A Lectio Divina Approach to the Sunday Liturgy
BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (Series 6, n. 26)
Body and Blood of Christ, Year A – May 25, 2008
“God Fed His People …”
BIBLE READINGS
Dt 8:2-3, 14b-16a // I Cor 10:16-17 // Jn 6:51-58
N.B. Series 6 of BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD: A LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY LITURGY includes a prayerful study of the Sunday liturgy of Year A from the perspective of the First Reading. For another set of reflections on the Sunday liturgy of Year A, please go to the PDDM Web Archives: WWW.PDDM.US and open Series 3.
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS
We celebrate today a very beautiful feast – “Corpus Christi” – the solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. As a community of believers, we celebrate the Real Presence of the Risen Christ - body and blood, soul and divinity - in the sacrament of the Eucharist. Our Catholic faith declares: “By the consecration of the bread and wine there takes place a change of the whole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord and of the whole substance of the wine into the substance of his blood” (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1376). On this day, we meditatively focus our attention on the goodness and kindness of God in providing sustenance for his people. The Lord God fed the Israelites journeying in the wilderness to the Promised Land with “manna” from heaven. Now he continues to nourish and feed in a marvelously unique way the Church – the new People of God – with the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ the risen and glorified Lord, through the Eucharistic sacrament of his body and blood.
The feast of Corpus Christi is a special “memorial” day for us Christians. As we listen to the Old Testament reading (Dt 8:2-3, 14b-16a), the exhortation of Moses addressed to the Israelites moves us deeply and helps us in our “remembering” - and in not “forgetting”. We intend not to “forget” - but rather resolve to “remember” - how the Lord Yahweh was gracious to his people. For forty years he directed their journey in the desert. When they were hungry, he fed them with “manna” from heaven, a unique food unknown to their fathers. Journeying out of slavery in Egypt, they were led safely by him through a vast and terrible desert infested with scorpions and serpents. The Israelites’ throats burned with thirst as they moved through parched ground, but the Lord slaked their thirst with water gushing from the rock. Above all, in their experience of hunger and thirst in the desert, the Lord God provided not merely material sustenance, but something better and surpassingly nourishing - the bread of his living Word!
The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 7, comment: “During the forty years of the march in the wilderness after the Exodus, God fed his people with manna, a food unknown to their fathers, and gave them water sprung from the rock. Thanks to this food falling form heaven and to this providential drink, the people survived until their entrance into the Promised Land. The miraculous character of these events remained vivid in the collective memory of the believers, as the Bible attests. But by meditating on God’s guidance, people understood better and better that the lesson to be learned was that they must gain an increased awareness of an infinitely more vital need than just earthly food. Not by bread alone does man live, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord. From him and him alone can we expect the life that does not inexorably end in death.”
The manifestation of divine providence to the people of Israel is surpassed and excelled by God the Father’s gift of his Son Jesus Christ – the Bread of life – to the Church, the new people of Israel. Jesus is the true “manna” that came down from heaven to nourish us and enable us to share intimately in the divine life. It is most fitting that on this feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, we deepen our sense of “remembering” – and avoid the misfortune of “forgetting” - by celebrating the saving event of Christ’s death, rising and glorification through the sacrament of the Eucharist, the actualized memorial of Christ’s Passover. In the Eucharistic bread broken and shared, we receive Jesus Christ’s body broken for the life of the world. And in the Eucharistic wine, we drink the blood of Christ that sealed the new Covenant and the constitution of the new people of God.
The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 7, explicate: “In the Eucharist, we receive under the signs – the sacrament – of bread and wine, the Body and Blood of the risen Christ, eternally living with the Father. It is by virtue of this new condition that he can be our food under this form. It is also because of this new condition that when eating this bread and drinking this wine transformed by the Spirit into the Body and Blood of Christ, we participate already now in the life that the Son shares with his Father: this same life circulates in us … The Eucharist establishes with Christ and through him with the Father such a close bond that is comparable to the one that unites the Persons of the Trinity. This life already communicated here on earth must grow into eternal life. The Eucharist, remedy of immortality, antidote against death, but for eternal life in Jesus Christ, is the paschal sacrament par excellence. To participate in the Eucharist – mystery of faith – is to proclaim the resurrection of Christ and to receive the pledge of it.”
One way of making the solemnity of Corpus Christi more meaningful is to organize the “FORTY HOURS”, during which the faithful join with the local clergy in a continuous period of prayer for forty hours. This laudable pastoral practice enables the faithful to enter more deeply into the celebration of the Eucharist, which is its summit and source. Moreover, it intensifies the sense of “remembering” and thankfulness for the goodness and saving grace given to us by God in his Son Jesus Christ, the living Bread from heaven and the cup of eternal salvation. The following is my experience of the “FORTY HOURS” Adoration and Eucharistic Activities held in the Diocese of San Jose (California) in 2006.
Introduced at the San Jose diocesan level by Sr. Mary Rosario Gallardo, who belongs to the SISTER DISCIPLES OF THE DIVINE MASTER (PIAE DISCIPULAE DIVINI MAGISTRI), a religious Congregation of women especially dedicated to Jesus Master, present in the Eucharist, Priesthood and Liturgy, the “Forty Hours” Adoration and Eucharistic activities were celebrated on June 16 to June 18, 2006 at the San Jose Vietnamese Catholic Center. With the blessings of Msgr. Francis Cilia, the Bishop’s Vicar for the Diocese, with the special cooperation of Rev. Fr. Hienh Minh Nguyen who offered the full resources of the Vietnamese Catholic Center, and with the collaboration of the clergy, religious and laity, three days of intense prayer were dedicated to contemplating the meaning and deep implications of “The Body and Blood of Christ”. This wonderful ecclesial event included the daily celebration of the Eucharist, day and night adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, group Eucharistic Adoration, Lauds and Vespers, Confession, and the Eucharistic Procession and Benediction, which followed the 11:00 A.M. Mass on Corpus Christi Sunday (June 18).
Especially offered for the increase and perseverance of priestly and religious vocations, people of various age groups came, throughout the day and throughout the night, to respond to the spiritual invitation, “THE MASTER IS HERE PRESENT! HE CALLS FOR YOU!” (Jn 11:28). They came to celebrate the Eucharistic Mystery and to adore Jesus Master present in the ineffable sacrament of his Body and Blood keeping in mind the following reality: “Grateful for this immense gift, the Church’s members gather around the Blessed Sacrament, for that is the source and summit of her being and action. Ecclesia de Eucharistia vivit! The Church draws her life from the Eucharist and knows that this truth does not simply express a daily experience of faith, but recapitulates the heart of the mystery in which she consists.” (Cf. Pope John Paul II, Homily for the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ – Corpus Christi, June 10, 2004, n. 4)
Rev. Fr. Mark Catalana, the Vocations Director of the Diocese, presided at the Votive Mass of the Holy Eucharist on June 16 (Friday), after which he exposed the Blessed Sacrament for the “Forty Hours” Adoration. Various groups and individual persons came to pray, sing and silently contemplate the presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, experiencing the Eucharistic Adoration as a deep personal encounter with the Lord Jesus and as an opportunity to thank him for his passion, death and glorious resurrection.
The climax of the three-day Eucharistic activities was the Corpus Christi celebration of the Eucharist, presided by Msgr. Francis Cilia. After the post-communion prayer, the Eucharistic Procession headed outdoors to four stations representing the four corners of the world, where eternal praise and thanksgiving are offered to the Eucharistic Master.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART
1. What is the importance of “remembering” in the life of Israel and the Church? How do we “remember” God’s guidance and providence for his people? How do we respond to the following reality taught by God: “Not by bread alone does one live, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God” (Dt 8:3)?
2. What is the meaning of the following revelation of Jesus: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (Jn 6:51)? How does this revelation impact us?
3. What do we do to make the celebration of the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ more meaningful?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD
(The following prayers, which may be used for the Eucharistic Procession and Benediction to conclude the “Forty Hours”, are expressive of our faith in the Eucharistic Mystery and the Real Presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.)
SONG: “O Sacrament Most Holy”
THE FIRST EUCHARISTIC STATION
READING: Jn 6:47-51
PRAYER
Jesus Divine Master, I thank and bless your most lovable Heart for the great gift of the Holy Eucharist. Your love makes you dwell in the holy tabernacle, renew your passion in the Mass, and give yourself as food for our souls in Holy Communion. May I know you hidden God! May I draw salutary waters from the font of your Heart. Grant me the grace to visit you every day in the sacrament, to understand and actively participate in Holy Mass, to receive Holy Communion often, with faith and love.
THE SECOND EUCHARISTIC STATION
READING: Mk 6:34, 39-44
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, Lord of the banquet, we come into your presence today with our deepest hungers for things beyond food, for forgiveness, for reconciliation, for kindness, for restoration in relationships, for justice and freedom, for joy in place of bitterness and cynicism, for peace and unity, for spiritual and physical healing. Help us to eat at your table and be satisfied. As we partake of your Eucharistic banquet, may we be transformed into your own presence, as bread broken for the life of the world.
THE THIRD EUCHARISTIC STATION
READING: Mt 26:26-29
PRAYER
We adore you, O wonderful Sacrament of the presence of the One who loved his own “to the end”. We thank you, O Lord, who edifies, gathers together and gives life to the Church. O divine Eucharist, flame of Christ’s love that burns on the altar of the world, make the Church, comforted by you, even more caring in wiping away the tears of suffering and in sustaining the efforts of all who yearn for justice and peace.
THE FOURTH EUCHARISTIC STATION
READING: Lk 24:28-35
PRAYER
Blessed are you, O Lord Jesus Christ. You nourish us at the table of your living Word and the altar table of your Eucharistic sacrifice. Renew us by the light of your saving Word. Help us to offer compassionate acts of love, service and healing for today’s “broken body of Christ”. We ask your blessing upon the youth and the faithful gathered here at this public manifestation of our love for you. Grant the grace of many vocations to the priesthood and religious life. May your people, nourished by your sacred Body and Blood, stand forth in a world torn by strife and discord as a sign of oneness and peace. May our Mother Mary, the great Lady of the Eucharist who formed your Body and Blood in her womb, intercede for us. Amen.
SONG: “Tantum Ergo”
Priest: You gave them Bread from heaven to be their food.
Assembly: And this bread contained all goodness.
Priest: Lord,
may this sacrament of new life
warm our hearts with your love
and make us eager for the eternal joy of your kingdom.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Assembly: Amen.
EUCHARISTIC BENEDICTION
DIVINE PRAISES
FINAL SONG
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (Jn 6:51)?
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION
A. ACTION PLAN: Meditate on God’s wondrous gifts to us, especially the gift of the Bread of life, Jesus Christ and thank God for these gracious gifts. Endeavor to share God’s goodness and sustenance to others, especially the poor and needy. Make an effort to participate meaningfully in the Mass and in Eucharistic activities such as the “Forty Hours”, etc.
B. ACTION PLAN: To help us experience more deeply the intimate love and Real Presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, make an effort to spend an hour in Eucharistic Adoration. Visit the PDDM WEB site (www.pddm.us) for the EUCHARISTIC ADORATION THROUGH THE LITURGICAL YEAR (Vol. 4, n. 26): A Weekly Pastoral Tool.
Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang PDDM
PIAE DISCIPULAE DIVINI MAGISTRI
SISTER DISCIPLES OF THE DIVINE MASTER
60 Sunset Ave., Staten Island, NY 10314
Tel. (718) 494-8597 // (718) 761-2323
Website: WWW.PDDM.US