The Bread of Life

Dali's Sacrament of the Last Supper

In the Gospel, the miracle of the loaves and fish prefigures the Eucharist, a sacrificial meal of thanksgiving for the gift of God’s eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus. The Eucharist nourishes the life of God in us. Jesus Christ, gloriously alive, is truly present in the bread and wine.

The word of God in Sunday’s liturgy first takes us back to sixth century Israel. “Come to me,” God pleads. I will give you the basic needs of life.

Paul, in his letter to the Christian community at Rome poses the question, “What will separate us from the love of Christ?” Nothing! God loves us unconditionally.

In the Gospel, Jesus hears about the tragic death of John the Baptist, and seeks to be by himself. But the crowds follow him. He cures the sick and satisfies the hungry crowd. People have many hungers. Some hunger for bread; others for justice and freedom; and still others for peace.

To understand the liturgy of the Eucharist, contemplate Jesus’s Last Supper.

Jesus had to leave us, and yet he wanted to stay with us. How did he solve this? Listen to his words: “This is my body; this is my blood.” The bread and wine look and feel and taste like bread and wine, but they become the real presence of the risen Christ.

The second challenge Jesus faced was he wanted to die for each one of us, and yet he could die only once as a human being. How did Jesus solve this? Listen to his words: “Do this in memory of me.” The same victim who was crucified once outside Jerusalem centuries ago returns whenever we celebrate the liturgy of the Eucharist.

The third challenge was that Jesus wanted to be one with us, and yet this was impossible this side of heaven. How did Jesus solve this challenge? Listen to his words: “Take and eat; take and drink.” Jesus invites us to become one with him in Communion.

Yes, Jesus left us and stays. The Victim (the lamb, the sacrifice) returns to us today and every day. He gave us Communion.

What is the purpose? To form us into a faith community. Paul wrote, “Because the bread is one, we, though many, are one body.” This bread we eat and this blood we drink should not only form us into a more loving faith community but also should empower us to reach out compassionately to others with a helping hand.

At a family meal, perhaps this may be our prayer:
O God, bless this faith family of yours.
May you always remind us of the strength we have
united in faith, hope, and love with you, O God.
Help us to open our hearts, to listen, to extend a helping hand,
and to rejoice when one of us has cause for celebration.
O God, we pray that we always will live in your presence,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

We, Though Many, Are One

Dali's Sacrament of the Last Supper

There have been many impressive meals in the course of human history. Some intimate, some grand.There was the first supper, so the Book of Genesis says, where the entre was forbidden fruit. There are state banquets, like the one this month at Buckingham Palace. There’s the Passover, the Seder, in remembrance of the Jews’ deliverance from their oppressors in ancient Egypt. The meal table is often the center of family life.

And in our global Christian family, the altar or table of the Lord is the center of our faith community.

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, in Latin "Corpus Christi," and in Greek "eucharistia" or thanksgiving. We gather to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

St. Paul, in his letter to the Christian community at Corinth in Greece, highlights the sacredness of the Lord’s Supper. This sacrificial meal reenacts the life-giving death/resurrection of Jesus, the new and everlasting covenant God made with us.

This Lord’s Supper soon developed into the structure we know today: the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Herein, we worship and praise God for who he is and what he has done for us.

In the Gospel according to Luke, Jesus satisfies the hungry crowd in the so-called miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fish. People have so many hungers: some simply for bread; others for justice and freedom and peace. Jesus here satisfies the crowd’s physical hunger, and this wonder prefigures the liturgy of the Eucharist where the bread and wine become the body and blood of the risen Christ, satisfying our spiritual hunger.

At the last supper, think of three phrases Jesus said: This is my body…this is my blood. The bread and wine become sacramentally the Living Christ, his real presence among us.

The second phrase: Do this in remembrance of me. The same victim who died once for us centuries ago returns to this sacrificial meal sacramentally today and every day.

The third phrase: Take and eat…take and drink. Jesus invites us to become one with himself in communion.

And what is the purpose? Paul wrote: because the bread is one, we, though many, are one body. This not only forms us into a more vibrant community but also empowers us to reach out compassionately to one another. Where Jesus left off his earthly ministry, He asks us to continue.

Yes, the Eucharist unites us as the mystical body of Christ and empowers us to become "the hands and feet and voice" of Christ in our homes and workplaces and communities, until he comes again in glory at the end time to transform this universe of ours into a new heaven and a new earth.