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Home  / News & Publications /  Michigan Catholic News / 2010 /  Jesus saved us and continues to nourish us

by Fr. Richard C. Macey special to The Michigan Catholic
Published May 28, 2010

The Feast of Corpus Christi was first proclaimed by Pope Urban IV in 1264. He had been an archdeacon in Liege, Belgium, where Sr. Julianna, an Augustinian nun, had a vision of Christ and urged the observance of a feast in honor of the Blessed Sacrament. After investigating the miracle of a bleeding, consecrated host in Bolsena (Italy), the pope issued an instruction for the observance of this feast.

First Reading: Genesis 14:18-20

Melchizedek is mentioned in the First Eucharistic Prayer of the Mass, the Roman Canon. translated from the Hebrew, his name means: "My king is righteousness." He is described as priest and king. He brings bread and wine, which are both refreshment and a blessing. The sacred and secular are mixed. Melchizedek calls upon "God Most High," another name for the God of Israel in Psalm 78:35. Melchizedek is only mentioned elsewhere in the Old Testament in Psalm 110:4.

Melchizedek became an important eschatological figure in post-biblical Judaism. He is mentioned in one of the Dead Sea Scrolls as someone who proclaims the Day of Atonement and who will judge the people at the end of time. He also appears in the Letter to the Hebrews, chapter 7, to foreshadow Christ and to demonstrate a priesthood, which is not inherited.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Paul clearly presents a tradition already active in the Church in the middle of the first century. This is called "cultic etiology." The practices of Christians have their roots and meaning in words and actions of Jesus Christ. The origins of the Christian liturgy was in the meaning of the actions of Jesus. Paul reflects the same situation for the Last Supper of Jesus as presented in the Gospels: "On the night He was handed over …" It is in the context of the Passion. The elements of eucharistic action, which is included in the earliest traditions of the Church, are also included: "took … given thanks … broke …" He included an explanation of the action: "You proclaim the death of the Lord until He comes." The words Paul uses reflect more closely the words of the Gospel of Luke than the Gospel of Matthew or Mark. Paul also addresses Jesus by the title, "Lord," the Greek word used to translate the Hebrew word for God in the Old Testament, Yahweh.

"Remembrance" is an important Old Testament concept. It is not just looking to the past. It is placing the present in an ongoing event, which continues now and into the future. That is why Paul adds "as often as you eat … and drink …" The actions of Jesus continue within the Church. They are connected to His historical presence among His disciples and "until He comes" again in the parousia, the Second Coming. These events are one continuous mystery of faith.

Gospel: Luke 9:11b-17
The feeding of the crowds with five loaves and two fish demonstrated externally what Jesus had done internally. He "spoke" and "healed." The abundance of food at the end also reinforced the image of the Kingdom of God, which was the subject of what Jesus spoke to the crowds about. The 12 baskets symbolized food for all Israel.

There is a eucharistic allusion in the language used in the distribution of the loaves and fish: taking … blessing … broke … gave. These four elements became part of the consecration of the bread and wine at Mass from the earliest records. The action in the Gospel also anticipates and foreshadows the same actions at the Last Supper in Luke 22:19. There is even a scholarly suggestion that Jesus becomes the "new Moses" by feeding the people in a "deserted place," just like the Israelites who ate manna in the wilderness, as they were on a journey to the land of their own future kingdom. The disciples were instructed to distribute the food, which came from Jesus. The sign was given to them, so that they would recognize the identity of Jesus. He is the one who made the impossible (feeding so many with few resources), possible!

There are many times, when I am looking out over the congregation for Sunday Mass, a wedding or a funeral. I wonder what could be said to inspire or comfort or instruct those who have come here. Just last week, someone said, "Father, you said just what I needed to hear. I know that God brought me here at this time, because of something with which our family has been struggling." I had no knowledge of the emptiness that needed to be filled by a sign of hope. It truly humbled me!

I keep a pad of paper and a pen on a table beside my bed. That night, I awoke with a thought that I had to write down before I drifted off to sleep again. It was that idea, which I added to my homily, which had attracted the attention of the person, who approached me. It isn't the first time that has happened. And it is always humbling to experience it. God nourishes and feeds us with His rich word to share with those who are in need.

Fr. Richard C. Macey is pastor of Our Lady of the Woods Parish, Woodhaven.