Homily: Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
Mark 14:12-16, 22-26
2 June 2024
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez
When I was still a religious in formation, one of my assigned tasks was to work with a community in the Northern Philippines for their relocation because they lived in danger zones — on the banks of the Cagayan River. I remember that in each trip I always found myself carrying more bags on my return compared to one backpack on my way there. [I had calamansi, camote, peanuts, fried dinuguan, etc. as pasalubong/pabaon.] Generosity is one virtue that we experience among people in the province. At times I felt like they literally took whatever they had and gave it all to me. Their acts of kindness and generous sharing exemplify the message of today’s Scripture readings and the significance of today’s celebration.
This Sunday we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, traditionally called in Latin as the feast of Corpus Christi (The Body of Christ). We celebrate with great joy Christ’s total self-giving through the Eucharist — His giving us of His Body and Blood. This is not just a simple sharing of what one has but rather an ultimate act of total self-giving. We often hear people say that we have not truly given of ourselves until it hurts.” When we love, it is painful! We are broken. It entails sacrifices. Sometimes it means swallowing our pride.
Our faith teaches us that every time we come to mass, the bread and wine we offer as a sacrifice, become the body and blood of Jesus Christ. It is not just a symbol or a representation but it IS! To be honest, we do not see the host turn into a living, bleeding human flesh, as Jesus would have appeared as He was sacrificed on the cross. Perhaps this is why some people have a difficulty showing respect and reverence when they receive communion. We have to mentally, emotionally and physically prepare to receive Jesus Christ, our Lord. We dress decently, observe the one-hour fast, attend the mass (we don’t just show up for communion and go), and properly receive the Lord. When the priest or minister says “The Body of Christ”, what do we say? The proper response is “Amen” not “Thank you”, “Okay” nor even “I love you Jesus”. We receive the host with reverence (we can bow if we can) and receive Jesus on our tongue or in clean hands. We make sure to consume the host IMMEDIATELTY. It is not for takeout or to “save for later”. It is very important that we respond to this special experience as though Jesus, Himself were standing in front of us saying, “I have died to save you from your sins, that you may have eternal life!”
In acknowledging and honouring the wonderful gift of the Eucharist, we are also made to reflect on the implication of this gift of spiritual nourishment in our lives. St Augustine once said “If we receive the Eucharist worthily, we become what we receive.” In receiving communion, we receive Jesus and we have this opportunity to become more like Jesus. As we are nourished by Jesus through the Eucharist, we are also challenged to become more and more a source of nourishment for others. We are impelled to live the Christ-life by going out in service to the needs of others. This way our Lord Jesus Christ can continually be present and active among us.
When we receive Holy Communion and enter into this most intimate union with Christ, we are also most intimately united with one another. Being one with Jesus, we cannot simply turn our backs to those in need among us. Being one with Jesus, we cannot hold back forgiveness from people who ask for our forgiveness. Being one with Jesus, we choose to be understanding and encouraging instead of being negative and critical. To be one with Jesus is to be united in His family, the Church. As family, we cannot turn our backs on each other.
Brothers and sisters, as we value this precious gift of the Eucharist in our lives, may we always strive to be a source of nourishment for our brothers and sisters. This our gift and our challenge!
Sunday Gospel Reflections 