Today we celebrate the feast of Corpus Christi – the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. In the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, we encounter the very gift of the person of Jesus in the most sacred form. Every time we celebrate the Eucharist, the miracle of ‘transubstantiation’ happens. What this means is that the substance – that is to say, the most fundamental reality – of the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
On the eve of his Passion, Jesus took the bread in his hands, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: “Take this, this is my body”. He then took the chalice and said: “This is my blood, the blood of the covenant, to be poured out on behalf of many” (Mk 14: 22-24). The Church continues to celebrate the Eucharist following the command of the Lord.
We eat meals several times a day, but sometimes for spiritual reasons, especially during Lent, we give up food. There is a saying: “We are what we eat”. The food we eat has a great role in deciding our health. When we eat something, it becomes part of our body, and then it gives us the energy to survive. The above saying is literally true regarding the Eucharist. When we receive holy communion, we receive Christ in the form of bread. Then we become part of the body of Jesus. We become one with Jesus, and that is the source of all our spiritual strength. The miracle of the holy Eucharist is repeated every time we receive the Holy Communion. God is involved in every moment of our lives. In our pilgrimage to heaven, God gives us the Eucharist as the food for our journey.
God invites us to be in a loving relationship with him. Once we are locked in this loving relationship, we are transformed into a new being. We are meant to be transformed in such a way that we incarnate God’s love in the unique circumstances of our lives, just as Jesus was God’s love incarnated in the particular circumstances of his earthly life. Therefore, the surest way for this transformation to take effect in us is through Christ himself, who is most really and truly present to us in the Eucharist.
When we receive holy communion, we receive Christ in the form of bread. Then we become part of the body of Jesus. We become one with Jesus, and that is the source of all our spiritual strength. The bread and wine are transformed in the Eucharistic celebration. All those who take part in it are also transformed into the sons and daughters of God. That is why St. Paul tells us that the Christian community is the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27). We are transformed into what we receive, into love incarnate.
Eucharistic processions are part of the Corpus Christi feast celebrations. The procession reminds us in a very concrete way that we are going somewhere. We are a pilgrim people, journeying together with Christ towards our heavenly Jerusalem. Along the way, we meet several other pilgrims who are also in a relationship with Christ. Each step we take brings us closer to our final destination for an encounter with the Lord. The Eucharistic celebration on Sundays gives us a foretaste of our life with God in eternity. We will be living permanently in the presence of the Lord.
The Christian community is a Eucharist-centered community. In this Eucharist, God has given us everything he has. We should be grateful to Jesus for giving us Himself, and then we should live a life worthy of what we receive. Let us ask God to bless us so that we all become God’s beloved children by receiving this Eucharist.
Rev. Dr. Mathew Charthakuzhiyil