Dear Brothers and sisters in Christ, Today we
celebrate the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, which we normally call Corpus
Christi. Happy Feast Day to you all.
Corpus Christi is a day in honor of the Eucharist, a day for
contemplative focus on the gift that Christ has given us. This is a special
feast day, which the Church asks us to reflect on the fundamental mystery of
our faith, the greatest of all the sacraments, which is Christ Himself, the Holy
Eucharist.
We read in the first reading how the Israelites wandered in the
desert for 40 years. Were they so hard-hearted that God tested them for more
than a generation? We’re not even 40
weeks into this pandemic here and already the signs of strain are evident. God fed the Israelites; he gave them manna
and water. He provided the sustenance they needed to continue their journey.
As we celebrate today the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ,
we reflect on how we are given the sustenance we need on our journey in Holy
Communion. It is beyond doubt that the Eucharist abounds with layers of rich
meaning. As we continue to go through this terrible global crisis, we are not
able to be physically present at Mass; but we can still participate in the Mass
and we can receive Spiritual Communion.
Thanks be to God!
We come to the table and bring ourselves; and God finds us just as
we are. Just as he changes the bread and
wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, he can change us if we are humble
enough, ready enough, open enough to receive him.
The Eucharist has all the power of issues that affects life and
death. The Eucharist is celebrated by real people in the midst of everything
that makes up our human existence.
No wonder the Eucharist is often described as the awesome mystery, the
layers and layers of rich meaning are indeed precious gifts to us. The Eucharist
makes us become, what we receive.
As Pope Francis so beautifully puts it, this is medicine for the
sick and all of us need medicine for our journey.
May we today and everyday ‘revere the sacred mysteries of Christ’s
Body and Blood’, and may these have their full effect in us and through us.
By Father Rajesh, UK.
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