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.” (Mk 14:22-25)
Today is the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. Many of us raised earlier in the Church remember this feast by the name Corpus Christi (Body of Christ).
Our God is an amazingly wonderful God. When we broke our relationship with Him, He promised to send a deliverer.
God loved us so much that He sent us His only begotten Son. His Son loved us so much that He died for us. On the night before He died, Jesus gathered with His apostles to celebrate the Passover with them. At that meal, He took bread and wine and declared that they were His Body and Blood given to His people as a new covenant.
In the months before His arrest, Jesus told the crowds that unless they ate the Flesh of the Son of Man and drank His Blood, they would have no life within them. Many disciples, upon hearing this, left His company. They no longer followed Him. When He challenged His apostles, asking them if they wanted to leave as well, He heard, “To whom would we go? We have come to believe that you have the words of everlasting life.”
Many people in the world believe that we are absurd to claim that the bread and wine are changed into the Body and Blood of Christ at the moment of the consecration in that great mystery that we call Transubstantiation.
However, we do believe just that. And we still believe that unless we eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, we will have no life within us.
Thank God for the gift of His Son.
Thank Jesus for the gift of His Body and Blood.
FAITH ACTION: At a family meal today, reflect upon the importance of food. Just as we need food to be nourished and remain alive, our soul needs the spiritual food afforded to us in the Holy Eucharist. If possible, commit to visiting a Blessed Sacrament chapel to adore the Eucharistic Lord. Our parish exposes the Blessed Sacrament every Tuesday after the 8:30 a.m. Mass until 6:15 p.m. St. John the Evangelist in St. John has an Adoration Chapel where you may visit any day.