Lets Eat Together

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
May 25, 2008
Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a
Psalms 147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20
1 Corinthians 10:16-17; John 6:51-58

Whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.

We celebrate today the solemn feast of Corpus Christi. It is a doctrinal feast formally established in 16th century for three purposes: 1) to honor Christ who is present in the Holy Eucharist, 2) to strengthen our devotion to the Eucharist, that makes us one. 3) to appreciate and make use of the great gift of the Holy Eucharist.

The Eucharist teaches us the importance of communion – being united as One Body of Christ. Just as numerous grains of wheat are pounded together to make the host, and many grapes are crushed together to make the wine, so we become unified as one Body.

Our Lord chose these elements in order to show us that we ought to be united with one another and to transform ourselves into Our Lord Jesus Christ. This is symbolized by our sharing in the same bread and the same cup. Hence, Holy Communion strengthens our sense of unity and love.

Communion means exchange, partaking or sharing of oneself to become one. We know the fundamental rule of sharing: that which is mine is yours and what is yours is mine. It’s entirely different from the animal instinct of survival of the fittest: what is mine is mine, what is yours is still mine.

I remember I used to have three dogs at home. Feeding time was always difficult especially if you had three dogs bullying each other. I had to feed them miles apart from each other as they always fight over their food. They were not content of their share. They wanted others' food. They were willing to fight over it. They dont follow the basic rule of sharing and partaking. For them is this, what is mine is mine, what is yours still mine.

We, humans have to intellectual capacity to know the value of communion, sharing and partaking - what is mine yours and what is yours is mine. We will see its greatness when we try to apply this rule to Eucharistic Communion.

What do I have that is truly “mine”? Human as we are what do we really have? Misery, failure, sin, worry: This alone belongs to us exclusively.

What does belong to Jesus? What does Jesus have that is “his” if not holiness, the perfection of all the virtues?

So, communion consists in the fact that I offer Jesus all that I have my sin and my poverty, my loneliness, sinfulness, fear and everything, and in return he gives me holiness, love, healing and peace. This is what the Church Liturgy defines in Latin the “admirabile commercium,” or “wonderful exchange” that being is realized in Mass.

In the every celebration of Mass there is a “wonderful exchange” happening. We offer our time to God, we offer everything in our mind and hearts, and then Jesus offers his Body and Blood to give us eternal life.

Pope John Paul II
The late Holy Father wrote beautifully in one of his daily meditations what our disposition should be whenever we celebrate the Eucharist:

How important it is, then, for the faithful, as they take part in the Eucharist, to assume a personal attitude of offering. It is not sufficient that they listen to the word of God, nor that they pray in common. It is necessary for them to make Christ’s oblation on their own, offering up their pains, their difficulties, their trials, and even more themselves, together with Him and in Him so as to make this gift rise even to the Father, with the gift which Christ makes of himself.

Priest’s Silent prayer
This wonderful exchange (admirable commercium) in Mass is beautifully expressed when the priest mixes the water and wine during the preparation of gifts. Have you ever wonder why the priest does it? While the priest mixes the water and wine he says this prayer quietly:

By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.

We, the people are designated by water, the blood of Christ by wine. Mixing water and wine in the cup shows our union with Christ, and all the believers' union with Him in Whom they believe. After the mixing of water and wine after in the Lord's Cup they become closely united that they cannot be separated one from another. In just this way that nothing can separate us (the Church) from Christ, that is, we become firmly and unshakeably joined together in Christ by God’s eternal love.[1]

Conclusion
Our Lord Jesus loves us so much that he will do everything possible for us to always belong to him, to be closely united with him. For the last two thousand years the People of God has always been nourished by our Lord’s Body and Blood at the altar of God.

Jesus says in the Gospel: “I am the living bread come down from heaven. [...] My flesh is true food. [...] Whoever eats my flesh will have eternal life.”

We can only receive our Bread of Life in the Eucharist. It is only in the Eucharist where we can offer intimately ourselves to God. If every Catholic would realise the mind blowing reality of what we receive in the Eucharist no one will ever miss Sunday Mass. We will make Mass as our number priority in life. It is only in the Eucharist where we can enter the mystery of communion and the “wonderful exchange” between God and humanity. What is mine is yours, what is yours is mine.

Let us ask the Lord to strengthen our will to make the Eucharist the center of our life and our the lives of our loved ones.

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Painting by Fr Conrado "Badong" Santos

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[1] St. Cyprian of Carthage (Letter to Cacaelius)
Readings Fr Tony's homily, Fr Cantalamesa, Daily Meditation of Pope John Paul II
http://www.zenit.org/

VIP

I met yesterday the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard

Kakatuwa wala man lang siyang body guard.

Let's Go Up!

Solemnity of the Lord's Ascension
Acts 1:1-11; Eph 1:17-23; Mt 16:15-20
May 3-4, 2008
Goodbye Forever?

As we do every year, forty days after Easter, we celebrate the feast of the Ascension of the Lord into Heaven. In the first reading the Apostles heard as they looked up towards Heaven from the two men dressed in white garments (Angels) saying: This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven (Acts 1:11).

Is Jesus up in the sky or floating somewhere in heaven or in the galaxies? It is important to clarify what we Christians mean when we profess "Jesus ascended into heaven" or when we pray "Our Father who art in heaven," or when we say that someone "went to heaven."

In talking about heaven as God's dwelling place we understand it more as a state of being than a place. That God is "in the heavens" means that he "dwells in inaccessible light," that he is as far beyond us "as the heavens are above the earth."

We recite in the Creed. "He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father." The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that Christ’s ascension marks the definitive entrance of Jesus’ humanity into God’s heavenly domain… (CCC 665).
That Christ has ascended into heaven means that he "is seated at the right hand of the Father," that is, as human like us, he has entered into God's world and brought our humanity. His Ascension thus brings us great hope – “where He has gone, we hope to follow.”



Farewell
At first glance, the Ascension seems to be a sad “farewell” to Jesus. We all know Jesus spent three years with his disciples, teaching them about the kingdom of God, instructing each of them how to show love, compassion and justice, showing them miracles. For the last three years Jesus and his disciples created a strong bond tested by trials, betrayal, death and victory. It’s sad to hear that Jesus is apparently leaving his disciples and Mary.

Airport
I was in the airport last Thursday night to send off my eldest sister and her three children who are now in the Philippines. Last night I went to the airport again to say good bye to other sister Marsha, who also went to the Philippines with her family for holidays. (During this part of year fiestas are celebrated in the Philippines).

For two consecutive nights that I was in the airport I noticed two kinds of group of people – happy and sad. Those who are waiting at the arrival, you see people, families, children, parents, they are happy and excited and waiting patiently as they wait for coming of their loved ones. Once they found each other they embrace and kiss with joy.

When you go to the departure gate the atmosphere is different, it is rather sad. You see people, families, lovers, hugging each other with tears in their eyes as they say goodbye to each other. Some people couldn’t let go their loved ones perhaps they knew that it would be a long time before they see each other again.

We learn from our experience that there is always sadness in saying goodbye.

Difference: Disappearance & departure
The feast of the Ascension is not really goodbye. There is an apparent contradiction in this leaving of Jesus: while leaving, he assures us that he is staying with us. While Jesus’ body and spirit ascended into heaven he promised us, “And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age (Mt.28:20)

Ascension is not a sad "farewell," but rather a true feast. There is difference between a disappearance and a departure.

Jesus has not departed, he has not become absent; he has only disappeared from our sight. Those who leave are no longer here; those who only go out of our sight, however, can still be near us.

Jesus does disappear from the apostles' sight at the ascension but he does so to be present in another more intimate way through the Holy Spirit. He is not exclusively belong to his apostles alone – he belongs to everyone.

We heard from the Second Reading St. Paul reminds us of the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives, to give us wisdom and understanding, to enlighten our hearts and minds to clearly the presence of Jesus.
Jesus is no longer outside the apostles but He is within them in their hearts.

Eucharist – Jesus is here
This is similar to the Eucharist. So long as the host is outside of us we see it, we adore it; when we receive the host we no longer see it, it has disappeared, but it has disappeared to be within us. Through the Holy Spirit, our Lord becomes present in us in a new, more powerful way.

When First Communion Students receive our Lord in a short while, their hearts will become a living tabernacle, where our Lord rests to strengthen them in their faith. You will help your friends to see Jesus.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.
Jesus is no longer visible, but through the Holy Spirit Jesus wants himself to be known to everyone – to our friends, loved ones, neighbour, people we know. Jesus wants all people to discover him, to have relationship with him, to be closely united with him.

When we are baptised, our eyes, our ears, our tongue, our hands and feet, becomes the eyes, ears, toungue, hands and feet of Jesus.

Let us pray that through the grace of the Holy Spirit, we can obey the commandment of Jesus to to make disciples of all nations. Let us help others to make Jesus known and to make Jesus loved, and together we will share the joy and happiness in heaven. Amen.

Readings: Gospel Commentary for Feast of the Ascension by Father Raniero Cantalamessa, OFM Cap, www.zenit.org