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Today the Church celebrates the solemnity of Corpus Christi (that's Latin for "the Body of Christ"). It is a special solemnity dedicated to praising and thanking the Most Holy Trinity for giving us the greatest treasure of the Church - the Eucharist. It is also a commemoration of the institution of the Eucharist during Jesus' last supper with His Apostles the night before His crucifixion. These are two reasons why (1) the solemnity of Corpus Christi follows Trinity Sunday and (2) why Corpus Christi is normally celebrated on Thursday (the day on which the Last Supper was celebrated).What is the Eucharist? In a few words, it is Christ Himself - His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. Through the ministry and words of the priest at Mass the simple bread and wine brought to the altar are substantially transformed into the living, glorified Christ, present in both His glorified humanity and the fullness of His divinity. The Eucharist is Jesus Christ. In the most extraordinary, unique, and unexpected way the Eucharist is the fulfillment of Christ's last promise to His disciples: "Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." (Mt 28:20)
It is said that there are many Catholics who do not believe in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, which is indeed very sad, but not hopeless. It is not my intention to enter into the various arguments in support of our faith in the Eucharist in this post - there are many well prepared articles on the internet dealing with the meaning of the Eucharist and Christ's real presence. You can also read the section on the Eucharist in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (n. 1322-1419) to deepen your knowledge and understanding of the Church's faith in the Eucharist. All of that said, I wish to leave you with two more things as we contemplate and celebrate the gift of the Eucharist today. First, I will quote one of the Church Fathers, St. Cyril of Jerusalem (born in 315 and died in 386), who is famous for his catechetical lectures, and had this to say about the Eucharist:
"Even of itself the teaching of the Blessed Paul is sufficient to give you a full assurance concerning those Divine Mysteries, of which having been deemed worthy, you have become of the same body and blood with Christ. For you have just heard him say distinctly, 'That our Lord Jesus Christ in the night in which He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks He broke it, and gave to His disciples, saying, Take, eat, this is My Body: and having taken the cup and given thanks, He said, Take, drink, this is My Blood.' Since then He Himself declared and said of the Bread, 'This is My Body', who shall dare to doubt any longer? And since He has Himself affirmed and said, 'This is My Blood', who shall ever hesitate, saying, that it is not His blood? He once in Cana of Galilee, turned the water into wine, akin to blood, and is it incredible that He should have turned wine into blood?" (Catechetical Lecture 22)
Secondly, God has given the world numerous Eucharistic miracles throughout history to renew, support, or strengthen our faith in His real presence in the Eucharist. What is a Eucharistic miracle? It is the physical transformation of the bread and wine which are offered during Mass into real human flesh and blood. I have visited a few shrines or pilgrimage sites here in Europe where these miracles have occurred and where you can still see the Eucharistic species which were turned into flesh and blood. One of the most famous Eucharistic miracles took place in the year 750 in Lanciano, a small city here in Italy. I am including a link to YouTube where you can watch a captivating video about another Eucharistic miracle which took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1996 - and how it is actually connected to the miracle of Lanciano. Both of these Eucharistic miracles have been approved by the Church (which means they have withstood extensive and rigorous scientific and ecclesial investigations). The video is part of a presentation given by the medical doctor who was in charge of investigating the scientific authenticity of the miracle in Argentina - a man who was at one time an atheist until he began investigating Eucharistic miracles - the word "fascinating" does not do justice to the presentation. The video is in Spanish, but there are English subtitles. Click here for the video on the Eucharistic Miracle. If you are interested in other officially approved Eucharistic miracles from around the world you can take a look at this web page dedicated to the Vatican's International Exhibition on the Eucharistic Miracles of the World. It lists all of the miracles, and provides a short historical explanation of what happened in each place.
Well, I have officially written a post I had no intention of writing when I first sat down! As the Eucharist is so central to our Catholic faith I will post my original reflection for today's solemnity on Wednesday - so we can continue pondering and thanking God for the gift of the Eucharist throughout the week. Have a blessed Sunday!
(Photo of the "Eucharistic Miracle of St. Anthony and the Mule" courtesy of Br. Lawrence Lew, O.P.)
