Dear Parishioners:
This weekend, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, also known as Corpus Christi. The Latin term "Corpus Christi" translates into English as "Body of Christ." 'The Body of Christ' refers to the Church and the Eucharist. This is not a mistake; rather, it is a beautiful understanding of what unites the people of God to Christ.
Our understanding that the Church is not a building or even a visible organization goes as far back as the writings of Saint Paul. "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For by one Spirit, we were all baptized into one body, and all were made to drink of one Spirit."
What unites us and makes us the people of God is the Eucharist, which is Christ Himself. Christ is to the Church what the soul is to the body. When the priest holds up the consecrated host, he proclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God." This is not a mere symbol or ceremonial liturgy. Jesus did not say, "This resembles My Body." Rather, He said, "This IS My Body." We believe this because Christ is God and always speaks the truth. The Eucharist is not just bread and wine but the very essence of our faith, a tangible connection to our Lord.
The Eucharist is Christ Himself. Jesus said, "Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life." Jesus reinforced this teaching on Holy Thursday at the Institution of the Eucharist and again at what has been referred to as the "Second Mass" on the road to Emmaus.
Father Walter Ciszek, an American Jesuit priest who spent 23 years in Russian prison camps, wrote in his memoirs about celebrating Mass for his fellow prisoners in Siberia. In those days, the Eucharistic Fast was from midnight until holy Communion was received.
In his book He Leadeth Me: An Extraordinary Testament of Faith, Father Ciszek relates how he and his fellow prisoners would fast all day from the little food provided to them to receive the Eucharist at a secret evening Mass. If they were discovered celebrating Mass, they would be severely punished or even killed. Yet, Father Ciszek and his fellow prisoners were willing to risk their health, well-being, and lives to receive Our Lord in the Eucharist.
Father Walter Ciszek in Russia with friends in 1950s.
Unlike Father Ciszek and his fellow Siberian concentration camp prisoners, the opportunity to receive the holy Eucharist is readily available to all of us. The Church asks us to fast for only one hour before receiving Holy Communion, not all day. We risk nothing to receive Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for we are free to worship and enjoy religious liberty in our nation. Yet, sadly, not because of any risk to our safety and well-being, many choose to absent themselves from participating in the Sunday Eucharist.
Giving God just one hour or so of our week is apparently too much to ask for some people. Let us pray for those who have fallen away from the practice of the faith that they may be renewed and faithfully come to receive Christ truly present in the Eucharist.
Following the 10:30 am we will process with the Eucharistic Lord to Mercy Park. A Eucharistic procession is like a holy parade that brings Jesus, truly present in the Holy Eucharist, into the world that he loves. The Blessed Sacrament is placed in a monstrance and carried in solemn procession. It is a wonderful opportunity to worship our Eucharistic Lord and pray together as a community as we witness our faith publicly to our community and the world.
The OLM School 8th Grade Class process with us, and we offer our prayers for them as they prepare to graduate. Each graduate receives an OLM School Medal for this milestone in their young lives. Following the Mass, the graduates, their families, and our school faculty gather for a luncheon to celebrate their many academic achievements.
Join the OLM School on Tuesday at 6:00 pm for our Graduation Ceremony. We thank the graduates' parents who sacrificed to ensure their children's Catholic education at OLM School. Please pray for the graduates as they prepare to enter high school. May they be inspired by St. Catherine of Siena, who said: "Be who God meant you to be, and you will set the world on fire."
Be well. Do good God Bless. Congratulations, Class of 2024!