O Sacrament of Love
Sign of our Unity
Bond of our Fraternity
Whoever longs for life
has here its very source;
Let him come here and believe
Unite with You and live.
The solemn feast of the Body and Blood of Christ was instituted by Pope Urban IV in 1264 in order to underscore the sacrament of the Eucharist as the sacrament of Christ's real presence in the Church and in the world. We do not know for certain whether the eucharistic miracle of Bolsena which occured in 1263 influenced the Pope to institute the feast. We know however that it has long been his desire -- even before he became Pope -- to have a feast celebrated in honor of the Eucharist. In the occassion of this feast, the Church presents for our meditation Mark's narration of the institution of the Eucharist. Read this article and use the following as your guide for reflecting on the meaning of the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ.
1. In the Eucharist, we make-present once more the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.
When the Church celebrates the Eucharist, she commemorates Christ's Passover, and it is made present the sacrifice Christ offered once for all on the cross remains ever present. "As often as the sacrifice of the Cross by which 'Christ our Pasch has been sacrificed' is celebrated on the altar, the work of our redemption is carried out." (CCC 1364)
Reflect: The Tagalog word "pakikinabang" is used to translate the word "communion" which designates the act of receiving the consecrated host in the Mass in response to the words of the Lord himself: "If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever (John 6:51)" "Pakikinabang" literally means "benefitting from", "taking advantage of". By the act of "pakikinabang" the Christian appropriates for him/herself the good things won by the Lord by his death own the cross. In other words, by this act, he makes his own the salvation wrought by Christ.
How do you approach the sacrament of the Eucharist? How do you prepare yourself for this sacrament knowing that it is the Lord himself whom you are receiving?
2. In the Eucharist, the Lord gave us a memorial of his life-giving love. In the words of Pope Urban IV, it is through this sacrament that the Lord gives himself as a gift and in the gift, the Giver himself is inside.
Therefore, He gives to us himself as sustenance, that, because man had been overcome by death [by food in Eden], even so He might be raised to life by food. A taste [of the food in Eden] mortally wounded man, and a taste [of this food] cured him. See this: because, whence the wound was sprung [from a tree (in the garden)], so came the cure [from a tree (the cross)], and whence death crept in, thence life came forth. Of the former tasting it is written accordingly: “In whatsoever day you eat [of it], you shall die to the death” (Gen. 2:17); of the latter [tasting], it reads truly: “If any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever.” (John 6:52)
(Transiturus, Urban IV, August 11, 1264)
Reflect. Through the Eucharist, we apply to ourselves the new life that Christ has won for us on the Cross. The bread and wine that is offered to us -- His flesh and blood -- is truly the source of the resurrected life given to us. How have you been participating in the Mass? Do you regard your attendance at Mass as a matter of life and death?
3. The sacrament of the Holy Eucharist is also called the sacrament of the Real Presence because in the consecrated bread and wine, the Lord is truly present. This presence is described thus in the Catechism:
The mode of Christ's presence under the Eucharistic species is unique. It raises the Eucharist above all the sacraments as "the perfection of the spiritual life and the end to which all the sacraments tend." In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist "the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained." "This presence is called 'real' - by which is not intended to exclude the other types of presence as if they could not be 'real' too, but because it is presence in the fullest sense: that is to say, it is a substantial presence by which Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly and entirely present." (CCC 1374)
Reflect: If Christ is truly present in the eucharistic species, wouldn't it be proper that you should visit him in the Blessed Sacrament as frequently as you would visit a dear friend?
