The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
From The Font
“...five loaves and two fish..
Nothing in the scripture is accidental. Let me say that again, nothing in the scripture is accidental. Jesus preached and taught and worked miracles for three full years. He answered questions, read minds and souls, corrected errors, repeated Himself, explained His parables and spoke one-on-one with countless people in that time. Of that multitude of text and details, the Gospel writers chose very, very specifically events and sermons to record. And so what they recorded is recorded in extremely specific detail, all of which is useful and symbolically meaningful.
Because of that, the early brainiac saints that we called the “Fathers of the Church” believed that scripture study should happen on several levels, one of which, is symbolic analysis.
Today’s Gospel, in particular, they used as an example of that kind of analysis. In particular, they saw the detail of five loaves and two fish to be meaningful. Contrary to popular myth, the Church didn’t invent the Sacraments and the Holy Eucharist and “transubstantiation” over the course of fifteen hundred yearsThat myth was helpful for folks like Martin Luther and John Calvin to dismiss them without actually making any intellectual argument, but it’s a lie. In fact, early on, the Fathers of the Church saw in the five loaves and the two fish the seven Sacraments. They also saw the five wounds along with the Cross and the Crown of Thorns. They saw these symbols not as random coincidences or patterns, but as the Lord speaking on increasingly deep levels to those who looked.
In many ways, the Bible is bottomless. We can read something like today’s Gospel is the most superficial way as an encouragement to feed the hungry. More deeply, it’s about Jesus being the only source of spiritual nourishment. More deeply still, it’s about the Holy Eucharist. And there’s a moral lesson about gluttony. And there’s a symbolic connection to the tribes of Israel. And there’s a foreshadowing of the need to go to the desert of penance in order for the soul to grow in holiness… If we’re willing to look, the Bible can reveal so, so much to us!
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
Today is the feast of the Holy Body and Blood of Jesus. It’s the feast of the Holy Eucharist. Really, we’re supposed to celebrate this on the Thursday after the Octave of Pentecost (AKA Trinity Sunday) which is a kind of mirror of the Thursday before the Octave of Easter (AKA Holy Week).
Holy Thursday is the institution of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper. It’s deeply focused on the Death of Jesus and on the bloody Passion which lies ahead. Too often, that day is lost in the confused rite of Washing Feet rather than the real climax of the day which is the repose of the Holy Eucharist outside of the sanctuary of the Church.
Corpus Christi Thursday (which is tragically moved to Sunday) looks at the other side of the Holy Eucharist which is Hope and Joy and the Presence of God and His saving Grace flowing from the Most Blessed Sacrament.
Traditionally, both days include a procession. On Holy Thursday, the procession is muted and sober. The Holy Eucharist is veiled and bells aren’t used and there is the sense of the Lord being taken away. On Corpus Christi Thursday, the Holy Eucharist is unveiled. Bells and incense and candles and crowds are encouraged and the whole event is about the Lord among us and within us and before us and behind us.
It’s important to remember that both aspects of the Holy Eucharist are always there. Even on Holy Thursday, white vestments and incense represent the joyful, while on Corpus Christi, a movable canopy veil (called a “baldachin”) and solemn hymns are called for.
This balance is difficult to explain in words. In part, because human beings don’t tend to measure significance in words. We actually tend to sense the most important things in life wordlessly. That’s part of the reason Social Media is so soulless.
Think about it - about 80% of our judgements about other people is body language. Whether they’re speaking or not, we look and we decide whether they’re excited or sad or passionate or honest or lying based on their eyes and whether they’re standing up straight or hunched over or whatever. We decide whether someone really cares about something based on the time, energy and money they invest in it.
The same is true of religious matters. When we invest real energy in a procession and we have a bunch of people moving around and singing and carrying all sorts of things, that impresses us immensely. But modern Catholicism is almost entirely words. We yammer and talk and sometimes we sing… But we rarely ever let the gestures and the symbols speak for themselves. Our Mass is rarely silent or even quiet. We tend to put a lot of attention on words, but doesn’t it speak far more loudly if Father turns his back on the tabernacle (and the True Presence of Jesus) and then says “Lord Jesus Christ…?”
Symbols matter a lot. Traditionally, Catholics were very symbol-rich in our worship. For sixty years, we’ve experimented with word-heavy-symbol-light worship and perhaps it’s time to ask if that experiment has helped us or if it has failed?
Calendar of Events
- Confessions every Fri & Sat from 5p until Mass at 5:30p and on Sun from 9a until 9:30a Mass
- Pastoral Council meeting monthly on the third Tuesday after the 5:30p Mass
- Sunday Morning Catechism in the Hall after the 9:30a Mass unless otherwise indicated
For Your Information:
Our Return to the Lord
**Stewardship **
Mass Schedule & Intentions for the Coming Week
ALTAR CANDLES
Assistants at Holy Mass
* Servers: * Lector: * EMHCs:
Let us Rejoice in the Lord!
Happy Birthday
In Our Daily Prayers…
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PLEASE HELP US TO UP-DATE OUR PRAYER LIST BY ADVISING US OF ANYONE WHO SHOULD BE REMOVED FROM THE PRAYER LIST.