This weekend we celebrate the great feast
of Corpus
Christi
Over the centuries different aspects of the
Eucharist have been emphasized: personal thanksgiving, adoration, the sacrifice
of Jesus, sharing a meal, etc.
I like the way St Paul writes about it to
the Corinthians. He told them off for eating their own food in a hurry and as a
consequence some went hungry, whilst others got drunk! He tells them what he
taught them, i.e. “that on the same night that Jesus was betrayed he 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’.” (1 Cor. 11: 23-25). Paul
tells them: Jesus didn’t eat his own meal. Instead he took bread, broke it and
gave it away.
Actually he gave himself away, because he
said, “This is my body for you”. The message is: Let us break
the bread in order to give it to others. To me that means that at the end of
the Eucharistic celebration the Mass is not ended, but that we bring what we
have received, i.e. Jesus and his values, to others. That would be a very
worthy celebration of Corpus Christi.
Fr Piet Wijngaard, O.Carm.
