If this were mere symbolic bread or wine, how can a man be condemned by taking it unworthily? St. Paul is very clear! When Jesus explained this to his listeners, some said: "How can this man give us his flesh to eat? This is a hard saying." And many of his followers left Him. Did Jesus run after them and tell them: "No you got me wrong! I was only speaking symbolically!" No, Jesus did not do that. Jesus does not water down His truth or compromise His truth. Jesus turned to Peter and said: "Do you wish to go, too?" Peter said: "To whom shall we go, Lord? We believe and have come to know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!" Jesus had prepared his chosen 12 by two miracles. 1) He changed water into wine by his will and word. 2) He multiplied five barley loaves and two fish into thousands and fed 5,000 people once and 7,000 another time. "Jesus saw a great throng, and He had compassion on them for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things. The He commanded them all to sit down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking five loaves and two fish He looked up to heaven and blessed and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people; and He divided the two fish among them all. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken peices and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men." So, Jesus' chosen 12 saw that He could just say what He wished and it was done. Is this not what the Father did when creating the Universe! If Jesus not doing the works of His Father. So, when Jesus says" This is My Body; this is My Blood", that's it! How can anyone question Jesus' own word or changed Jesus' word into symbols? For over 2,000 years since the days of St. Paul, Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament has been adored. The Catholic Church has never changed this doctrine. It has never not believed in Jesus' true Presence in the Blessed Sacrament. If those who break faith from the Chruch and establish their own, then you will see a non-belief in the Blessed Sacrament; but you will never see the Catholic Church ever, ever teach anything but the Word of God: "This is My Body; this is My Blood." The full context of Jesus' words are as follows: Please note how almost exact are the parallels between the feeding of the 5,000 and how Jesus had done this with the following way Jesus feeds His disciples with His own Body and Blood. The Evangelist Matthew wants us to see how close Jesus acts in both instances because he wants to show that if Jesus can feed 5,000 by multiplying loaves and fish, so He can feed all with His own Body and Blood, multiplying His Presence to the ends of the Earth:
"Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed, broke it, and gave it to His disciples and said, 'Take and eat; this is my body.' And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks He gave it to them, saying, 'Drink of it all of You; for this is my blood of the new converant, which is poured out for the many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I shall not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's Kingdom."
Even after Jesus' Resurrection, He still shows His Real Presence in the Blessed Sacrament:
"[The two disciples] constrained Him saying, 'Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.' So He went in to stay with them. When He sat at table with them, He took bread and blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized Him and He vanished from their sight. They said to one another, 'Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?' And they arose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven gathered togehter and those who were with them, who said, 'The Lord has risen indeed, and has appaered to Simon!' Then they told what happended along the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of the bread."
In the above passage, we have Jesus presiding a Priest of priests, presiding at Mass and giving Himself to his disciples. He clearly intends that we forever recognize Him in the breaking of the bread at Holy Mass.
Thank you for reading this meditation of the Real Presence in the Holy Eucharist. Please feel invited to any Catholic parish's RCIA program "Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults" - a class for non-Catholics to come and see all the blessed and beautiful truths that the Catholic Church teaches. Jesus has intrusted to His Church to manifest His Presence in Word and Sacraments. "Come and See" if the Lord is calling you to participate completely in the Holy Eucharist - See John 6: 51-71. RCIA begins its class in last July and it goes to Easter Saturday night Vigil Mass where those who have completed this Christian Initiation are then able to receive their first Eucharist. They will also be confirmed. Protestants who have already been baptized are not rebaptized because Protestant baptism is a sacrament. It cannot be repeated. These Protestants are graciously received into the Catholic Church on Easter Saturday Vigil Mass. I have seen Baptists, Lutherans and those not ever baptized become Catholic on the holy night. Every Catholic Parish has RCIA or its equivalent. Please "Come and See!"
Love, Pio
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