THE MOST HOLY BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST
3 JUNE 2018
Blood
was a very powerful sign for the people of ancient Israel. They regarded blood as sacred. When God entered the Covenant at Mount Sinai
with the people he had freed from slavery, Moses used the blood of bulls to
seal the Covenant. He took half of the
blood and poured it over the Altar, signifying that his people were now blood
relatives with God. Then he took the
other half of the blood and sprinkled it on the people, signifying that they
were blood relatives with one another as God’s chosen people. This sprinkling of blood is very strange to
our modern sensibilities. As I watched
people recoil from the sprinkling of holy water at the beginning of all the
Masses during the Easter Season, the prospect of Deacon Lou gleefully showering
everyone with the blood of bulls would be preposterous.
We need to
consider the important symbolism of blood to understand what Jesus is doing at
the Last Supper. Jesus is clearly in
charge as he gathers the disciples to eat the final Passover Meal with
him. He sends two of them to find the place
where they will celebrate the meal, giving as a sign the man carrying a water
jar. They could not miss a sign like
this, because carrying water jars is something women do. Once they gather at table, they immediately
recognize the ancient rituals of the Passover Meal. Although Saint Mark does not mention the
exact foods, Jesus would have shared the symbolic foods and reminded them of
God’s saving action in freeing his people from slavery in Egypt. But then, Jesus makes a radical departure
from the traditional Passover meal. He
takes bread, says the blessing, breaks it, and gives it to them. Then he takes an extra cup, gives thanks,
gives it to them, and they all drink from it.
He shifts their attention from the
Covenant sealed with the blood of bulls at Mount Sinai to the new Covenant that
will be sealed with his blood on Mount Calvary.
He takes the old symbols and applies new meaning to them. He will become the Passover Lamb. His blood will be poured out to free the
people of the New Covenant from sin and death.
As the Letter to the Hebrews reminds us, the tabernacle made of stones
on Mount Zion in Jerusalem has been replaced with the tabernacle of the Body of
Christ. The one sacrifice of Jesus
Christ is made present every time we celebrate the Eucharist in his memory.
That is exactly what we do at this
Mass and every Mass. At this Mass, we
will take gifts of bread and wine at the Preparation of the Altar and
Gifts. The celebrant will lead the
assembly in blessing (praising) the Father in the Eucharistic Prayer for the
sacrifice of Jesus made present as we remember. As we chant the “Lamb of God,” we break the
consecrated Host and give the Body and Blood of Christ to all who walk in
procession to the Altar.
Many centuries ago, Saint Augustine
taught about the Eucharist when he offered these time-honored insights: “So now, if you want to understand the body
of Christ, listen to the Apostle Paul speaking … ‘You are the body of Christ,
member for member’ (1 Cor. 12:27) … You are saying ‘Amen’ to what you are: your
response is a personal signature, affirming your faith. … Be a member of
Christ’s body, then, so that your ‘Amen’ may ring true!”
With Saint Augustine’s words in our
heads, we approach the Holy Eucharist admitting that we are not worthy for the
Lord to enter under our roof. In saying
“Amen”, we affirm our conviction that we are receiving the Body and Blood of
the Lord under the form of bread and wine.
We also affirm our conviction that every Eucharist received in an open-hearted, mindful, humble, and prayerful way forms us just a little more into our true identity: members of the Body of Christ, washed clean
by his blood.
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