The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ June 2, 2024

Readings: Exodus 24:3-8;Hebrews 9:11-15; Mark 14:12-16, 22-26

Firm belief in the Body and Blood Christ and regular reception of the Blessed Sacrament or Holy Communion is fundamental to Catholic doctrine, spirituality and growth in holiness. This is our inheritance. Let us joyfully embrace the gift of “finest wheat” which God offers us regularly, even every day.

The Protestant reformers of the sixteenth century, including Zwingli, Calvin, Luther and others, taught that the Holy Eucharist was simply a symbol. The unbroken teaching of the Church is that we behold and receive in the Eucharist the Real Presence of the Risen Lord, who promised to be with us until the end of time. It is a great mystery yet at the same time a simple truth: God-is-with-us in a very special and singular way in the Blessed Sacrament, both received at Holy Communion and adored in the tabernacle or exposed on the altar at Exposition and Benediction.

The Mass, Holy Eucharist, is the sacrifice or offering of the new covenant in the Blood of Christ. It is likewise the offering of the faithful, God’s people, united to Jesus in praise of the One God. We should not come to Mass out of mere obligation, but because the Eucharistic celebration is an integral part of our life in Christ and our communion with others. The celebration and reception of the Eucharist should be our strength and joy, a commitment in faith and love that gives meaning to all our existence.

The Mass never ends, we might say, because at the conclusion of every Mass we are “sent forth,” to announce the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ, to the ends of the earth, by our words and especially by our deeds. As tabernacles of the Lord, by receiving His Body and Blood, we are commissioned with a special task that not everyone has embraced: to be “bearers of Christ,” to all people, until our final breath. Could there be a higher call?

Fr. Terry.