The Body and Blood of Christ
I was talking to a parishioner the other day and he was telling me about his new hearing aid. He said it was the most wonderful thing he'd ever seen. Now he can hear conversations clear as a bell. He can hear birds singing and even crickets chirping. It was very expensive, but it must be the finest hearing aid in the world.
I asked him, "What kind is it?" and he said (looking at his watch) "12:30."
All of us have a hard time hearing some times. Even if our physical hearing is perfect, sometimes we just don't hear. We may think we hear, but for some reason, our minds just don't process the information. Today's Gospel is a perfect example. Jesus spoke very plainly.
"He took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to them and said, 'Take it; this is my body.' Then He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them and they all drank from it. He said to them, 'This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.'"
He couldn't have been much clearer or more direct. He turned simple bread, wheat and water baked in an oven, into His own Body. Then he took wine, fermented grape juice, and turned it into His own Blood. He could do that. He's God. He can do anything. Yet, there are millions, maybe even billions of people on this earth who don't believe him. It's hard to find fault with that. Last weekend Father Gary spoke to us about the Trinity. One God in three persons. Remember, he said that it's beyond our understanding? We just have to take it on faith. It's the same with Christ's Body and Blood. It makes no sense. It goes against everything our senses tell us. The Eucharist looks like bread and wine. It tastes like bread and wind. How can it be Jesus' Body and Blood. But we know it's true. Why? Because Jesus said so! If we don't believe it, then we might as well throw everything else out the window too!
Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He can't lie. Everything He says is true. If He told us even one lie, our entire faith would be a lie because we wouldn't know what to believe or not believe. Faith is the belief in something that can't be proven. Even something that our senses tell us just can't be.
Let's take a look at what will happen here in a few minutes. This is a bottle of the wine we use for communion. It's really the good stuff. It costs about $18.00 for this gallon bottle. We use about a cup of it at each mass. That means we'll use a little over a dollar's worth of wine at this mass. Father will say the words of consecration and turn that dollar's worth of wine into something priceless, the Blood of the Son of God. It's so priceless that when mass is over it must all be consumed. Not a single drop can be wasted. After it's consumed, the cups must be purified with water and the water must be returned to the earth. Even the water that touched the empty cup that held the Precious Blood must be disposed of properly.
What about the bread. This is a box of unconsecrated hosts. You think the wine's cheap? These cost about 21/4 cents apiece. 2 1/4 cents! But once Father consecrates them they become the most precious commodity on earth, the Body of our Savior. They're so priceless that we lock the leftovers up in a special safe called a Tabernacle. Through the years, people have run into burning churches to save the contents of the Tabernacle. Sane people don't run into burning buildings to save bread!
But when Father Gary says "This is my body which will be given up for you. Do this in memory of me.", it's not bread anymore. It's the Body of Christ. Same thing with the wine. When he says "This is the cup of my blood", that's what it is. The cup of Jesus' blood. We believe that Jesus turned water into wine. We believe that He walked on the water. Why is it so hard to believe that He can turn ordinary food, the simplest food of all, into His own Body and Blood?
When He first told the people that if they didn't eat His flesh and drink His blood, they would have no life in them, many of them walked away. "This is a hard saying. How can we eat His flesh and drink His blood?" They didn't understand and they didn't have enough faith to take Him at his word.
Even our protestant brothers and sisters who insist that every word of the Bible is literally true, just can't get their minds around this idea. Growing up a Baptist we had communion once a month and it was grape juice and oyster crackers. We weren't taught that they were anything other than that. There was no Tabernacle. If anything was left it was just put back into the plastic bag. The grape juice was served in little plastic cups. When the service was over, they threw them into the trash. We were taught that communion was just a symbol, kind of like eating cake on someone's birthday. What a shame! They're really missing out on something special.
In a few minutes most of you will stand in line to receive this precious gift. Hopefully you're expecting to receive something more than a 2 cent piece of bread and a penny's worth of wine. As Master Card might put it. Wheat wafer--2 cents. Sip of wine--a few pennies. The Body and Blood of Christ--Priceless"
Tomorrow at our ten thirty mass (Today at the 10:30 mass) (In a few minutes) we'll be celebrating the Anointing of the Sick. It's also something special. By anointing the foreheads and hands of the sick of the parish, we strengthen them to fight their illness. Father will pray that the Lord in his love and mercy will help them with the grace of he Holy Spirit. Again, this makes no scientific sense. Our minds tell us that you can't make someone well by putting oil on their forehead and hands. You and I can't. But our faith tells us that Father Gary can. And, like receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, or confessing our sins to the priest, we have no way of proving if the sacraments work or not. We won't know in this lifetime. We will find out eventually.
But, meanwhile, our faith tells us that the sacraments are real. We believe in spite of what our senses tell us. Anointing and the prayers that go with it does strengthen us in our battle against illness. Receiving communion does make us closer to Christ by actually making his Body and Blood part of our body and blood. The priest does have the power to act on Jesus' behalf to forgive our sins.
I said earlier, it hard to fault nonbelievers because our faith is a gift and not everyone shares in that gift. That's why you can't just show up at a Catholic church and join. We're not Sam's Club or the YMCA. Wanting to be one of us is just the first step. It takes a while to teach people what we believe. We want to be sure they understand what they're getting into, because they're getting into something mysterious and wonderful. To fully participate in this wonderfulness, you have to accept these things that defy the senses. It takes time and it takes faith.
The thing that bothers me is people who leave the Catholic Church. They leave for any number of reasons but if they really knew what they had, they'd never give it up. Again, it's hard to fault them. Somewhere along the line someone, either their parents, or their teachers, or maybe the clergy failed them. If they had been properly taught the faith, they could never leave.
Believe me, I've heard all the arguments. I've used most of them myself in my non-Church-going days. So-and-so made me mad. Church is full of hypocrites. I don't have to go to a building to be close to God. All they ever talk about is abortion. They're just after my money. Even if these things were true, how can they justify giving up the greatest gift that Jesus left us? The answer is, "They can't."
Of course this message isn't for those people. They're not here to hear it. The message is for you and me. We're here. We know what we have, or at least I hope we do. The message is to never forget it! Never take it for granted! Never give it up! Don't mistake the lowly bread and wine for the all powerful sacrament that it is. Don't mistake my marginal preaching for the message it contains. Don't consider the humble origins of this building. It's no less the House of God than the St. Patrick's Cathedral.
If Christ wanted to make Himself food and drink, why did He choose bread and wine? Why not something more noble, more expensive, harder to get. Because He's always chosen the humble to represent the magnificent. He was born in a stable to a humble mother. His birth was announced to shepherds. He hung out with sinners, not saints. He chose fishermen and tax collectors to build His Church. No, bread and wine are the perfect materials for the Eucharist.
As we wait in line today to receive Christ's flesh and blood, let's say a little prayer for those who aren't able to share in this wonderful feast, either because they've never been told about it, or because they've forgotten what it is, or because they're physically unable, or because they're faith has been shaken. We long to welcome them to the table.
That's our faith. That's what we believe. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.
I asked him, "What kind is it?" and he said (looking at his watch) "12:30."
All of us have a hard time hearing some times. Even if our physical hearing is perfect, sometimes we just don't hear. We may think we hear, but for some reason, our minds just don't process the information. Today's Gospel is a perfect example. Jesus spoke very plainly.
"He took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to them and said, 'Take it; this is my body.' Then He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them and they all drank from it. He said to them, 'This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.'"
He couldn't have been much clearer or more direct. He turned simple bread, wheat and water baked in an oven, into His own Body. Then he took wine, fermented grape juice, and turned it into His own Blood. He could do that. He's God. He can do anything. Yet, there are millions, maybe even billions of people on this earth who don't believe him. It's hard to find fault with that. Last weekend Father Gary spoke to us about the Trinity. One God in three persons. Remember, he said that it's beyond our understanding? We just have to take it on faith. It's the same with Christ's Body and Blood. It makes no sense. It goes against everything our senses tell us. The Eucharist looks like bread and wine. It tastes like bread and wind. How can it be Jesus' Body and Blood. But we know it's true. Why? Because Jesus said so! If we don't believe it, then we might as well throw everything else out the window too!
Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He can't lie. Everything He says is true. If He told us even one lie, our entire faith would be a lie because we wouldn't know what to believe or not believe. Faith is the belief in something that can't be proven. Even something that our senses tell us just can't be.
Let's take a look at what will happen here in a few minutes. This is a bottle of the wine we use for communion. It's really the good stuff. It costs about $18.00 for this gallon bottle. We use about a cup of it at each mass. That means we'll use a little over a dollar's worth of wine at this mass. Father will say the words of consecration and turn that dollar's worth of wine into something priceless, the Blood of the Son of God. It's so priceless that when mass is over it must all be consumed. Not a single drop can be wasted. After it's consumed, the cups must be purified with water and the water must be returned to the earth. Even the water that touched the empty cup that held the Precious Blood must be disposed of properly.
What about the bread. This is a box of unconsecrated hosts. You think the wine's cheap? These cost about 21/4 cents apiece. 2 1/4 cents! But once Father consecrates them they become the most precious commodity on earth, the Body of our Savior. They're so priceless that we lock the leftovers up in a special safe called a Tabernacle. Through the years, people have run into burning churches to save the contents of the Tabernacle. Sane people don't run into burning buildings to save bread!
But when Father Gary says "This is my body which will be given up for you. Do this in memory of me.", it's not bread anymore. It's the Body of Christ. Same thing with the wine. When he says "This is the cup of my blood", that's what it is. The cup of Jesus' blood. We believe that Jesus turned water into wine. We believe that He walked on the water. Why is it so hard to believe that He can turn ordinary food, the simplest food of all, into His own Body and Blood?
When He first told the people that if they didn't eat His flesh and drink His blood, they would have no life in them, many of them walked away. "This is a hard saying. How can we eat His flesh and drink His blood?" They didn't understand and they didn't have enough faith to take Him at his word.
Even our protestant brothers and sisters who insist that every word of the Bible is literally true, just can't get their minds around this idea. Growing up a Baptist we had communion once a month and it was grape juice and oyster crackers. We weren't taught that they were anything other than that. There was no Tabernacle. If anything was left it was just put back into the plastic bag. The grape juice was served in little plastic cups. When the service was over, they threw them into the trash. We were taught that communion was just a symbol, kind of like eating cake on someone's birthday. What a shame! They're really missing out on something special.
In a few minutes most of you will stand in line to receive this precious gift. Hopefully you're expecting to receive something more than a 2 cent piece of bread and a penny's worth of wine. As Master Card might put it. Wheat wafer--2 cents. Sip of wine--a few pennies. The Body and Blood of Christ--Priceless"
Tomorrow at our ten thirty mass (Today at the 10:30 mass) (In a few minutes) we'll be celebrating the Anointing of the Sick. It's also something special. By anointing the foreheads and hands of the sick of the parish, we strengthen them to fight their illness. Father will pray that the Lord in his love and mercy will help them with the grace of he Holy Spirit. Again, this makes no scientific sense. Our minds tell us that you can't make someone well by putting oil on their forehead and hands. You and I can't. But our faith tells us that Father Gary can. And, like receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, or confessing our sins to the priest, we have no way of proving if the sacraments work or not. We won't know in this lifetime. We will find out eventually.
But, meanwhile, our faith tells us that the sacraments are real. We believe in spite of what our senses tell us. Anointing and the prayers that go with it does strengthen us in our battle against illness. Receiving communion does make us closer to Christ by actually making his Body and Blood part of our body and blood. The priest does have the power to act on Jesus' behalf to forgive our sins.
I said earlier, it hard to fault nonbelievers because our faith is a gift and not everyone shares in that gift. That's why you can't just show up at a Catholic church and join. We're not Sam's Club or the YMCA. Wanting to be one of us is just the first step. It takes a while to teach people what we believe. We want to be sure they understand what they're getting into, because they're getting into something mysterious and wonderful. To fully participate in this wonderfulness, you have to accept these things that defy the senses. It takes time and it takes faith.
The thing that bothers me is people who leave the Catholic Church. They leave for any number of reasons but if they really knew what they had, they'd never give it up. Again, it's hard to fault them. Somewhere along the line someone, either their parents, or their teachers, or maybe the clergy failed them. If they had been properly taught the faith, they could never leave.
Believe me, I've heard all the arguments. I've used most of them myself in my non-Church-going days. So-and-so made me mad. Church is full of hypocrites. I don't have to go to a building to be close to God. All they ever talk about is abortion. They're just after my money. Even if these things were true, how can they justify giving up the greatest gift that Jesus left us? The answer is, "They can't."
Of course this message isn't for those people. They're not here to hear it. The message is for you and me. We're here. We know what we have, or at least I hope we do. The message is to never forget it! Never take it for granted! Never give it up! Don't mistake the lowly bread and wine for the all powerful sacrament that it is. Don't mistake my marginal preaching for the message it contains. Don't consider the humble origins of this building. It's no less the House of God than the St. Patrick's Cathedral.
If Christ wanted to make Himself food and drink, why did He choose bread and wine? Why not something more noble, more expensive, harder to get. Because He's always chosen the humble to represent the magnificent. He was born in a stable to a humble mother. His birth was announced to shepherds. He hung out with sinners, not saints. He chose fishermen and tax collectors to build His Church. No, bread and wine are the perfect materials for the Eucharist.
As we wait in line today to receive Christ's flesh and blood, let's say a little prayer for those who aren't able to share in this wonderful feast, either because they've never been told about it, or because they've forgotten what it is, or because they're physically unable, or because they're faith has been shaken. We long to welcome them to the table.
That's our faith. That's what we believe. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.
posted by Mike at 3:01 PM
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