This past weekend I had the pleasure of making my pastoral
visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe, where on Saturday I had the honor of confirming
36 men and women. On Sunday, we celebrated the ancient feast of Corpus Christi,
also known as the Most Blessed Body and Blood of Jesus Christ - in other words,
a celebration of the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist.
Corpus Christi reminds us of Christ’s real presence in the
Holy Eucharist. How he is present remains a mystery, save by the power of the
Holy Spirit working through the instrument of the priest and the gathering of
the faithful people. This is not a new teaching, but rather comes from the
earliest days of the Church. St. Paul addressed the people of the church in
Corinth saying:
“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you,
that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he
had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do
this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper,
saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you
drink it, in remembrance of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:23-25 ESV)
It is precisely because of Jesus’ presence in the sacrament
that St. Paul gives this warning to those who would receive Holy Eucharist in
an unworthy manner:
“Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the
Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the
Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of
the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and
drinks judgment on himself.” (1 Corinthians 11:27-29 ESV)
For this reason, only those disciples of Jesus who are
baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity, who have examined their lives, and
who have repented of their sins are invited to receive Holy Eucharist.
This does not mean that all are not welcome at the altar of
the Lord. Just the opposite: we are all sinners in need of salvation, and so we
invite all people to the altar for a blessing, whether or not they are not
baptized believing Christians.
In the second century, St. Justin Martyr wrote of Christ’s
presence in the sacrament:
"This food we call the Eucharist, of which no one is
allowed to partake except one who believes that the things we teach are true,
and has received the washing for forgiveness of sins and for rebirth, and who
lives as Christ handed down to us. For we do not receive these things as common
bread or common drink; but as Jesus Christ our Savior being incarnate by God's
Word took flesh and blood for our salvation, so also we have been taught that
the food consecrated by the Word of prayer which comes from him, from which our
flesh and blood are nourished by transformation, is the flesh and blood of that
incarnate Jesus." (First Apology of Justin Martyr, Ch. 66)
Catechism Questions: 292-294
292. What does it mean that a Sabbath rest remains for the
people of God?
When the Church is perfected in Christ, all believers will
be completely free from sin and its curse, and established in an eternity of
love, adoration, and joy. This will be our unending Sabbath rest. (Isaiah 66:
22-23; Romans 8:18-30; 1 Corinthians 15; Hebrews 4)
293. How do you celebrate this Sabbath rest with the Church
now?
I join in the Church’s weekly worship and participation in
God’s heavenly rest, which brings order, meaning, and holiness to the other six
days of the week. (Hebrews 4:9-10; Colossians 2:16-19)
294. Why does the Church worship on the first day of the
week rather than the seventh?
The Church worships on the first day of the week
in remembrance of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ on the first day of
the week. (Matthew 28:1
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