The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ was also known as the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, which translates from Latin to "Body of Christ." This feast originated in France in the mid-thirteenth century and was extended to the whole Church by Pope Urban IV in 1264. This feast is celebrated on the Thursday following the Trinity Sunday or, as in the USA, on the Sunday following that feast.
This feast calls us to focus on two manifestations of the Body of Christ, the Holy Eucharist and the Church. The primary purpose of this feast is to focus our attention on the Eucharist. The opening prayer at Mass calls our attention to Jesus' suffering and death and our worship of Him, especially in the Eucharist.
At every Mass our attention is called to the Eucharist and the Real Presence of Christ. The secondary focus of this feast is upon the Body of Christ as it is present in the Church. The Church is called the Body of Christ because of the intimate communion which Jesus shares with his disciples. He expresses this in the gospels by using the metaphor of a body in which He is the Head. This image helps keep in focus both the unity and the diversity of the Church. The Feast of Corpus Christi is commonly used as an opportunity for public Eucharistic processions, which serves as a sign of common faith and adoration. Our worship of Jesus in His Body and Blood calls us to offer to God our Father a pledge of undivided love and an offering of ourselves to the service of
others. (Catholic News Agency)
I decided to write about this solemnity in detail for a few reasons:
First, I am asked often the question about “why” or “how” does the Catholic Church different from Episcopalians, Anglicans, or the other denominational Christian churches? [In fact this past weekend I was asked by a practicing Episcopalian why the Catholic Church considers itself an Apostolic Church (and what does that mean?) when the Episcopalians say the Nicene Creed at their “services?” Even among “good” Catholics—defined as those who attend Mass regularly—there are many questions about our faith.
Other questions are: Why can’t some other Christians receive Holy Communion at a Catholic Mass? Can a non-Catholic be buried in the Catholic Church? Why does the Catholic Church expect that the cremated remains will be buried after the funeral Mass rather than be kept on a shelf, made into jewelry, or scatter “nana at her favorite beach?” Where to begin? Some thoughts…
1. Christianity by denomination—what’s the difference? The Catholic Church differs less in the tenants of faith from the denominational Christian churches and more by degree of belief (for the Catholic Church is not a denomination of Christianity since it did not denominate from any other church but rather is the original Christian Church founded and instituted by Christ Himself—thus it is Apostolic—and was handed over to Peter and the Apostles for future generations). By remembering history we know that the Anglican Church, thus the future Episcopalian and then
other denominational churches, broke from Rome and by human consent and were established, i.e., Pope Clement VII excommunicated Henry VIII in 1533. In 1534 the Act of Submission of the Clergy removed the right of all appeals to Rome, effectively ending the Pope's influence. The first Act of Supremacy confirmed Henry VIII by statute as the Supreme Head of the Church of England in 1536. So then how are we different? What differs is the sacramental nature of the Catholic Church and this is highlighted in today’s Solemnity. We believe that the Eucharist—the Body and Blood of Christ—is in fact the real presence of Christ (it is Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of the Lord). We do not believe the bread and wine are transformed into a symbol of Christ but the “real presence.” We listen to the words of Christ Himself: Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this IS my body…Take this all of you and drink from it, for this is the Chalice of my blood…do this in memory of me. As a sacramental Church we continue what Christ instituted and gave to us; we do not add to the sacraments nor can we substitute chocolate for the wheat used by Christ or coffee for the fruit of the vine which He gave to us. No replacement for the words Christ offered as His meaning proclaimed to the Twelve Apostles is not up for discussion. For if we can change what Christ commands of us, can we claim to be His Body on earth?
2.
Why isn’t Holy Communion interchangeable between Christian practitioners? The Catholic Church’s teaching on the real presence in the Eucharist is not meant to be exclusionary but rather is a sign of respect among Christian and non-Christian followers. If you do not believe in what another faith holds to be Truth, and you attend their Mass or service, why does it become a slight against you if you do not to receive what you do not believe or share in? Isn’t it more respectful—for your own faith and for the faith of the church which you are visiting—for you not to take part in something you do not believe in? In the Catholic Church, those unable—Catholics and non-Catholics—to receive Holy Communion are invited forward to receive a spiritual blessing by the priest, as it appears it is uncomfortable for some to sit in the pew while others walk up in the Communion line. Is it equally uncomfortable for that person not to recite the prayers or sign a hymn…which I see all the time?
3. The funeral Mass—who can have one, where do you bury the remains? In the Catholic Church a Catholic is given the right to have Catholic funeral rites unless there are significant reasons (such as a violent gang member who murdered without regard for human life or one who left the Church and entered a faith of heretical beliefs, etc.) and this requires great pastoral sensitivity. Even Catholics who no longer publically practice the faith are normally given the funeral rites of the Catholic Church. And a non-Catholic, who was not opposed to the Catholic Church and its funeral rites, may be buried in the Church under certain circumstances (Canon 1183.3). For anyone buried in the Church, there are certain expectations about their remains that must be followed based on our faith beliefs. First, Catholics believe that the human body is the dwelling place and temple of God’s Holy Spirit (given initially at Baptism and fully at Confirmation). Out of respect and reverence, we believe the human body that will be raised on the Last Day and reunited with its immortal and invaluable soul by Christ deserves reverence since we have been created in God’s likeness and image. Traditionally that means internment in a tomb (grave, mausoleum, etc.). This holds for both the full human body and the cremains. Scattering Continued on the next page ashes in 22 different locations, turning someone into a key fob or a necklace is not considered the most reverent form of preparing that person for the final Day of Judgment. As we celebrate the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ let us remember that we have been created in the likeness and image of God, and that we are to return home to God the Father and to share in His inner and divine life. This presupposes a life of faith lived out here on earth—a life of compassion, of love,of mercy and forgiveness received and granted—as well as a belief that the human person is the dwelling place of God’s Holy Spirit in this world. Christ told us, I am with you until the end of the age, and then He sent the Second Advocate of God, the Holy Spirit, to
dwell within us and to guide us and to carry us home again to God. That temple structure—the person—should be remembered at death with reverence and this is why the Church calls us to her
funeral rites: as we remember the life lived in Christ, the praise we give to God for His goodness in this person’s life, and then the final resting of the body as it awaits its reunification with its
immortal soul for eternity with God. This is the depth and breadth of a more than 2,000-year old Catholic faith that was begun by Christ and given to Peter for all generations to come. The role of the Church is to preach and teach as well as to guard and hand on those Truths for every generation. It is a sacred obligation and responsibility for the Church and one that cannot
be amended by convenience or need, but rather is retained in Truth