The solemnity of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) focuses primarily on the adoration of the Holy Eucharist and secondarily on the presence of the Body of Christ in the Church as a sign of common faith. In other words we, His disciples, are the Body of Christ who believe in the real sacramental presence of Christ in the Eucharist, not just a symbol of eating a wafer. He, Jesus, the Son of God, is physically and spiritually present in our bodies we carry with us throughout the day.
By doing this, we pledge our undivided love and offer ourselves to the service of others as Jesus did for us when He was in the flesh on earth. It is for these reasons that Eucharist is the heart and summit of the Church’s life. Or, as Pope Francis wrote in his apostolic exhortation The Joy of the Gospel, we are urged to consider the Eucharist, “not as a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.”
In the last verse of the Letter to the Hebrews today, it is written that Jesus as “the mediator of a new covenant” resulted in His death. This freed those from the sins committed under the Mosaic covenant in the first reading from Exodus. It also made them inheritors of the benefits of the new covenant.
This is why the Prophet Jeremiah wrote in Chapter 31, Verse 33 of his book: “But this is the covenant which I (God) will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord. I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”
As Father William Bausch, an author, writes in his commentary on this feast in Sick, and You Cared for Me: Homilies and Reflections for Cycle B, “The Eucharist is unity and mission. Unity says we are connected to Christians” worldwide “who today celebrate Mass in secret and terror. Mission says we are sent, sent to share what we have celebrated. The parting words say it all: ‘The Mass is ended, go in peace.’ That word, ‘Mass’ is the Latin word for ‘mission.’ Therefore, when we leave Mass, in a very real sense our Mass just begins.”
God’s covenants with humanity are unilateral. Persons are recipients, not contributors; they are not expected to offer elements to the bond; they are called to accept it as offered, to keep it as demanded, and to receive the results that God, by oath, assures will not be withheld.
Let us not forget our efforts to be faithful to God’s love for us to continue our faith walk with thanks for all we are in Him. Let us take His body and blood in remembrance of Him and share His message of love and peace with all we come in contact. It is the least we can do for all that Jesus has done for us and our salvation.
Reading 1: Exodus 24:3-8
Reading 2: Letter to the Hebrews 9:11-15
Gospel: Mark 14:12-16, 22-26
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