This is my Body, my Blood!

Feast of Corpus Christi (Yr. C)

Reflection

o The Feast of Corpus Christi focuses on the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. It is a Memorial of the Holy Thursday Last Supper, the institution of the Holy Eucharist. It is a celebration of the real presence of Christ in the bread and wine, which testify to our understanding of Christ in our lives.

o It is a celebration of the generosity of God to us, in offering His Son as food to satisfy our spiritual and material hunger as we journey to life.

o A huge crowd had followed Jesus and were hungry, Jesus fed the thousands; a reminder of the works of generosity to others.

o The multiplication of the loaves is greater miracle of Eucharistic bread in our present celebration of Eucharist today.

Commentaries and Exegesis

• The story of how Jesus feed the multitude, as told by Luke, prefigures the ministry of the apostles in the Christian Community. The actions of Jesus in taking, blessing, breaking and distributing the food would become the Eucharistic actions.

• The gospel narrative of Luke presents the miracle of Jesus multiplying loaves of bread as a foreshadowing of the miracle of the Eucharist. St. Paul’s Letter to the Corinthians recalls the Last Supper when Jesus broke the bread with his disciples and assured them. “This is my Body which is for you”.

• The breaking of the bread was one of the cornerstones of the early community.

• Bread is the symbol of the outreach of God to his children in welcome, enlightenment, healing and sustaining.

Points for Homily

o The bread turned into the Body of Christ satisfies all human hunger.

o The wine changed into Blood of Christ cleanses all our sins because of the out-pouring of God’s love.

o The both Body and Blood of Christ are available to us whenever the Mass is said.

Homily Outline

I. Introduction

A. Attention – Getter

This is my Body! This is my Blood! Do this in memory of me.(with image projected) These are the very words of Jesus at the evening of Last Supper, which we celebrate during Holy Thursday, the institution of the Holy Eucharist.

B. Relevance

These words are also the same words that we hear week after week as we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. Apart from these celebrations, once a year the Church liturgy, allotted a day to celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, for us to pause and ponder the riches of this Mystery of our Faith.

C. Lead – In

Why Body? Why Blood? How can Jesus give his body and blood for us to eat and drink? Is it really the question of how or why? Let me give you reasons to clarify the questions Why Body and Why Blood?

II. BODY

A. Main Points:

1. The bread turned into the Body of Christ satisfies all human hunger.

a. Scriptural support: “This is my Body, which is for you.”

b. Supporting Materials:

Jesus changed bread into his own body for us to eat. Why? The second reading speaks to us as the memorial of the Last Supper; where Jesus is the “Wonder Bread of the Altar”. When we look this Bread of Life, Jesus wanted us to know that he is with us to satisfy our hungers. There is the hunger for ordinary bread; unless this is satisfied, a person will always be in anguish. There is the hunger for meaning; unless this is satisfied a person will always remain dissatisfied. That is why Jesus in His lifetime, offered to people various bread to satisfy their different hungers. Those thousands of people who followed him, he offered them bread to satisfy their longing, the leper whose body was falling apart, he offered the bread of physical healing, to Mary Magdalene, a public sinner, the bread of forgiveness, the lonely woman in Jacob’s well, the bread of companionship, to Zacchaeus, the bread of conversion and to the thief, the bread of reconciliation with God. It is this Jesus we see and whose flesh we eat in the Eucharist.

c. Transition: Why Blood? What is so significant to it?

B. The wine changed into Blood of Christ cleanses all our sins because of the out-pouring of God’s love.

a. Scriptural Support: This is my Blood! Do this in remembrance of me.

b. Supporting Materials:

Jesus changed wine into His own Blood for us to drink. Why? When we drink this blood; he wanted us to know that our sins are forgiven. When we drink this blood, Jesus wants us all to remember that the history of humanity has been a long story of wars, terrorism and sufferings, of bloodshed and injustices and yet God loved this humanity- aggressive, greed, power – hunger and often feeding on the blood of fellow human beings mostly the innocents, the week and the silent one. And yet God love this human being so much that he shed the blood of His own Son, so that bloodthirsty men could come to their senses.

III. Conclusion

A. Creative Summary

On this day, Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, we are being reminded of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Our gospel reading foreshadow that we are the symbol of the five thousand people who followed him, need of something to satisfy our hunger, whom Jesus invited to settle down in this place, to sit down, to stop and consider the great miracle of God in the celebration of the Eucharist. To witness the beauty of Jesus’ actions of blessing, breaking, taking and sharing of His BODY and BLOOD. Until we will say at the end of the celebration, “we all ate to our hearts content.”

B. Memorable ending

Why Body? Why Blood?

Do we need to ask WHY?

Jesus stated it clearly…

This is my Body! This is my Blood!

Do this in memory of me.