Solemnity of the most holy Body and Blood of Christ

There is a story of a young woman who took care of her elderly aunt. The aunt had
inherited a fair amount of money from her deceased brother but she never mentioned it to
anyone. On her deathbed she said to her niece: “You have been good to me. I would like
to reward you. Take this frayed sweater of mine and wear it until you become rich.” The
niece expressed her gratitude but in reality she was disappointed. She thought that her
aunt could have at least left her a watch or a ring or something more valuable. She buried
the sweater in the bottom drawer of her bureau. Shortly after this, her aunt passed away.
A year later the niece put on the sweater while she did some yard work. She felt
something in the pocket of the sweater. She found a key wrapped in a note that indicated
a box that could be opened with that key. In that box she found that her aunt had given
her legal title to a fortune. The moral of this story is that often we can miss the treasures
that are passed on to us because we do not take the time to look for them.
The application of the story to today’s solemnity, the solemnity of the Body and
Blood of Christ, is the same. We may miss the treasure of the Eucharist because we do
not take the time to look, or to reflect, on this mystery. Even though we celebrate the
Eucharist each Sunday, every year the Church pauses to meditate on the Eucharist itself.
So, on this day we are drawn to ponder the teachings and events of Christ.
1. Sense of the feast of Corpus Christi
If you were to ask me: Why do we need a feast centered on the Eucharist? Or:
Why do we need a special feast of the Eucharist if every single Sunday is actually a feast
of the Eucharist? My answer is: Because a feast, such as this one, gives us the
opportunity to render collective thanks to God for Christ’s abiding presence with us
which is made visible in the Eucharist.
The Eucharist makes present for us the saving death and resurrection of Jesus
Christ. We are able to be a part of the act of redemption that occurred on Good Friday
and Easter Sunday. We recall the sacrifice of Jesus and give thanks for it. At the same
time, we may also experience the sense of spiritual freedom that comes from that
important event.
This Feast is also an opportunity for us to seek a better understanding of the
sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ and to appropriately order our attitude
towards it, since the Eucharist is a sacrament of life, that is to say, “this sacrament has of
itself the power of bestowing grace […] by this sacrament grace receives increase, and
the spiritual life is perfected, so that man may stand perfect in himself by union with
God” (S. Th. III,79,1 ad 1).
 Christ, the fount of grace, is contained in this sacrament. This sacrament contains
Jesus Himself, “who, just as by coming into the world, visibly bestowed the life of grace
upon the world, according to John 1:17: Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, so also,
by coming sacramentally into man causes the life of grace, according to John 6:58: he
who eats this bread will live forever” (S. Th. III,79,1).
2. Transformation by the Eucharist
But why then do many of us who receive the Eucharist not experience more of a
radical transformation? Perhaps this example can throw more light on the question. A
team of Russians and Americans were on a common expedition. Among their cabin
foodstuff was Russian black bread. It was tasty but hard on the teeth. It happened during
a meal that an American bit into a piece and snapped a tooth. He threw the bread
overboard and growled: “Lousy Communist bread.” The Russian countered: “It’s not a
lousy communist bread. It is a rotten capitalist tooth.” So, if we do not experience the
transforming power of the Eucharist it is not on account of the lousy Eucharist but more
likely on account of our rotten faith.
If we receive the Bread of Life in an unworthy manner, it could bring about the
opposite effect. As St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians: All who eat and drink in an
unworthy manner, without discerning the Lord’s Body, eat and drink judgment against
themselves. For this reason, many of you are weak and ill and some have died (1Cor
11:29-30).
But, if we receive the Bread of Life and the Chalice of salvation in a worthy
manner, they will produce in our soul the same effect that the material food and drink
produce in our body: sustaining, growing, restoring and giving delight. Saint Ambrose
says: “This is the bread of everlasting life, which supports the substance of our soul.”
Conclusion
When Cardinal Van Thuan was arrested by the communists in his country
(Vietnam), he could not bring anything with him. The first day, the police allowed him to
write a letter to his relatives asking for what he needed.
He had stomach pain, so, he wrote: “I need wine, I have stomach pain”. They
immediately understood and sent him a bottle with wine with a label “medicine for
stomach pain” and they also sent some hidden hosts.
The police asked him: “do you have stomach pain”? Yes, he answered. “Here you
go, here is your remedy”. After he was released he said: “I will never be able to express
my happiness: every single day with three drops of wine in my hand I celebrated the
Mass”. And showing the palms of his hands, he said: “this was my altar and this was my
cathedral. Thus, I fed myself with the Bread of Life and the Chalice of salvation during
so many years”. Thus, he was transformed by the Eucharist despite he was imprisoned.