Most Holy Body & Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi Sunday)

I am grateful these last 11 months have been wonderful. I have met good people and have felt very welcome. I’m almost scared I might wake up and it was all a dream. Or someone might just rip off their face to reveal a most hideous monstrosity I have only seen in nightmares. But it doesn’t happen, and I can breathe easy. If everything I’ve experienced thus far is genuine, and I can’t imagine otherwise, I just might stay a while. I read somewhere that moving to a new home ranks up there with life’s most stressful experiences, alongside the death of a loved one, divorce, and major surgery. And I moved twice in the year before I arrived. Perhaps I worry unnecessarily.

Catholics agree the experience of church on Sunday is not complete without Communion. Unfortunately, there are some who think all else we do at mass is optional. They have no trouble exempting themselves from actually being in church during the Liturgy of the Word, or paying attention when Sacred Scripture is proclaimed and preached. Some even think mass is over as soon as they get their bread and wine, thinking nothing of leaving early because they got what they came for. I do not deny there are truly legitimate reasons why some people consistently arrive late to mass or leave early. They may be dealing with illness at home, or an extremely tight work schedule. Of course I’m not saying they shouldn’t receive Communion. But I just hope we take the time to sincerely consider the profound significance of our Eucharistic celebration. If we are more consciously aware of the mystery we celebrate, what we do and why, our experience of Communion would be more fruitful and effective.

There is so much more to the Eucharistic mystery than our eating bread and drinking wine. For instance, we are well aware that in spite of our most heartfelt desire to be united with God in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, there may yet be obstacles that hinder our true communion. From our younger days we were instructed to avoid receiving the Eucharist unworthily, as when we are conscious of serious or deadly sin. From this caution rose the common practice of confession on Saturday afternoon, and communion on Sunday. Now as admirable as the intent was behind this practice, it was never meant as permission to commit wanton sin all week, repent on Saturday, receive communion on Sunday, lather, rinse, repeat. But if we just went through the motions – sin, confession, communion – without desiring true intimacy with the eternal and triune God, are we not missing out on so profound a mystery as we take in our own hands?

The scripture we read from the gospel and the book of Exodus today describe the roots of our own Eucharistic celebration. The gospel account of the last supper reminds us that Jesus and his disciples had gathered to celebrate the Passover meal. To them it was no ordinary meal, but a participation in the singular event uniting God and Israel in a covenant relationship. This meal they shared proclaimed the unique bond between themselves and God. So it went without saying that they actively desired to be faithful to the covenant handed down by Moses, doing their best to remove all obstacles to their union with God. And if they were just going through the motions, celebrating the Passover mindlessly, it would be not much different from any other meal.

Despite the observable similarities between different Christian traditions and how we celebrate the Holy Eucharist, there do exist some fundamental differences. I’ve heard people say Catholics have too many rules before we admit anyone to the table. Shouldn’t everyone be permitted to receive Communion? Jesus welcomed all at the Last Supper, did he not? Perhaps, but that meal was the Jewish Passover and Jews have rules too for who is permitted to join them. But other churches will invite us to their table when we go to their church. Is there a difference? We all agree that Holy Communion involves a greater intimacy than we experience at a pizza party or a round of drinks with close friends. But we are not just pretending an intimate bond between each other, or between us and God. Rather, we believe that intimate bond exists, and we desire to draw deeper into that intimate bond. And the fundamental bond we share is charity.

As well the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, “the unity of the pilgrim church is assured by visible bonds of communion: the profession of one faith received from the Apostles; the common celebration of divine worship, especially of the sacraments; and apostolic succession through the sacrament of Holy Orders, maintaining the fraternal concord of God’s family.[1]” Faith, sacraments, pastoral governance. With many we share the same essential faith handed down from the Apostles. As for the sacraments, we share some beliefs with other Christians, but not all. For instance, some Catholics may doubt marriage to be a sacrament. When we say marriage is a sacrament, we believe God is a necessary partner in the covenant of husband and wife. So, Catholics are obligated to celebrate all sacraments within the community of the church. Failing that, we bruise the bond of communion between us. It is not broken beyond repair, as some can attest to repairing that breach. But it is also not something we take lightly. And lastly, we diverge profoundly in our understanding and beliefs regarding the legitimate right of pastoral governance over the church of God entrusted by Jesus to Peter, the apostles, and their successors. So, as we preserve these bonds in reality, we share Communion at the Eucharistic table mindful of the very real challenges we must face and repair to build communion with one another.

In the meantime, we make a sincere effort to live our baptismal commitment each day, as we proclaim on many occasions, by renouncing sin, and the lure of sin, and Satan, author and prince of sin. Each time we take the Bread that is the body of Christ, and the Wine that is his blood, we mean to proclaim publicly and sincerely that we are mindful of our covenant relationship with God and what it demands of us, that we are making a sincere effort to live by the values Jesus taught, that we truly desire that intimate bond with God and one another as Jesus had with his Father. So, whenever we approach Communion, we are proclaiming a lot of profound realities. If we took the time to reflect on what it means every now and again, our experience of Communion would be so much more fruitful and effective.

“Take [this bread]; this is my body.” “This [chalice] is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.” If all we come to church for is a piece of unremarkable bread and a little sip of common wine, then it should make little difference how we do it or why. I’m here at St. Therese to stay awhile. Many of you have been here longer. How about we take time to truly understand what it means to come to the Table?

Rolo B Castillo © 2024

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[1] Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 815.