Corpus Christi -- Year A

First: Dt 8:2-13.14-16; Second: 1 Cor 10:16-17; Gospel: Jn 6:51-58

THEME of the READINGS

Manna, bread (flesh) and wine (blood) are words abundantly used this Sunday when we celebrate the solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. According to Deuteronomy (first reading), Moses says to the people: "Yahweh your God … fed you with manna which neither you nor your fathers had known." Jesus says in the Gospel: "I am the living bread which has come down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world." For his part, Paul tells the Corinthians in his First Letter to them: "the bread that we break is a communion with the body of Christ" (second reading).

DOCTRinal MESSAGE

Among the various aspects of Catholic doctrine we could examine, I would like to focus on what is, in the Eucharist, an unknown food.

The manna in the desert or the bread of the Eucharist is a bread unknown to man. This means that it is a bread that is not within the human being’s power to produce to satisfy his hunger when he feels the need. In other words, it is God, and only he, who grants it. Therefore it is not a bread that is available to our every whim, one more object of our passing fancy, however "religious" this may seem. It is only available to our humble prayer, to our sincere cry for our great lack and our acute and urgent need. 

It is also an unknown bread, for it did not exist and its effects were unknown. Manna did not exist for the Israelites during their stay in Egypt, only in the desert did God give it to them so that they would not die of hunger on their way to the promised land. The Eucharist did not exist before Jesus instituted it at the Last Supper, and made it the most holy instrument of his personal presence among men. Its effects are extraordinary: "A sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a paschal banquet in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace and a pledge of future glory is given to us" (Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 47).

The knowledge in question is a complete knowledge, involving our intellect as much as our experience and our heart, so that it will flow into our actions. With regard to experience, we must come to appreciate and savor the rare and extraordinary value of this food God grants us. With our experience of it, we must come to know all the theological, spiritual and moral riches that this food contains. But it is in no way possible to do without the knowledge of the heart, through an immense loving harmony with those who give us this food and with those who give us Jesus Christ our Lord as food. With this integral knowledge of the Eucharist, we will feel compelled to partake in it fervently and frequently and will succeed in forming one body, in common faith and reciprocal love. Whoever manages to know the Eucharist with all his being, will certainly live by the Eucharist and produce works of the Eucharist: unity, communion, spiritual strength, holiness of life, apostolic zeal, intimacy with God, etc.

PASTOral SUGGESTIONS

To know the Eucharist. An ongoing and regular catechesis is necessary, through homilies, religion classes, personal contacts, so that an integral knowledge of the bread of life will constitute the underlying basis of Christian piety whose summit and source is the Eucharist. I will emphasize several aspects of this knowledge: 1) one aspect is the real presence of Jesus in the tabernacle, and as a result respect and the feeling of sacredness inside a church. Churches are and must be places of prayer, silence, recollection, and worship, an encounter with God. What an immense task must be done to make the faithful know and live this aspect of the Eucharist! 2) Then there is a theological explanation of the fruits of the Eucharist, but in a simple, clear, exemplified and convincing way. After the explanation, one can speak of promoting visits to the Eucharist, especially early in the morning and at the end of the afternoon, to offer Jesus Christ all the hours of work and thank him for his help and comfort. We can encourage exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and adoration. Then we can speak of the transforming power of the Eucharist in those who receive it with rectitude and fervor. 3) Lastly, there is preparation for the fruitful reception of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. This preparation should cover reception of the sacrament of reconciliation, if the person is in a sinful state, reading and meditation on the word of God, as well as forgiveness, reconciliation and the service of one’s brothers and sisters.

To rid oneself of obstacles which impede the knowledge of the living bread, which gives life to the world. Sometimes, the first obstacle can be the temptation to reduce food to pure physical and material needs, alienating or dispensing with any other sort of food. Those who are nourished on earthly realities alone cannot rise to knowledge of the bread of heaven, to them it will seem a meaningless language lacking in value. Another possible difficulty is to make reception of the Eucharist "a social custom," as congratulating newly married couples at their wedding can be, or going to a friend’s birthday party. The Eucharist is certainly a social event, that is, an ecclesial event, but it is above all a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. Particularly for men, human respect or what will be said, fear of the opinion of others can be a substantial difficulty. Almost as if the Eucharist were a womanly thing! Isn’t it a sign of masculinity to work from conviction and to pay no attention to the opinion of others?

Source: http://www.clerus.org/clerus/dati/2004-05/21-13/CICLOA.html by P. ANTONIO IZQUIERDO L.C. (1948-2013)

[참고: 이 파일은 저서명 "가톨릭 교회의 말씀 전례에 따른 성경공부 해설서"(엮은이: 소순태, 출판사: 가톨릭출판사)의 각주의 연장으로 마련되었습니다].