Corpus Christi – 2013
Thomas O’Loughlin
Introduction to the Celebration
Introduction to the Celebration
Since the very first days of the church — before St Paul had
set out on his journeys or any of the gospels were written — our brothers and
sisters have been gathering every week for this sacred meal. But when we
routinely do anything, we often lose sight of just how wonderful it is. So
today we are reflecting on just how wonderful it is to be called by the Lord to
gather in his presence, to be his guests at his table, and to eat and drink
from his wonderful bounty. In this banquet we become one with Christ, and are
transformed into being his Body, and his Blood flows in all our veins giving us
the strength to be his witnesses in the world and the life that never ends.
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Michel de VerteuilGeneral Textual comments
Corpus Christi is an occasion for us to celebrate the
sacrament of the Eucharist.
It should also be an occasion when we enter into the symbolism of this great sacrament, letting it teach us deep lessons about life, our relationship with God and with one another.
Meditation on the readings for the feast will help us to celebrate the feast in both ways.
St Luke’s account of the miraculous feeding is very helpful
as it is both a teaching on the Eucharist and on Jesus’ way of relating with
people.
The story is introduced in verse 11 by a brief summary of
Jesus’ ministry: “talking about the kingdom” is a powerful expression referring
to the goal of his life.
Feel free to enter into the story of the feeding at whatever stage touches you.
Feel free to enter into the story of the feeding at whatever stage touches you.
Verses 12 to 14a set the stage for the miracle. Note the
contrasting responses of Jesus and the twelve.
Verses 14b to 16 describe the feeding. The gestures of Jesus are reminiscent of the Eucharist, but are highly significant in themselves. So, too, verse 17 is symbolical both of the Eucharist and of life.
Verses 14b to 16 describe the feeding. The gestures of Jesus are reminiscent of the Eucharist, but are highly significant in themselves. So, too, verse 17 is symbolical both of the Eucharist and of life.
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Gospel Note
From the beginning the Eucharist was understood within the
pattern of Christ’s meals / feedings, so already when this story was
incorporated by Luke into his text, it had Eucharistic significance: his meal
is one of miraculous abundance for all.
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John Littleton
Gospel reflection
In the story of the five loaves and the two fish, we learn
that Jesus fed the hungry crowd by multiplying five barley loaves and two fish.
He did this because he was concerned for the people who had stayed with him,
listening to him and watching him cure the sick. In a sense, he was
acknowledging their commitment to spending time with him.
Initially, Jesus tested his disciples by asking them where
they might get something for the hungry crowd to eat. They had no practical
answer to his question, because Jesus always practiced what he preached. He
never asked other people to do what he was unwilling to do himself. He
satisfied the crowd’s physical hunger and, in doing so, he enhanced the
authority of what he had already said to them and of what he had already done
when he cured the sick.
Interestingly, the multiplication of the loaves and fish is
Jesus’ only public miracle that is recorded in each of the four gospels, thus
stressing its importance for the Christian community. The love and generosity
of Jesus in tending to the needs of the hungry crowd offer us an insight into
his own total self-giving for others at the Last Supper and in his suffering
and death.
Jesus’ miracle of the five loaves and the two fish, which
responded to the physical hunger of the crowd, foreshadowed his miracle at the
Last Supper when he shared himself in the Eucharist, the Bread of Life, with
his disciples, thereby satisfying their spiritual hunger. It is surely
noteworthy that Jesus had enough food for everybody, and then some remaining.
The lesson of the miracle of the loaves and fish is obvious:
Jesus, who responded to and reached out to people in their need, wants his
disciples to do the same. The question for all of us is: do we share ourselves,
our gifts and our time with other people when they are needy? In other words,
what are we prepared to do to help people avoid sin and save their souls? We
are challenged to appreciate one another just as Jesus appreciated the crowd
that had gathered to listen to him.
It can be particularly difficult to put other people’s needs
before our own. However, that is what we are called to do as Christian
disciples. In the miracle of the five loaves and the two fish, Jesus relied on
his Father’s help as he responded to a crisis. Likewise, we who are Jesus’
disciples need to rely on his help as we respond to crises and needs around us.
Jesus taught by example when he fed the hungry crowd. He instructed his
disciples to do the same.
Can we once again begin to
appreciate our total dependence on God’s endless love and mercy in Jesus
Christ? In the same spirit, can we stop asking other people to do what we are
unwilling to do ourselves? Let us, therefore, give generously and receive
graciously, always imitating the generosity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ who gives us the gift of himself in the Eucharist.
Homily Notes
1. The whole point of today is to cause us to
reflect that we encounter the mystery of Christ in events which belong
simultaneously to this world and to the world to come. As Jesus Christ is the
sacrament between the mystery of God and our humanity, so he has left us the
sacraments, above all this meal, as the means by which we encounter, here and
now, the future banquet of heaven. The Eucharist is the ‘mystical meal’ (the
language of the eastern churches), and the sacrum convivium … pignus futurae
gloriae (Aquinas). Thus sacraments are something that are best understood
through experiencing them, rather than hearing lectures upon them. So rather
than try to deepen some mental awareness about the Eucharist with a homily,
enhance the actual quality of the celebration. Here is an action plan:
2. (Step A) If you live in an area
where drinking from the cup is not standard (e.g. Ireland), then introduce it
today.
(Step B) If you live where communion ‘under both
species’ is normal (most English-speaking countries) then procure some of the
very large breads that allow for a genuine fraction. The key to the symbolism
of the Eucharistic meal is not bread as a generic substance, but a single loaf
of bread. This has simultaneously the notion of scattered grains gathered into
a unity – one loaf – and the notion of each person having a share (literally:
participating) in that loaf which is Christ.
(Step C) If you are actually doing in the liturgy
what we say we do (breaking the loaf, drinking the cup) then arrange for the
congregation to stand around the table, become actual ‘circumstantes’, for the
Liturgy of the Eucharist. The normal arrangement is that of a sanctuary which
is akin to the teacher’s part of the classroom or the stage in a theatre, and
those in the audience / class area watch on and answer invitations to speak.
Yet we are always talking about being ‘gathered around the Lord’s table’ – so
give people the actual liturgical experience.
3. The experience of the liturgy should act as
a pointer, through faith, from what happens here to another reality. When the
liturgy is celebrated in a minimalist, token fashion it is its own undoing.
Then what actually happens (you go into a pew, listen to words, see the altar
up there, walk up to communion, taste a little round pre-cut wafer that does
not seem like bread, and then move off) must first point to what should happen
here (look at the liturgy’s formulae), before, it can point beyond this
dimension to the mystery. When your liturgy demands this double pointing (we
got away with it pre-1965 in Latin for the linguistic inaccessibility was a
mystical screen, an iconostastis, which made just being there enough), it sends
out a signal that it is just a ritual of words. And when the Eucharist appears
to be just that, then people vote with the feet – and they are doing so!
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A Simple Reflection - Remembrance of Me.....
Marketing professionals brainstorm in thinktanks dreaming up ideas to keep the public interested in products or concepts. Egyptian Pharaohs built mammoth triangular, stone structures in the middle of the desert so that their names would never be forgotten – even after death. Yet, the success of every creative marketing professional seems to be only measurable by the number of weeks or months a consumer is captivated by a product or concept – rather than by the number of years. Who knows the names of the Pharaohs which the Great Pyramids commemorate? I do not. Yet 2000 years ago Jesus took a couple staples of societal sustenance – Bread and Wine – and told his friends that each time they especially gathered to consume this food and drink that they would be consuming his body and blood – and that they should do this regularly so as not to forget him. It worked. It was brilliant.
And so my Corpus
Christi thoughts today are tied to a verse from the Eucharistic Prayer: Do
this in memory of me. Why is this verse so central? Because it worked. It
succeeded brilliantly.
He did not
want his words to be forgotten. He did not want his example of mercy to be
forgotten. He did not want his sacrifice to be forgotten. He did not want his
miracles to be forgotten. He did not want his teachings to be forgotten. He did
not want his command to love one another to be forgotten. He did not want his
life to be forgotten. What he did worked. It was brilliant.
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Homily from Father Phil Bloom
Message: Gratitude (taking the time to thank Jesus) and Eucharistic
coherence (not acting or speaking against the commandments) - these two
practices enable us to give our lives for others.
I'd like to begin this Corpus Christi homily with a quote from Mahatma
Gandhi. He asked a question regarding the Fr. Damien:
"The political and journalistic world can boast of very few heroes
who compare with Father Damien of Molokai. The Catholic Church, on the
contrary, counts by the thousands those who after the example of Fr. Damien
have devoted themselves to the victims of leprosy. It is worthwhile to look for
the sources of such heroism."
That's a great question: What is the source of the heroism of people
like St. Damien of Molokai and his successor, St. Marianne Cope?
We get the answer this Sunday. In today's readings St. Paul tells how
Jesus took bread and said, "This is my body," and with the chalice of
wine, "this is the covenant of my blood." Then St. Paul concludes,
"As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death
of the Lord until he comes."
When we receive Communion - the Body and Blood of Jesus - we mystically
enter his death and resurrection. That should give us strength - strength to
spend our lives in service. Now, you and I are not St. Damien or St. Marianne,
but the Eucharist call us - like them - to give our lives for others.
For Communion to have power, it requires a couple of things. The first
is what Pope Francis referred to as "Eucharistic coherence."
Eucharistic coherence, that's a big word. It means this: "People cannot
receive the Eucharist and at the same time act and speak against the commandments."
When he was the Cardinal of Buenos Aires, the pope emphasized the
commandments regarding respect for human life from conception through natural
death - and every moment between. We see Pope Francis living that teaching in
the way he shows special attention to the infirm and the disabled.
There was even a report that the pope performed an exorcism on a
troubled boy. A formal exorcism, of course, involves prior medical and
psychiatric evaluation. Still, every prayer makes a stand against forces of
evil. If you and I are going to help others, it means spiritual combat - and
that combat, that service requires Eucharistic coherence - acting and speaking
in line with the commandments.
Besides Eucharistic coherence, we need something else. I can say it in
one word: gratitude. The word, Eucharist, means to give thanks. On this Corpus
Christi Sunday I would like to mention one act of gratitude: the prayer of
thanksgiving after Communion. We lose the value of Communion if we "eat
and run"
A priest I heard of, if he sees someone leave early, he stops them and
reminds them that only one person left the Last Supper early! Well, I am not
going to do that, but I am tempted to do what St. Philip Neri did:
He saw someone leaving church right after Communion and he sent servers
with candles and bells to accompany the man. The guy stormed back into the
church and confronted the priest. "What kind of joke is this?" he
demanded.
St. Philip Neri said, "It's no joke. The rules of the liturgy say
the Blessed Sacrament should be treated with reverence. You left the church
immediately with no prayer of thanksgiving. You were carrying the Blessed
Sacrament within you. So I asked the boys to accompany you to honor Him."
After Communion you and I are tabernacles - the physical presence of
Jesus continues in us for a brief time. That's why we have the Communion hymn,
a time of silence, the Communion Prayer - and even the announcements - to build
up the Body of Christ in practical ways.
I encourage you to use well the time after Communion to say thanks, to
express your gratitude.
1) Gratitude - taking the time
to thank Jesus, and
2) Eucharistic coherence -
not acting or speaking against the commandments 3) These two practices enable us to give our lives for others.
"As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup," says the
Apostle Paul, "you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes."
Amen.
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Prayer Reflection
Lord, we thank you for the Holy Eucharist.
Prayer Reflection
Lord, we thank you for the Holy Eucharist.
Every Sunday, all over the world, people sit down in their church communities.
The priest takes the bread and wine,
raises his eyes to heaven and says the blessing over them,
then he breaks the bread and distributes it among the crowd.
We all get as much nourishment as we want,
and when we are finished the remains of the bread
is collected and reverently stored.
The priest takes the bread and wine,
raises his eyes to heaven and says the blessing over them,
then he breaks the bread and distributes it among the crowd.
We all get as much nourishment as we want,
and when we are finished the remains of the bread
is collected and reverently stored.
Lord, many in our country
are being fed
with nourishment that is unworthy of their humanity.
We pray that those of us to whom you have given the priceless gift of education
may be like Jesus in our society, making the crowds welcome,
talking to them about the glorious kingdom you have prepared for us,
curing all those who need to be healed.
with nourishment that is unworthy of their humanity.
We pray that those of us to whom you have given the priceless gift of education
may be like Jesus in our society, making the crowds welcome,
talking to them about the glorious kingdom you have prepared for us,
curing all those who need to be healed.
“The poor must recover
their hope.” Pope John Paul II in Haiti, 1982
Lord, we pray that in every country your Church may be the presence of Jesus,
curing the poor of the terrible disease of despair,
speaking to them about the kingdom you are establishing in the world.
Lord, we pray that in every country your Church may be the presence of Jesus,
curing the poor of the terrible disease of despair,
speaking to them about the kingdom you are establishing in the world.
“The world has enough
for every man’s need, but not enough for every man’s greed.”
Gandhi
Lord, often today we see pictures of hungry people,
- mothers with ghostly babies at their breasts,
- children with swollen bellies,
- long lines of people outside food stores.
Like the disciples of Jesus, we say,
“Why can’t they go to villages and farms round about them to find lodging and food?”
Now and then the thought comes to us
that we should give them something to eat ourselves,
but we quickly dismiss that as impractical. We find all kinds of excuses:
- we are in a lonely place here;
- we have no more than five loaves and two fish;
- are we to go ourselves and buy food for all these people?
Lord, your solution is really quite simple:
sit people down in small communities;
take whatever five loaves and two fish you have;
raise your eyes to heaven and say the blessing over them;
break the bread and hand it around to be distributed among the crowd.
Not only would all eat as much as they want,
but when the remaining scraps are collected, we will fill many baskets.
Lord, often today we see pictures of hungry people,
- mothers with ghostly babies at their breasts,
- children with swollen bellies,
- long lines of people outside food stores.
Like the disciples of Jesus, we say,
“Why can’t they go to villages and farms round about them to find lodging and food?”
Now and then the thought comes to us
that we should give them something to eat ourselves,
but we quickly dismiss that as impractical. We find all kinds of excuses:
- we are in a lonely place here;
- we have no more than five loaves and two fish;
- are we to go ourselves and buy food for all these people?
Lord, your solution is really quite simple:
sit people down in small communities;
take whatever five loaves and two fish you have;
raise your eyes to heaven and say the blessing over them;
break the bread and hand it around to be distributed among the crowd.
Not only would all eat as much as they want,
but when the remaining scraps are collected, we will fill many baskets.
Lord, it is an extraordinary
thing:
if we complain about the little we have, we never have enough;
but if we take what we have, raise our eyes to heaven and say the blessing over it,
we have as much as we want, and even twelve baskets of scraps left over.
if we complain about the little we have, we never have enough;
but if we take what we have, raise our eyes to heaven and say the blessing over it,
we have as much as we want, and even twelve baskets of scraps left over.
“People come to us
looking for the bread of compassion and we give them the stone of advice.”
A modern psychologist
Lord, so long as we look on people as objects of our attention,
saying to ourselves that when late afternoon comes
we will send them away to the villages and farms round about to find lodging and food,
and that we don’t have to give them something to eat
from the five loaves and two fish we have,
we will never be true followers of Jesus.
Lord, have mercy.
A modern psychologist
Lord, so long as we look on people as objects of our attention,
saying to ourselves that when late afternoon comes
we will send them away to the villages and farms round about to find lodging and food,
and that we don’t have to give them something to eat
from the five loaves and two fish we have,
we will never be true followers of Jesus.
Lord, have mercy.
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ILLUSTRATIONS: (Courtesy to Fr. Tony Kadavil and others)
1: Communion on the
moon:
The Lord's Supper ensures that we can remember Jesus from
any place. Apollo 11 landed on the moon on Sunday, July 20, 1969. Most remember
astronaut Neil Armstrong's first words as he stepped onto the moon's surface:
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." But few
know about the first meal eaten on the moon. Dennis Fisher reports that Buzz
Aldrin, the NASA Astronaut had taken aboard the spacecraft a tiny pyx provided
by his Catholic pastor. Aldrin sent a radio broadcast to Earth asking listeners
to contemplate the events of the day and give thanks. Then, blacking out the
broadcast for privacy, Aldrin read, "I am the vine, you are the branches.
He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit." Then, silently, he
gave thanks for their successful journey to the moon and received Jesus in the
Holy Eucharist surrendering moon to Jesus. Next he descended on the moon and
walked on it with Neil Armstrong. (Dan Gulley: "Communion on the Moon":
Our Daily Bread: June/July/August, 2007). His actions remind us that in the
Lord's Supper, God's children can share the life of Jesus from any place on
Earth — and even from the moon. God is everywhere, and our worship should
reflect this reality. In Psalm 139 we are told that wherever we go, God is
intimately present with us. Buzz Aldrin celebrated that experience on the
surface of the moon. Thousands of miles from earth, he took time to commune
with the One who created, redeemed, and established fellowship with him.
__________________
( Dear Fr. Tony,
__________________
( Dear Fr. Tony,
I read your anecdote 'Communion on the Moon' with some
amusement. Buzz Aldrin is Roman Catholic. He was an altar server to an uncle of
mine Fr. Dennis Barry in St. Martin's Church, La Mesa, California. My uncle
said Mass in his hotel room with Buzz as his altar server the day before
his trip to the Moon; and I have photographs of that Mass with Buzz holding the
wine and water at the Offertory. My uncle gave Buzz the Body of Christ to take
to the Moon with him and that was his first 'meal on the moon'. I later met
Buzz Aldrin at my uncle's funeral in La Mesa in 1986. So Buzz was not an
Episcopalian. Thank you for your splendid service and keep up the good work.
God Bless. Fr. Eddie Collins.)
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2: The greatest work
of art in St. Peter’s Basilica:
"One of the seminarians who gives tours of St. Peter’s
told me of an interesting incident. He was leading a group of Japanese tourists
who knew absolutely nothing of our faith. With particular care he explained the
great masterpieces of art, sculpture and architecture. He finally concluded at
the Blessed Sacrament Chapel trying his best to explain quickly what it was. As
the group dispersed, an elderly man, who had been particularly attentive stayed
behind, and said, 'Pardon me. Would you explain again this “Blessed
Sacrament?”' Our student did, after which the man exclaimed, 'Ah, if this is
so, what is in this chapel is a greater work of art than anything else in this
basilica.'”
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3. “I will not
permit Christ to return to
Mother Teresa was given a reception by the cruel communist dictator
Enver Hoxha who ruled Albania for 40 years from 1945 to 1985. He imposed
atheism as the official religion in 1967. The possession of a Bible or cross
often meant a ten-year prison term. Welcoming Mother Teresa in 1985, he stated
that he appreciated her world-wide works of charity, and then added, “But I
will not permit Christ to return to Albania
Hoxha was gone a few days later on April 11, 1985. Communist rule
collapsed in Albania Albania
When push comes to that famous shove, it doesn't matter what
Mother Teresa or you or I believe about the Eucharist. What does matter is what
Christ Himself believes about it. For the answer one must go to the record.
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4. The
Eucharistic piety that converted St. Elizabeth Ann Seton:
Two hundred
years ago, a beautiful young Episcopalian woman accompanied her husband, a
merchant, to Italy, leaving four of their five children at home with family
members. They had sailed for Italy America
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5. A message of unity and sacrificial love:
The Eucharist, (the body and blood of Christ) teaches us the
importance of community, the bond that results from this sacrifice. Just as
numerous grains of wheat are pounded together to make the host, and many grapes
are crushed together to make the wine, so we become unified in this sacrifice.
Our Lord chose these elements in order to show us that we ought to be united
with one another and to allow and work with the Holy Spirit in transforming us
into Our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is the head and we are the body. Together we
are one. That which unites us is our willingness to sacrifice our time and
talents for our fellow members in Christ’s mystical body. This is symbolized by
our sharing in the same bread and the same cup. Hence, Holy Communion should
strengthen our sense of unity and love.
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6. The duty of preparing properly to receive Holy
Communion:
We have tarnished God’s image within us through acts of
impurity, injustice and disobedience. Hence, there is always need for
repentance, and a need for the sacramental confession of grave sins before we receive
Holy Communion. We should remember the warning given by St. Paul St.
Paul
As we celebrate this great feast of faith, let us worship
what St. Thomas Aquinas did not hesitate to call, "the greatest miracle
that Christ ever worked on earth ...... my Body ........ my Blood". Before
the greatness of this mystery, let us exclaim with St. Augustine
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8. “All we really
need in our convent is the tabernacle.”
The former archbishop of San Francisco, John Quinn, loves to
tell the story of the arrival of Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of Charity
to open their house in the city. Poor Archbishop Quinn had gone to great
efforts to make sure that their convent was, while hardly opulent, quite
comfortable. He recalls how Mother Teresa arrived and immediately ordered the
carpets removed, the telephones, except for one, pulled out of the wall, the
beds, except for the mattresses taken away, and on and on. Explained Mother
Teresa to the baffled archbishop, “All we really need in our convent is the
tabernacle” (Msgr. Timothy M Dolan in “Priests of the Third Millennium” 2000 p.
218).
