The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
The Jews had two places for religious practice: the Temple & the Synagogue. The Synagogue was for preaching and for teaching and shared prayers. There were hundreds of Synagogues and everyone was welcome. It was a place for the community to gather as a community with a shared sense of purpose in their Faith in God. But… the Synagogue was understood by everyone to be of distinctly lesser importance than the temple. The temple was where the priests of Aaron offered sacrifices in expiation for the sins of the Jewish people. From dawn until dusk, every day of the year, priests offered the blood of goats and sheep and oxen and bulls and pigeons and doves and all the other bloody sacrifices called for by the Torah. They also offered the “cereal offerings” and the tithes of the growers who came to ask for the Lord’s blessing. The Temple is where the Rabbis studied. It’s where the Feasts were celebrated. It’s where Jesus went to do the really important stuff.
It’s also where the most important symbols of Jesus’ Death and Resurrection are found. It’s where the veil, which was torn into pieces by the Earthquake at the moment of His death, hung in front of the Old Testament Tabernacle of the Ark. It’s where the Blood and Water flowed from the Right Side of Temple as it did from Jesus’ side. It’s where the Altar and the Candlestand that feature in Rev 5 are to be found.
It’s also where we find the “show bread” that was especially blessed that was to be presented in order to receive the special blessings. That symbol of bread, in particular, is relevant for us today. It goes back first to Melcezideck in Genesis and to the establishment of the Tent of Meeting in Exodus. It’s the centerpiece of Joseph’s saving of the Jews and their liberation from Egypt. It’s symbolic of God’s Salvation from starvation and of His ongoing sustenance. Bread was the first temptation of Jesus in the desert and it featured in Jesus’ prophecy that Judas would betray him. And, of course, bread and wine together are part of the Passover Supper that we call “The Lord’s Supper” or “The Last Supper.”
Labette, touto estin tah soma mou. These words of Jesus are shocking! Jesus says ...take this… THIS… This IS my body… estin ta soma mou. Also shocking is that no one freaks out… Which is what we would expect to have happened… But we know why no one freaks out. It’s because they’ve heard it before. In John 6, we get the sermon that changed everything. Jesus used a similar but more intense phrase there. He said sarx mou alethes estin - my flesh is true food.
THAT was when everyone freaked out. So much so that when Jesus was asked to walk back the sermon because people were running for the hills, Jesus said no way! I AM who I AM!
It’s easy to see why the Church teaches that the Holy Eucharist, the true body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus is the source and the summit of our spiritual lives… It has to be. It’s the true presence. And everything - everything we believe - hinges on it.
If Jesus is 1) wrong, 2) deluded, or 3) lying in John 6, His disciples clearly believe Him to be telling the truth by the Last Supper. Of course, if John 6 is a lie or a delusion, then all the sacraments are too. So is the moral teaching and Heaven and Hell and pretty much everything else about Catholicism and even non-Catholic Christianity. Jesus wasn’t just a teacher - remember - He didn’t offer us a textbook of ideas - He says that He, Himself, is the way, the truth, and the life. That kind of statement admits no in-between. If Jesus is Who He says He is, then His body is true food, and ‘unless you eat the flesh of the son of man and drink His blood, you do not have life within you.
That’s why we need to be so deliberate about our Eucharistic devotion. It’s why we need to make a regular confession. It’s why we need to be serious in our personal prayer and reverent at Mass. Jesus - not me, not the pope, but Jesus, Himself - makes this singular idea the centerpiece of being His disciple. In theology and in our personal spiritual lives - everything comes down to His true presence in that bread and wine!
Upcoming Events
- Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass and Sunday from 9a until Mass
- June 7 Second Quarter Social - Potluck Brunch following 9:30a Mass
- June 6 & 7 First Sunday Benediction following Masses
- June No Pastoral Council meeting this month
For Your Information:
SECOND QUARTER SOCIAL will be a potluck Brunch on this Sunday, June 7 following the 9:30 a.m. Mass. Everyone is invited to attend and celebrate the beginning of Summer. The Second Quarter (April, May, June) Social Committee is chaired by Cathy VanderVieren and includes Libby Bullard, Angel Farlow, Margaret and Pat Gilfoil, MaryAnne Gilfoil, Terry and Andy Hall, Isabell Hernandez, Cindy and Jamie Howington, Ann Keene, Alyce and C.W. Keene, Frances Kennedy, Elizabeth and Paul Naya, and Bobby Reynolds.
ROSARY GROUP meets on Monday at 5:30p for prayer and supper. Everyone is invited. Contact Louise Magoun (318-341-2403), coordinator for more information.
FORMED.ORG has weekly features at https://watch.formed.org/this-week-on-formed. Remember to sign in using our parish’s zip code (71282) at https://signup.formed.org
MAUSOLEUM Construction will begin in Summer 2026. Our sales representative, Garth Daniels, can be reached at (318) 295-4409. If you have any questions or you know of anyone else interested in making a purchase, please encourage them to speak with Garth or to call the church office.
ATTENTION ST EDWARD YOUTH Mrs. Dana Hamilton has volunteered to organize several events, trips, and activities for teens from grades 6-12. She will be calling a meeting soon (probably on a Sunday). If you are interested in helping her or your children are interested in participating, please touch base with Dana or let Fr Ryan know. More info is forthcoming.
PRAYER FOR HURRICANE SEASON which begins this week
Our Father in Heaven through the intercession of our Lady of Prompt Succor, spare us during the Hurricane Season from all harm. Protect us and our homes from all disasters of nature. Our Lady of Prompt Succor, hastened to help us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In celebration of a special birthday/Magoun
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a In memory of Dan Fordice/Rome
- Mon NO MASS
- Tue NO MASS
- Wed NO MASS
- Thu 9:00a (Legacy Nursing Home) In memory of Inez and C B DeMoss/family
- Fri 5:30p In memory of E H Lancaster (birth anni on 13th)/family
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Pat and Marleigh Bullard, Patrick Thomas, & Eva & R L Reynolds/family
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a In memory of deceased members of the Roy and Johnson families/family
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for the special intentions of Vicki Morelli
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) | EMHC(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6/6 5:30p | - | A Dawson | M Rome |
| 6/7 9:30a | Cooper & Courtland | D Ellerbee | - |
| 6/13 5:30p | - | A Farlow | M Rome |
| 6/14 9:30a | Annie, Thomas Meyers, Katelyn | J Howington | - |
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2022-23 | $ 2,500 |
| April Budget | $ 10,000 |
| April Collections | $ 17,278 |
| April Expenses | $ 14,838 |
| May Budget | $ 12,500 |
| May 31 Collection | $ 4,116 |
| May to Date | $ 18,261 |
Stewardship The Scriptures today remind us that “we, many though we are, are one body for we all partake of the one loaf.” How are we using our gifts of time and talent to build up the Body of Christ?
SECOND COLLECTION supports our parish Building Fund which we collect once monthly.
Community Celebrations
Happy Birthday to Brian Harris (Jun 7), Billy Marsh (Jun 8), Mary Kathryn Book (Jun 13), Emily Ginn (Jun 14), Connie Copes (June 15), Penny Ernst (Jun 15)
In Our Daily Prayers…
Please let us know of anyone who is ill or hospitalized and would like to receive a visit from Father. Also, help us keep our prayer list up to date by advising us of those who should be added or removed.
For our Pope, Leo XIV, our Bishop, Robert Marshall; and our Diocesan leaders, our President, Governor, Mayor and national, state and local elected representatives
Our parishioners who are sick, shut-in, under full-time care and for those who care for them, and for those otherwise in need of our prayers: MaryKathryn & Nap Book, Chris, Susan, and David Cagnolatti, Connie & Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Leslye Ellerbee, Ann Claire Fordice and her children, Susan & Johnny Gilfoil, Margaret & Pat Gilfoil,Terry Farlow Hall, Sidney & Mary Jane Johnson, Frances & Bill Kennedy, Ed Mills, Susie Murphy, Bobby Reynolds, Phillip and Peggy Scurria, Mike & Sue Rome, Lori Sullivan, Mary Trichell
Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Ashley Alexander (Regan), Graham Allen (S Gilfoil), Marie Farlow Bellard, Martha Book, Kay Boolos (S Gilfoil), Chris Breard (Gilfoil), Gayle Brown (Dukes and Oliver), Albert Christman, Jeannie & Donald Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Gene Cox, Carol Dipert (Rome), Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, Judy Fortenberry, Donna Fulton (Ellerbee), Fred and Cathy Fulton, Morgan, Alex, and Palmer Gilfoil, Thom Gilfoil, Wyly Gilfoil (Gilfoil), LaVonne Givens, Charlotte Green, Maggie Reynolds Guillory, Rita Hargrave, Evie Hilburn (Lancaster), Patricia Lively (Wilks), Charles Howington, Callie Halbach Hyams, Jimmy Hopson(Wilks), Will Irby (P Gilfoil), Diane Johnson, Andrew and Chelsea Keene-Lewis, Carla Leese (S Gilfoil), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Caroline Marcello (Watts), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Kiely McKellar (S Gilfoil), Boyce Miller, Mike Morelli, Randy Parker, Betty Petersen, David Peterson, Quintin Purvis, John Neill, Curt and Brianne Rome, Bailey, Scott, and Tiffney Rome, Debbie Kedrick Sims, LeeAnn Rome Tranchina (Rome), Randy Watts, Jr.
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Preston Collins, Henry Ellerbee, Lilly Falgout, Jag Gilfoil, Matilda Johnson, Caroline Marsh, EmmyLu Marsh, Charlize Richardson, Chandler Wood
