June 19, 2022, The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Year C)
Today we celebrate the feast known as The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. Of course, the title of this feast and the mention of the body and blood of Christ bring to mind the topic for which they stand, the Eucharist, the body and blood of Jesus offered as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins. But there is no mention of the institution narrative of the Eucharist at the Last Supper in the Gospel for today (Lk. 9:11b-17). Rather it is alluded to in some manner in all the readings, which taken together provide background for this very important Sacrament of our faith.
In the First Reading (Gen. 14:18-20) we hear about Melchizedek, king of Salem, an elusive character from the Old Testament, found way back in the book of Genesis, the very first book of the Bible. This story serves as a precursor to the Eucharist as it involves the blessing of bread and wine as a gift. It revolves around the victory of Abraham in a battle with several kings in the area of the Dead Sea, while at the same time rescuing his nephew, Lot from captivity.
Melchizedek, who is both a priest and king of Salem, which later becomes Jerusalem, brings out bread and wine as an honor to Abraham for his victory. Melchizedek blesses Abraham with these words, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, the creator of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who delivered your foes into your hand.” (Gen. 14:19-20).
This blessing shows that Melchizedek is a believer in the same God as Abraham, and it is this gift of the bread and wine from the priest Melchizedek which serves as a forerunner to the Eucharist. In response to this blessing, it is said that Abraham, in acknowledging a certain superiority in Melchizedek, gives him a tenth of everything, a process known as tithing which is still practiced by some Christians today.
Melchizedek is mentioned only a few other times in the Bible and one of these times also happens to be in our Psalm for today. It is a royal psalm believed to honor King David who has conquered his enemies and thus is honored for his greatness as king and “priest forever, in the line of Melchizedek” (Ps. 110:1). The author of the book of Hebrews in the New Testament also mentions Melchizedek describing Jesus as being “one who remains forever, in a priesthood, which does not pass away.” (Heb. 7:24).
We can see Jesus being projected as this priest in the Gospel for today (Lk 9:11b-17) with his distribution of bread to the crowds which have followed him. His disciples tell Jesus that he should dismiss the people so that they can go to area towns to find lodging and provisions. But Jesus tells them, “Give them some food yourselves.” (Lk. 9:13). At this point, with merely five loaves and two fish, Jesus performs a miracle by multiplying this meager amount of food into a quantity capable of feeding five thousand men and their families. The gestures that Jesus performs reminds us of the actions of a priest at consecration. He takes, blesses, breaks, and has the bread distributed to the people.
Finally, we come to the Second Reading for today (1 Cor 11:23-26) in which Paul explicitly describes the way in which the tradition of the Eucharist was passed on to him as a post-resurrection memoir. Paul conveys the scenario: “I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread, and, after he had given thanks, broke it and said, ‘This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way also 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.’” (1Cor. 11:23-25).
This process of consecrating the bread and wine and converting them to the body and blood of Jesus is something which the Church has continued to do for nearly two thousand years. We might say that the Eucharist, also known as Holy Communion, is the most important of all the sacraments. It completes the Sacraments of Initiation and is available on a daily basis for the forgiveness of sins.
In this Sacrament, the bread and wine we receive at communion are changed in substance (though not in appearance) in the process of Transubstantiation thereby making the real presence of Christ available to those who receive it. Jesus first introduced the Eucharist as his body and blood in the passage from the Gospel of John which we find in the acclamation for today, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven, says the Lord; whoever eats this bread will live forever.” (Jn. 6:51).
This proclamation by Jesus stunned and shocked many of his followers. They had a hard time accepting the concept of eating and drinking the body and blood of Jesus. It does, after all, project a sense of cannibalism. At this point, many of the followers of Christ rejected him. But his chosen twelve remained faithful to him. When Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” (Jn. 6:67b), Peter responded as the spokesman for the group, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” (Jn. 6:68-69).
Jesus’ speech in this passage which is called The Bread of Life Discourse led to division among his followers at that time. In fact, today we still experience this same division, even among Catholics. Many have not heard nor understand the concept of transfiguration. Others believe that Jesus is somehow present spiritually, but not physically in the Eucharist. Some believe that the bread and wine are a mere symbol. And others consider it to be a holy remembrance of the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross.
The reality, of course, is that this change, this transubstantiation, does take place. The bread and wine offered at Holy Mass become, by the power and priesthood of Jesus Christ, his own body and blood. Those of us who believe and receive the Eucharist as the true presence of Christ, become heirs to this promise of Jesus, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.” (Jn. 6:54).
