Posted on 06/09/2007 10:52:09 PM PDT by Salvation
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The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
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Reading 1
Gn 14:18-20
In those days, Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine,
and being a priest of God Most High,
he blessed Abram with these words:
"Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
the creator of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who delivered your foes into your hand."
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 110:1, 2, 3, 4
R. (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The LORD said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand
till I make your enemies your footstool."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The scepter of your power the LORD will stretch forth from Zion:
"Rule in the midst of your enemies."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
"Yours is princely power in the day of your birth, in holy splendor;
before the daystar, like the dew, I have begotten you."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The LORD has sworn, and he will not repent:
"You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek."
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
Reading II
1 Cor 11:23-26
Brothers and sisters:
I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you,
that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over,
took bread, and, after he had given thanks,
broke it and said, "This is my body that is for you.
Do this in remembrance of me."
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
"This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
Gospel
Lk 9:11b-17
Jesus spoke to the crowds about the kingdom of God,
and he healed those who needed to be cured.
As the day was drawing to a close,
the Twelve approached him and said,
"Dismiss the crowd
so that they can go to the surrounding villages and farms
and find lodging and provisions;
for we are in a deserted place here."
He said to them, "Give them some food yourselves."
They replied, "Five loaves and two fish are all we have,
unless we ourselves go and buy food for all these people."
Now the men there numbered about five thousand.
Then he said to his disciples,
"Have them sit down in groups of about fifty."
They did so and made them all sit down.
Then taking the five loaves and the two fish,
and looking up to heaven,
he said the blessing over them, broke them,
and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.
They all ate and were satisfied.
And when the leftover fragments were picked up,
they filled twelve wicker baskets.
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The devotion consists in the divine worship of the human heart of Christ, which is united to His divinity and which is a symbol of His love for us. The aim of the devotion is to make our Lord king over our hearts by prompting them to return love to Him (especially through an act of consecration by which we offer to the Heart of Jesus both ourselves and all that belongs to us) and to make reparation for our ingratitude to God.
INVOCATION
O Heart of love, I put all my trust in Thee; for I fear all things from my own weakness, but I hope for all things from Thy goodness.
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque
PRAYER TO THE SACRED HEART
Devotion to the Sacred Heart was the characteristic note of the piety of Saint Gertrude the Great (1256-1302), Benedictine nun and renowned mystic. She was, in fact, the first great exponent of devotion to the Sacred Heart. In our efforts to honor the Heart of Jesus we have this prayer as a model for our own:
Hail! O Sacred Heart of Jesus, living and quickening source of eternal life, infinite treasure of the Divinity, and burning furnace of divine love. Thou art my refuge and my sanctuary, 0 my amiable Savior. Consume my heart with that burning fire with which Thine is ever inflamed. Pour down on my soul those graces which flow from Thy love, and let my heart be so united with Thine, that our wills may be one, and mine in all things be conformed to Thine. May Thy divine will be equally the standard and rule of all my desires and of all my actions. Amen.
Saint Gertrude
FOR THE CHURCH
O most holy Heart of Jesus, shower Thy blessings in abundant measure upon Thy holy Church, upon the Supreme Pontiff and upon all the clergy; to the just grant perseverance; convert sinners; enlighten unbelievers; bless our relations, friends and benefactors; assist the dying; deliver the holy souls in purgatory; and extend over all hearts the sweet empire of Thy love. Amen.
A PRAYER OF TRUST
O God, who didst in wondrous manner reveal to the virgin, Margaret Mary, the unsearchable riches of Thy Heart, grant that loving Thee, after her example, in all things and above all things, we may in Thy Heart find our abiding home.
Roman Missal
ACT OF LOVE
Reveal Thy Sacred Heart to me, O Jesus, and show me Its attractions. Unite me to It for ever. Grant that all my aspirations and all the beats of my heart, which cease not even while I sleep, may be a testimonial to Thee of my love for Thee and may say to Thee: Yes, Lord, I am all Thine;
pledge of my allegiance to Thee rests ever in my heart will never cease to be there. Do Thou accept the slight amount of good that I do and be graciously pleased to repair all m] wrong-doing; so that I may be able to bless Thee in time and in eternity. Amen.
Cardinal Merry del Val
MEMORARE TO THE SACRED HEART
Remember, O most sweet Jesus, that no one who has had recourse to Thy Sacred Heart, implored its help, or sought it mercy was ever abandoned. Encouraged with confidence, O tenderest of hearts, we present ourselves before Thee, crushes beneath the weight of our sins. In our misery, O Sacred Hear. of Jesus, despise not our simple prayers, but mercifully grant our requests.
Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954
June Devotion: The Sacred Heart
Efficacious Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
The Heart of the World (On the Sacred Heart of Jesus) (Catholic Caucus)
From: Genesis 14:18-20
“”Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
maker of heaven and earth;
[20] and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”
And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
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Commentary:
14:18-20. After the account of Abraham’s victory over the kings of the North,
there is this little insertion, apparently, that records a piece of tradition which
shows Abraham’s connexion with Jerusalem and its king. In the context of the
story of the patriarchs, this episode implies recognition by the local nations
(Salem, Sodom) of the blessing they receive through Abraham (cf. 12:3). In the
specific case of Salem, we get a glimpse of the fact that the true God, the
Creator of heaven and earth, was worshipped there, under the name of El-Elyon,
or God Most High, and also that he is acknowledged by Abraham as the Lord
himself, “maker of heaven and earth” (cf. 14:22). The bread and wine are first-
fruits of the land, offered in sacrifice as a sign of recognition of the Creator. In
the name of El-Elyon Abraham receives Melchizedek’s blessing, thereby making
Jerusalem the place from where the Lord imparts his blessing (cf. Ps 134:3). It
is also significant that Abraham gives the king of Jerusalem a tenth of everything,
implying that he had a right to receive it.
In Jewish tradition the city of Salem and the figure of Melchizedek acquired a
special meaning. It identifies Salem with Jerusalem or Zion, where the Lord
dwells: “His abode has been established in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion,”
Psalm 76:3 acclaims. Melchizedek is regarded as having a priesthood earlier and
greater than that of Aaron; cf. when the King Messiah is praised: “You are a
priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek” (Ps 110:4). In the New Testament,
the mysterious priestly figure of Melchizedek is portrayed as a type of the priest-
hood of Christ, for Christ is truly the eternal priest even though he (like
Melchizedek) does not belong to the priesthood of Aaron. “For this Melchizedek,
king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the
slaughter of the kings and blessed him; and to him apportioned a tenth part of
everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and
then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. He is without father or
mother or genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end of life, but
resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever” (Heb 7:1-3).
In the light of all this, Christian liturgy has seen a prefiguring of the Eucharist in
the bread and wine offered by Melchizedek (cf. Roman Missal, Eucharistic
Prayer I); tradition sees him as a figure of priests of the New Law.
*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
From: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
The Institution of the Eucharist
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Commentary:
23-26. These verses clearly bear witness to the early Christians’ faith
in the eucharistic mystery. St. Paul is writing around the year 57—only
twenty-seven years since the institution of the Eucharist—reminding the
Corinthians of what they had been taught some years earlier (c. the year
51). The words “received” and “delivered” are technical terms used to
indicate that a teaching is part of apostolic Tradition; cf. also
1 Corinthians 15:3. These two passages highlight the importance of that
apostolic Tradition. The words “I received from the Lord” are a technical
expression which means “I received through that Tradition which goes
back to the Lord Himself.”
There are three other New Testament accounts of the institution of the
Eucharist (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:16-20). This
account, which is most like St. Luke’s, is the earliest of the four.
The text contains the fundamental elements of Christian faith in the
mystery of the Eucharist: 1) the institution of this Sacrament by Jesus
Christ and His real presence in it; 2) the institution of the Christian
priesthood; 3) the Eucharist is the sacrifice of the New Testament (cf.
notes on Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:16-20; 1 Corinthians
10:14-22).
“Do this in remembrance of Me”: in instituting the Eucharist, our Lord
charged that it be re-enacted until the end of time (cf. Luke 22:19),
thereby instituting the priesthood. The Council of Trent teaches that
Jesus Christ our Lord, at the Last Supper, “offered His body and blood
under the species of bread and wine to God the Father and He gave His
body and blood under the same species to the Apostles to receive,
making them priests of the New Testament at that time. [...] He
ordered the Apostles and their successors in the priesthood to offer
this Sacrament when He said, “Do this in remembrance of Me”, as the
Catholic Church has always understood and taught” (”De SS. Missae
Sacrificio”, Chapter 1; cf. Canon 2). And so, Pope John Paul II teaches,
the Eucharist is “the principal and central reason-of-being of the
Sacrament of the priesthood, which effectively came into being at the
moment of the institution of the Eucharist, and together with it” (”Letter
To All Bishops”, 24 February 1980).
The word “remembrance” is charged with the meaning of a Hebrew word
which was used to convey the essence of the feast of the Passover —
commemoration of the exodus from Egypt. For the Israelites the
Passover rite not only reminded them of a bygone event: they were
conscious of making that event present, reviving it, in order to participate
in it, in some way, generation after generation (cf. Exodus 12:26-27;
Deuteronomy 6:20-25). So, when our Lord commands His Apostles to
“do this in remembrance of Me”, it is not a matter of merely recalling His
supper but of renewing His own Passover sacrifice of Calvary, which
already, at the Last Supper, was present in an anticipated way.
*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
From: Luke 9:11b-17
First Miracle of the Loaves and Fish
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Commentary:
11-17. Jesus replies to His disciples knowing very well what He is
going to do (cf. John 6:5-6)—thereby teaching them little by little to
trust in God’s omnipotence. On this miracle see the notes on Matthew
14:14-21; 15:32; 15:33-38; Mark 6:34; 6:41; 6:42; 8:1-9; and John
6:5-9; 6:10; 6:11; 6:12-13.
[Matthew 14:14-21 states:
14-21. This episode must have occurred in the middle of springtime,
because the grass was green (Mark 6:40; John 6:10). In the Near East
loaves were usually made very thin, which meant it was easy to break
them by hand and distribute them to those at table; this was usually
done by the head of the household or the senior person at the meal.
Our Lord follows this custom, and the miracle occurs when Jesus breaks
the bread. The disciples then distribute it among the crowd. Here
again we can see Jesus’ desire to have people cooperate with Him.]
[Matthew 15:32 states:
32. The Gospels speak of our Lord’s mercy and compassion towards
people’s needs: here He is concerned about the crowds who are following
Him and who have no food. He always has a word of consolation,
encouragement and forgiveness: He is never indifferent. However, what
hurts Him most are sinners who go through life without experiencing
light and truth: He waits for them in the sacraments of Baptism and
Penance.]
[Matthew 15:33-38 states:
33-38. As in the case of the first multiplication (14:13-20), the
Apostles provide our Lord with the loaves and the fish. It was all
they had. He also avails of the Apostles to distribute the food—the
result of the miracle—to the people. In distributing the graces of
salvation God chooses to rely on the faithfulness and generosity of
men. “Many great things depend—don’t forget it—on whether you and I
live our lives as God wants” ([St] J. Escriva, “The Way”, 755).
It is interesting to note that in both miracles of multiplication of
loaves and fish Jesus provides food in abundance but does not allow
anything to go to waste. All Jesus’ miracles, in addition to being
concrete historical events, are also symbols of supernatural
realities. Here abundance of material food also signifies abundance of
divine gifts on the level of grace and glory: it refers spiritual
resources and eternal rewards; God gives people more graces than are
strictly necessary. This is borne out by Christian experience
throughout history. St. Paul tells us that “where sin increased, grace
abounded all the more” (Rom 5:20); he speaks of “the riches of His
grace which He lavished upon us” (Eph 1:8) and tells his disciple
Timothy that “the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith
and love that are in Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 1:14).]
[Mark 6:34 states:
34. Our Lord had planned a period of rest, for Himself and His
disciples, from the pressures of the apostolate (Mark 6:31-32). And He
has to change His plans because so many people come, eager to hear Him
speak. Not only is He not annoyed with them: He feels compassion on
seeing their spiritual need. “My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). They need instruction and our Lord wants to
meet this need by preaching to them. “Jesus is moved by hunger and
sorrow, but what moves Him most is ignorance” ([St] J. Escriva, “Christ Is
Passing By”, 109).]
[Mark 6:41 states:
41. This miracle is a figure of the Holy Eucharist: Christ performed it
shortly before promising that sacrament (cf. John 6:1ff), and the
Fathers have always so interpreted it. In this miracle Jesus shows His
supernatural power and His love for men—the same power and love as
make it possible for Christ’s one and only body to be present in the
Eucharistic species to nourish the faithful down the centuries. In the
words of the sequence composed by St. Thomas Aquinas for the Mass of
Corpus Christi: “Be one or be a thousand fed, they eat alike that
living bread which, still received, ne’er wastes away.”
This gesture of our Lord—looking up to Heaven—is recalled in the
Roman canon of the Mass: “And looking up to Heaven, to You, His
almighty Father.” At this point in the Mass we are preparing to be
present at a miracle greater than that of the multiplication of the
loaves—the changing of bread into His own body, offered as food for
all men.]
[Mark 6:42 states:
42. Christ wanted the left-overs to be collected (cf. John 6:12) to
teach us not to waste things God gives us, and also to have them as a
tangible proof of the miracle.
The collecting of the left-overs is a way of showing us the value of
little things done out of love for God—orderliness, cleanliness,
finishing things completely. It also reminds the sensitive believer of
the extreme care that must be taken of the Eucharistic species. Also,
the generous scale of the miracle is an expression of the largesse of
the Messianic times. The Fathers recall that Moses distributed the
manna for each to eat as much as he needed but some left part of it for
the next day and it bred worms (Exodus 16:16-20). Elijah gave the
widow just enough to meet her needs (1 Kings 17:13-16). Jesus, on the
other hand, gives generously and abundantly.]
[Mark 8:1-9 states:
1-9. Jesus repeats the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and
the fish: the first time (Mark 6:33-44) He acted because He saw a huge
crowd like “sheep without a shepherd”; now He takes pity on them
because they have been with Him for three days and have nothing to
eat.
This miracle shows how Christ rewards people who persevere in following
Him: the crowd had been hanging on His words, forgetful of everything
else. We should be like them, attentive and ready to do what He
commands, without any vain concern about the future, for that would
amount to distrusting Divine Providence.]
[John 6:5-9 states:
5-9. Jesus is sensitive to people’s material and spiritual needs. Here
we see Him take the initiative to satisfy the hunger of the crowd of
people who have been following Him.
Through these conversations and the miracle He is going to work, Jesus
also teaches His disciples to trust in Him whenever they meet up with
difficulties in their apostolic endeavors in the future: they should
engage in them using whatever resources they have—even if they are
plainly inadequate, as was the case with the five loaves and two fish.
He will supply what is lacking. In the Christian life we must put what
we have at the service of our Lord, even if we do not think it amounts
to very much. He can make meager resources productive.
“We must, then, have faith and not be dispirited. We must not be
stopped by any kind of human calculation. To overcome the obstacles we
have to throw ourselves into the task so that the very effort we make
will open up new paths” ([St] J. Escriva, “Christ is Passing By”, 160).]
[John 6:10 states:
10. The evangelist gives us an apparently unimportant piece of
information: “there was much grass in the place.” This indicates that
the miracle took place in the height of the Palestinian spring, very
near the Passover, as mentioned in verse 4. There are very few big
meadows in Palestine; even today there is one on the eastern bank of
the Lake of Gennesaret, called El-Batihah, where five thousand people
could fit seated: it may have been the site of this miracle.]
[John 6:11 states:
11. The account of the miracle begins with almost the very same words
as those which the Synoptics and St. Paul use to describe the
institution of the Eucharist (cf. Matthew 26:26; Mark 14:22; Luke
22:19; 1 Corinthians 11:25). This indicates that the miracle, in
addition to being an expression of Jesus’ mercy towards the needy, is a
symbol of the Blessed Eucharist, about which our Lord will speak a
little later on (cf. John 6:26-59).]
[John 6:12-13 states:
12-13. The profusion of detail shows how accurate this narrative
is—the names of the Apostles who address our Lord (verses 5,8), the
fact that they were barley loaves (verse 9), the boy who provided the
wherewithal (verse 9) and, finally, Jesus telling them to gather up the
leftovers.
This miracle shows Jesus’ divine power over matter, and His largesse
recalls the abundance of messianic benefits which the prophets had
foretold (cf. Jeremiah 31:14).
Christ’s instruction to pick up the leftovers teaches us that material
resources are gifts of God and should not be wasted: they should be
used in a spirit of poverty (cf. note on Mark 6:42). In this
connection Paul VI pointed out that “after liberally feeding the
crowds, the Lord told His disciples to gather up what was left over,
lest anything should be lost (cf. John 6:12). What an excellent lesson
in thrift—in the finest and fullest meaning of the term—for our age,
given as it is to wastefulness! It carries with it the condemnation of
a whole concept of society wherein consumption tends to become an end
in itself, with contempt for the needy, and to the detriment,
ultimately, of those very people who believed themselves to be its
beneficiaries, having become incapable of perceiving that man is called
to a higher destiny” ([Pope] Paul VI, “Address to Participants at the
World Food Conference”, 9 November 1974).]
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
| First reading | Genesis 14:18 - 20 © |
|---|---|
| Melchizedek king of Salem brought bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High. He pronounced this blessing: ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, creator of heaven and earth, and blessed be God Most High for handing over your enemies to you’. And Abram gave him a tithe of everything. |
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| Psalm or canticle: Psalm 109 |
| Second reading | 1 Corinthians 11:23 - 26 © |
|---|---|
| This is what I received from the Lord, and in turn passed on to you: that on the same night that he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread, and thanked God for it and broke it, and he said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this as a memorial of me’. In the same way he took the cup after supper, and said, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Whenever you drink it, do this as a memorial of me.’ Until the Lord comes, therefore, every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are proclaiming his death. | |
| Gospel | Luke 9:11 - 17 © |
|---|---|
| The crowds got to know and they went after him. He made them welcome and talked to them about the kingdom of God; and he cured those who were in need of healing. It was late afternoon when the Twelve came to him and said, ‘Send the people away, and they can go to the villages and farms round about to find lodging and food; for we are in a lonely place here’. He replied, ‘Give them something to eat yourselves’. But they said, ‘We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we are to go ourselves and buy food for all these people’ For there were about five thousand men. But he said to his disciples, ‘Get them to sit down in parties of about fifty’. They did so and made them all sit down. Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, raised his eyes to heaven, and said the blessing over them; then he broke them and handed them to his disciples to distribute among the crowd. They all ate as much as they wanted, and when the scraps remaining were collected they filled twelve baskets. |
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| The Sacrament of Love | ||
The opportunity to attend a training conference for youth ministry in Arizona came my way some years ago. In the middle of the week, we took a day trip to visit the Grand Canyon. The five hour drive was interrupted by a stop in Sedona to see the red rock formations including Cathedral Rock. They were gorgeous, but I had my mind set on the Grand Canyon.
As we approached Grand Canyon National Park, my expectation level rose dramatically. As soon as we arrived, I got of out the car and practically ran to the overlook. The sun was beginning to set and the colors reflecting off the rocks were mesmerizing. I looked down and the Colorado River looked like a small thread because it was a mile below. The distances to various rock formations in the canyon, including the main wall on the opposite side, were literally dizzying. The grandeur of the whole scene was breathtaking. I remember being overwhelmed by a strong sense that my mind was not able to grasp the fullness of the beauty that I was gazing upon. The beauty was just too marvelous for my mind to process.
I was later struck by some musings about the manager of the local snack shop. I wondered if he comes to the shop everyday, orders his supplies, manages his staff, greets his customers, but in the midst of his daily routine fails to look with awe upon the majesty of the canyon. It can be so easy sometimes to take for granted the beauty of God and His gifts.
This Sunday, the Church celebrates the solemnity of Corpus Christi, the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. The Church gives us the opportunity to stop from the craze of our frantic lives, and ponder with new eyes the most precious gift of the Eucharist, the sacrament of love. The Church invites us to recall the mystery that Christ becomes truly present to us, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Eucharist. She invites us to worship Christ, adore Him, enter into communion with Him, and proclaim His goodness to the whole world as we walk in procession with Him through our neighborhoods.
In a sense, the Eucharist is similar to the Grand Canyon. As a mystery, the beauty of the Eucharist is impossible to fully grasp. Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of the Father, in the moment in which He sacrificed His innocent life for our sins by offering Himself to the Father, descends upon the altars of our Catholic churches. He comes to us to be our nourishment for the journey, to apply His redemptive work to our lives, and to enter into a union of love with His faithful disciples. What a wonderful gift of love.
Our gospel today recounts the multiplication of the loaves and fishes and is similar to my visit to Sedona on the way to the canyon. The miraculous feeding of the crowd is an appropriate prelude to something much more wonderful, the miraculous gift of Christ Himself in the Eucharist. It teaches us that Jesus' desire to nourish His exhausted, hungry flock with bread and fish was a foreshadowing of His desire to spiritually nourish the whole world with His own Body and Blood. The first miracle pointed to a far greater one. Only God can satisfy the soul. In His wisdom and love, the Father crafted an amazing, humble way to do so until the end of time.
May the Church's celebrations this weekend help us, in union with the Holy Spirit, to appreciate with deeper faith the profound mystery and unfathomable love given to us at the Last Supper by our Lord, Jesus Christ. May we never imitate the manager of the local snack shop at the Grand Canyon and fail to stand (or kneel) in awe of the beauty of the Eucharist. May we long to come often and be nourished at the table of God's Word and of his precious Body and Blood.
Our minds really can’t grasp the total wonder of the Holy Eucharist, can they? At least mine can’t!!
Year C- The Body and Blood of Christ
And taking the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed them Luke 9:11-1711 When the crowds found out about it, they followed him; and he welcomed them, and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed to be cured. |
I am the bread of life that has come down from Heaven, the celestial manna that gives life unlike the manna eaten by the people in the desert who are dead. My food is food for eternal life. Author: Joseph of Jesus and Mary
| Sunday, June 10, 2007 The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Solemnity) |
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O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 103 (104) |
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| Hymn to God the Creator |
| Bless the Lord, my soul! Lord, my God, how great you are! You are robed in majesty and splendour; you are wrapped in light as in a cloak. You stretch out the sky like an awning, you build your palace upon the waters. You make the clouds your chariot, you walk upon the wings of the wind. You make the breezes your messengers, you make burning fire your minister. You set the earth upon its foundation: from age to age it will stand firm. Deep oceans covered it like a garment, and the waters stood high above the mountains; but you rebuked them and they fled; at the sound of your thunder they fled in terror. They rise to the mountains or sink to the valleys, to the places you have decreed for them. You have given them a boundary they must not cross; they will never come back to cover the earth. You make springs arise to feed the streams, that flow in the midst of the mountains. All the beasts of the field will drink from them and the wild asses will quench their thirst. Above them will nest the birds of the sky, from among the branches their voices will sound. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Psalm 103 (104) |
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| From your palace you water the mountains, and thus you give plenty to the earth. You bring forth grass for the cattle, and plants for the service of man. You bring forth bread from the land, and wine to make man’s heart rejoice. Oil, to make the face shine; and bread to make man’s heart strong. The trees of the Lord have all that they need, and the cedars of Lebanon, that he planted. Small birds will nest there, and storks at the tops of the trees. For wild goats there are the high mountains; the crags are a refuge for the coneys. He made the moon so that time could be measured; the sun knows the hour of its setting. You send shadows, and night falls: then all the beasts of the woods come out, lion cubs roaring for their prey, asking God for their food. When the sun rises they come back together to lie in their lairs; man goes out to his labour, and works until evening. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Psalm 103 (104) |
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| How many are your works, O Lord! You have made all things in your wisdom, and the earth is full of your creatures. The sea is broad and immense: sea-creatures swim there, both small and large, too many to count. Ships sail across it; Leviathan lives there, the monster; you made him to play with. All of them look to you to give them their food when they need it. You give it to them, and they gather; you open your hand, they are filled with good things. But turn away, and they are dismayed; take away their breath, and they die, once more they will turn into dust. You will send forth your breath, they will come to life; you will renew the face of the earth. Glory be to the Lord, for ever; let the Lord rejoice in his works. He turns his gaze to the earth, and it trembles; he touches the mountains, and they smoke. I will sing to the Lord all my life; as long as I exist, I will sing songs to God. May my praises be pleasing to him; truly I will delight in the Lord. Let sinners perish from the earth, let the wicked vanish from existence. Bless the Lord, my soul! Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Reading | Ecclesiasticus 46:1 - 12 © |
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| Mighty in war was Joshua son of Nun, successor to Moses in the prophetic office, who well deserved his name, and was a great saviour of the Chosen People, wreaking vengeance on the enemies who opposed him, and so bringing Israel into its inheritance. How splendid he was when he raised his arms to brandish his sword against cities! Who had ever shown such determination as his? He himself waged the wars of the Lord. Was not the sun held back by his hand, and one day drawn out into two? He called on God the Most High, as he pressed the enemy on every side; and the great Lord answered him with hard and violent hailstones. He fell on that enemy nation, and at the Descent he destroyed all resistance; that the nations might acknowledge his warlike prowess and know that their foe was the Lord. For he was a follower of the Mighty One, and in the time of Moses he did devoted service, he and Caleb son of Jephunneh, by opposing the whole community, by preventing the people from sinning, and by silencing the mutters of rebellion. Hence these two alone were preserved out of six hundred thousand men on the march, and brought into their inheritance, into a land where milk and honey flow. The Lord gave Caleb the strength – which he retained right into old age – to tread the highlands of the country which his descendants still hold as their inheritance, for all the sons of Israel to see that it is good to follow the Lord. |
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| Reading | St Ignatius of Antioch's letter to the Romans |
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| I do not try to please men, but God | |
| Ignatius, who is also called Theophorus, to the Church which has obtained mercy through the majesty of the Most High Father and of Jesus Christ, his only Son; to the Church which is beloved and enlightened by the will of him who wills all things that are, according to the love of Jesus Christ our God; to the Church which has precedence in the lands of the Romans; to the Church which is worthy of God, worthy of honour, worthy of the blessing, worthy of praise, worthy of success, worthy in its holiness, pre-eminent in love, named after Christ, named after the Father. I greet that Church in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father. To those who are united in flesh and spirit to every one of his commandments, filled with the grace of God without wavering and filtered clear from every foreign stain, abundant greeting in Jesus Christ, our God, in blamelessness. I have prayed to the Lord to see your godly faces and I have persevered in prayer until I have been granted this — for I hope to greet you, as a prisoner in Christ Jesus, if only I am found worthy to reach the end of my journey. Things have begun well and all now depends on my receiving the grace to reach my goal and receive my inheritance unhindered. But I fear your love for me and I fear the harm it can do me: it is so easy for you to do what you want and so hard for me to reach God if you do not spare me your help. You habitually do what pleases God: do what pleases him now and not what pleases men. I shall never a better opportunity of reaching God, and you will never have the opportunity of performing a better act than now, by keeping silence. If you remain silent, I shall become the word of God; but if your love of my physical life makes you speak, I shall be nothing but a meaningless cry. Grant me nothing more than this: that I should be poured out to God, while an altar is still ready for me. Form yourselves into a chorus of love and sing praise to the Father in Christ Jesus for permitting this bishop of Syria to be summoned from the place of the sun’s rising to the sunset lands. Just as the sun sets only to rise again, how good it is to set to this world, to set and then to rise in God. |
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| Hymn | Te Deum |
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| God, we praise you; Lord, we proclaim you! You, the Father, the eternal – all the earth venerates you. All the angels, all the heavens, every power – The cherubim, the seraphim – unceasingly, they cry: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts: heaven and earth are full of the majesty of your glory!” The glorious choir of Apostles – The noble ranks of prophets – The shining army of martyrs – all praise you. Throughout the world your holy Church proclaims you. – Father of immeasurable majesty, – True Son, only-begotten, worthy of worship, – Holy Spirit, our Advocate. You, Christ: – You are the king of glory. – You are the Father’s eternal Son. – You, to free mankind, did not disdain a Virgin’s womb. – You defeated the sharp spear of Death, and opened the kingdom of heaven to those who believe in you. – You sit at God’s right hand, in the glory of the Father. – You will come, so we believe, as our Judge. And so we ask of you: give help to your servants, whom you set free at the price of your precious blood. Number them among your chosen ones in eternal glory. Bring your people to safety, Lord, and bless those who are your inheritance. Rule them and lift them high for ever. Day by day we bless you, Lord: we praise you for ever and for ever. Of your goodness, Lord, keep us without sin for today. Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us. Let your pity, Lord, be upon us, as much as we trust in you. In you, Lord, I trust: let me never be put to shame. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Concluding Prayer |
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| O God, all good things come from you. We ask you to grant us these gifts: that inspired by you, our thoughts may be righteous; that guided by you, our actions may match our thoughts. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen. |
Collect: Lord Jesus Christ, you gave us the Eucharist as the memorial of your suffering and death. May our worship of this sacrament of your body and blood help us to experience the salvation you won for us and the peace of the kingdom where you live with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ:
"While they were eating, He took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to them, and said, 'Take it; this is my body.' Then He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, 'This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.'"
Where the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ is not observed as a holy day, it is assigned to the Sunday after Trinity Sunday, which is then considered its proper day in the calendar.
"How inestimable a dignity, beloved brethren, divine bounty has bestowed upon us Christians from the treasury of its infinite goodness! For there neither is nor ever has been a people to whom the gods were so nigh as our Lord and God is nigh unto us."
"Desirous that we be made partakers of His divinity, the only-begotten Son of God has taken to Himself our nature so that having become man, He would be enabled to make men gods. Whatever He assumed of our nature He wrought unto our salvation. For on the altar of the Cross He immolated to the Father His own Body as victim for our reconciliation and shed His blood both for our ransom and for our regeneration. Moreover, in order that a remembrance of so great benefits may always be with us, He has left us His Body as food and His Blood as drink under appearances of bread and wine."
"O banquet most precious! O banquet most admirable! O banquet overflowing with every spiritual delicacy! Can anything be more excellent than this repast, in which not the flesh of goats and heifers, as of old, but Christ the true God is given us for nourishment? What more wondrous than this holy sacrament! In it bread and wine are changed substantially, and under the appearance of a little bread and wine is had Christ Jesus, God and perfect Man. In this sacrament sins are purged away, virtues are increased, the soul is satiated with an abundance of every spiritual gift. No other sacrament is so beneficial. Since it was instituted unto the salvation of all, it is offered by Holy Church for the living and for the dead, that all may share in its treasures."
"My dearly beloved, is it not beyond human power to express the ineffable delicacy of this sacrament in which spiritual sweetness is tasted in its very source, in which is brought to mind the remembrance of that all-excelling charity which Christ showed in His sacred passion? Surely it was to impress more profoundly upon the hearts of the faithful the immensity of this charity that our loving Savior instituted this sacrament at the last supper when, having celebrated the Pasch with His disciples. He was about to leave the world and return to the Father. It was to serve as an unending remembrance of His passion, as the fulfillment of ancient types — this the greatest of His miracles. To those who sorrow over His departure He has given a unique solace."
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An Unsuspected Meal
Matthew Reinhardt, Consecrated Member of Regnum Christi
Petition: Lord, grant me the grace to appreciate more deeply your presence in the Eucharist. 1. A Person, Not a Crowd Envision Jesus preaching to a crowd by the Lake of Galilee. The lake is a deep blue, surrounded by grassy rolling hills, and Our Lord is dressed in a distinguished white tunic. Maybe I can imagine I am there listening to his words. Glance at his Heart, and see that his love for each one of us in this crowd is so great that speaking to us and healing us alone does not satisfy him fully. He wants to prove his love is personal by feeding us. He wants to feed me. 2. Real Bread from Heaven Christ’s desire to feed the crowd by the lake becomes a complete reality in the Last Supper when he institutes the feast the Church celebrates today: the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. Number 1374 of The Catechism of the Catholic Church states “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.” The love Christ has for me is so great that he no longer feeds me with the five loaves and two fish, but with his own Body and Blood. 3. The Food of a Saint Have you ever gone a day without food or maybe just missed breakfast? By the end of the day you feel pretty weak. Number 1394 of the Catechism states, “As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity.” The Eucharist feeds our soul and strengthens us to live charity and become holy. With Christ as our food in the Eucharist, nothing can stop us in our fight to become a saint. Conversation with Christ: I love you, Lord, for your Eucharist – this great gift of yourself – for, when you had nothing else to give, you left us your own body, to love us to the end in an overwhelming show of love that makes our hearts tremble with love, gratitude, and respect. Resolution: When I receive Communion today, I will eliminate all distractions and listen deeply to the message Christ wants to tell me. Then I will share this message with someone today. |
O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 117 (118) |
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| A cry of rejoicing and triumph |
| Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, and his kindness is for ever. Now let Israel say, he is good and his kindness is for ever. Now let the house of Aaron say it too: that his kindness is for ever. Now let all who fear the Lord say it too: that his kindness is for ever. In my time of trial I called out to the Lord: he listened, and led me to freedom. The Lord is with me, I will fear nothing that man can do. The Lord, my help, is with me, and I shall look down upon my enemies. It is good to seek shelter in the Lord, better than to trust in men. It is good to seek shelter in the Lord, better than to trust in the leaders of men. All the nations surrounded me, and in the Lord’s name I slew them. They crowded in and besieged me, and in the Lord’s name I slew them. They surrounded me like swarms of bees, they burned like a fire of dry thorns, and in the Lord’s name I slew them. They chased and pursued me, to make me fall, and the Lord came to my help. The Lord is my strength and my rejoicing: he has become my saviour. A cry of joy and salvation in the dwellings of the righteous: “The Lord’s right hand has triumphed! The Lord’s right hand has raised me up; the Lord’s right hand has triumphed”. I shall not die, but live, and tell of the works of the Lord. The Lord chastised me severely but did not let me die. Open the gates of righteousness: I will go in, and thank the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord; it is the upright who enter here. I will thank you, for you listened to me, and became my saviour. The stone that the builders rejected has become the corner-stone. It was the Lord who did this – it is marvellous to behold. This is the day that was made by the Lord: let us rejoice today, and be glad. Lord, keep me safe; O Lord, let me prosper! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, he shines upon us! Arrange the procession, with close-packed branches, up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, I will give thanks to you; my God, I will give you praise. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, and his kindness is for ever. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Canticle | Daniel 3 |
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| Let every creature praise the Lord | |
| Blessed are you, Lord God of our fathers, praised and exalted for ever. Blessed is the holy name of your glory praised above all things and exalted for ever. Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory praised and glorious above all things for ever. Blessed are you who gaze on the depths, seated on the cherubim, praised and exalted for ever. Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven praised and glorious for ever. Bless the Lord, all his works, praise and exalt him for ever. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Psalm 150 |
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| Praise the Lord |
| Praise the Lord in his sanctuary, praise him in his mighty firmament. Praise him for his mighty deeds, praise him for all his greatness. Praise him with trumpet-blasts, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dance, praise him with strings and pipes, praise him with cymbals resounding, praise him with cymbals of jubilation. All that breathes, praise the Lord! Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Short reading | Ezekiel 36:25 - 27 © |
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| I shall pour clean water over you and you will be cleansed; I shall cleanse you of all your defilement and all your idols. I shall give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead. I shall put my spirit in you, and make you keep my laws and sincerely respect my observances. | |
| Canticle | Benedictus |
|---|---|
| The Messiah and his forerunner | |
| Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption. He has raised up the sign of salvation in the house of his servant David, as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones, his prophets through the ages: to rescue us from our enemies and all who hate us, to take pity on our fathers, to remember his holy covenant and the oath he swore to Abraham our father, that he would give himself to us, that we could serve him without fear – freed from the hands of our enemies – in uprightness and holiness before him, for all of our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High: for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path, to let his people know their salvation, so that their sins may be forgiven. Through the bottomless mercy of our God, one born on high will visit us to give light to those who walk in darkness, who live in the shadow of death; to lead our feet in the path of peace. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those that trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. |
| O God, all good things come from you. We ask you to grant us these gifts: that inspired by you, our thoughts may be righteous; that guided by you, our actions may match our thoughts. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen. |
| May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life. |
| A M E N |
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| Other Articles by Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph. D. Printer Friendly Version |
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| Are You Receiving What Jesus Is Offering? | ||
Gn 14:-20 / 1 Cor 11:23-26 / Lk 9:11-17
A little boy was peering up at a full moon, when he asked, "Mom, is God in the moon?"
"Yes, Billy," she replied. "God is everywhere."
"Is he in that flower over there?"
"Yes, he is, son."
"Well, is God in my tummy?"
"Yeeesss," said his mother, not sure where this was leading.
"Mom," said Billy, "God wants a ice cream cone!"
+ + +
Little children aren't the only ones who get hungry. We're all hungry in so many ways. And ice cream cones and big rare steaks can fill our some of empty places for quite awhile. But our really big hungers are for more than that. Our big hungers are for love that lasts, for friendships that won't go away, and for someone special to comfort us when we're sad and hold our hand when we die.
Jesus is the only one who can satisfy those really big hungers. He's our brother, and He gave us His own Body and His own Blood to be food for our journey and medicine to heal our hearts.
Will this powerful medicine and this holy food that we receive at every Mass actually heal us and make us strong? Or will it just pass through us — like a Big Mac — and disappear without a trace? It all depends on us.
If Jesus finds an open, trusting heart when He comes to us, He'll be able to get inside us and heal the parts of us that are hurt. He'll be able to comfort the parts of us that are sad, lonely, or afraid. And He'll be able to make us strong and full of energy for life.
In just a little while, at communion time, Jesus will come to the door of each of our hearts and ask us to let Him in. Will He find us too distracted or too busy to notice Him? Will we brush Him off so that He passes by without leaving a trace? Or will we invite Him in and spend some time with Him, listen to what He has to tell us and feel His touch which changes everything?
Just a few minutes after communion we'll all march out of church. Some of us will be changed — happier, fuller, more at peace, with more energy for life. And some of us will not.
Which will we be, the "haves" or the "have-nots"? It all depends on us.
Great Feast Day! - thank you for your posts.
Blessed be God.
Blessed be His Holy Name.
Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true Man.
Blessed be the Name of Jesus.
Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.
Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.
Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.
Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most Holy.
Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception.
Blessed be her Glorious Assumption.
Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.
Blessed be St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse.
Blessed be God in His Angels and in His Saints. Amen.
To Jesus hidden in the Most Blessed Sacrament
by Saint Faustina Kowalska
“I adore You, Lord and Creator, hidden in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I adore You for all the works of Your hands, that reveal to me so much wisdom, goodness and mercy, O Lord.
You have spread so much beauty over the earth and it tells me about Your beauty, even though these beautiful things are but a faint reflection of You, incomprehensible Beauty.
And although You have hidden Yourself and concealed your beauty, my eye, enlightened by faith, reaches You and my souls recognizes its Creator, its Highest Good, and my heart is completely immersed in prayer of adoration.”
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