Feast of Corpus Christi celebrates real presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist

June 20, 2019, marks the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, also known as the Feast of Corpus Christi, which translates from Latin to “Body of Christ.” This feast celebrates the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist, a central mystery of the Catholic Faith. 

The feast points to the love of God for all of us. We see this love fully expressed in Jesus who gave his body and blood for us as the memorial of his sacrifice on the cross. The gift of his love transforms us into his body – the Church. The feast celebrates, therefore, both Christ’s gift of himself in the Eucharist and us who are his body – the Church.

The Church gives us a rich treasury of wisdom to help us understand the meaning of the Eucharist. 

In Luke’s Gospel we read: “When the hour came, Jesus took his place at table and the apostles with him. And he said to them, ‘I was eager to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for, I tell you, I shall not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.’ … Jesus also took bread, and after giving thanks, he broke it and gave it to them saying, ‘This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ And he did the same with the cup after eating, ‘This cup is the new covenant, sealed in my blood which is poured out for you.’” (Lk 22:14-20)

Thomas Aquinas writes that “the Eucharist is the greatest of Jesus Christ’s miracles.” St. Peter Julian Eymard said, “the Eucharist…is the permanent incarnation, the perpetual sacrifice of Jesus, the burning bush that is always on fire on the altar, the true bread of life that daily descends from heaven.”

And the Second Vatican Council affirms that “the most Holy Eucharist contains the Church’s entire spiritual wealth: Christ himself, our Passover and living bread. Through his own flesh, now made living and life-giving by the Holy Spirit, he offers life to all people.”

John has his own way of speaking about Jesus in the Eucharist. He narrates that Jesus presents himself as “bread of life” and explains how he can be the bread of life: “The bread I shall give is my flesh and I will give it for the life of the world …” (Jn 6:51b). 

St. John Chrysostom comments on this: “We are his very body. In fact, what is the bread? The body of Christ. And what becomes of those who eat of this bread? They become the body of Christ, not several bodies, but one sole body. In fact, just as the bread is made of many grains (of wheat) but is so united that you no longer see the grains .., in the same way, we are closely joined together with one another and with Christ.”

God in his immense love remained with us in the Eucharist to give us life. We, in turn, are called to be his witness to others individually and as his body – the Church. We do so by celebrating his memorial of sacrificial love in the Mass, by adoring him in the tabernacle and by sharing with others our faith through witness to His words. These are all important elements. And yet, God asks of us even more. God wants us to love one another with his same measure, which brings the presence of Christ among us, Christ living in us - his mystical body. Let us aim to live like this. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to accompany us on this journey so that the world might believe.