June 6, 2021: Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ/Corpus Christi

We recently observed Memorial Day and today is the anniversary of D-Day and the end of the Battle of Midway.  Perhaps those occasions are a fitting backdrop of our celebration of the great sacrifice at is at the heart of our Roman Catholic Christian life.

At a meal with the disciples, which He eagerly desired to share with them as the Gospel of St. Luke recounts, Jesus Christ instituted a new covenant.  It was built on the foundation of the covenant God established with His people when He delivered them from slavery in Egypt and gave them the Law, celebrated by that Passover meal.

Moses splashed blood on the altar and sprinkled it on the people as a sign that they were going to enter into a life-giving relationship with God, the people having consented to do as God commanded.

That covenant commanded sacrifices of animals for atonement for sin.  Then, Christ came, and, at the commemorative Passover meal, offered Himself, pouring out His body and blood to free us completely from sin and make us right before God.  This great gift furthermore brought us into deep, intimate union with our God Who loves us so much.

When we gather at Mass, we have the extraordinary opportunity to encounter our Living God Who has offered Himself to us so that we may share in His life, and live transformed to be a blessing to the world.

We have indeed received a great gift, which calls us to live to be a gift to others in the model of Christ.