Article for the Solemnity of the Most Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Today we gather around table, we gather around the Altar for a meal at which we discover in a special way that we Christians are family. We discover that we are brothers and sisters members of the Body of Christ. We discover that every time the Eucharist is celebrated, at the moment when that simple gift of bread, and that simple cup of wine, becomes the Body and Blood of Christ, the whole universe stands still and is present, because this is the “source and summit of our Catholic faith.” At that very moment Christ enters our presence and is present fully in the Eucharist. He is present in the greatest gift which He gave us. As St. Luke writes, “Then Jesus gave bread to his disciples, saying, ‘This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me.’ He did the same with the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant of my blood, which will be shed for you.” Those words are important for us to meditate upon. The words “given for you” and “shed for you” remind us of the sacrifice which Jesus gave for us on the cross: His Body and Blood.

Each time we celebrate the Eucharist together, we participate in Jesus’ offering of himself to his Father. The Eucharistic meal that we celebrate together each Sunday is not something new; it is not a new sacrifice. Rather, it is the same sacrifice that Jesus began at the Last Supper and completed on the Cross. Why did he do this? HE DID IT FOR YOU AND FOR ME!

Now let me suggest that at Communion time, when the Eucharist is held before your very eyes, think about, really think about, what you are and who you are receiving. It’s the living body of Jesus. It’s the same Jesus who died on the cross for us. It’s the same Jesus who rose from the dead for us. When we think of Jesus truly present in the Eucharist, it truly is astonishing and something which we should all hold near and dear to heart. The Eucharist is so awesome that it’s hard to imagine. Yet we now, by faith, it’s true! Only someone who truly loves us, like our God, could have given us such a special and incredible gift.

“At that first Eucharist before you died, O Lord, you prayed that all be one in you; at this our Eucharist again preside, and in our hearts your law of love renew. Thus may we all one bread, one body be; through this blest Sacrament of Unity.”