Corpus Christi
(B - cycle)  June  14,  2009

A famous atheist once said, “If I believed that communion was really Christ, I would crawl down the aisle on my hands and knees.” Maybe, but we can get so used to even the most amazing things that routine overcomes awe. I remember my first look at the Grand Canyon. I said, “Wow!” A couple of minutes later, I grew more eloquent, I said, “Wow, that’s really something!” A couple of minutes later, I said, “What time is lunch?”

It’s even harder to come up with an appropriate response to the enormity of Jesus within me. Here are some approaches I’ve found helpful. The consecration prayer usually begins, “On the night he was betrayed”. You might wonder why this sacred prayer should begin on a negative note. But think. At the Last Supper Jesus knew one of his friends would betray him, another would deny him, all would desert him; other human beings would execute him. Yet he gave himself to humanity. No wonder saints reflecting on the Eucharist would exclaim, “Such a gift at such a time!” Holy Communion, among other things, is about forgiveness. It is ongoing forgiveness as Christ comes to us, guilty of our own desertions and denials and even betrayals.

Sometimes when I receive communion, I think back to the multiplication of the loaves and fishes.. I picture the scene: the meadow, the lake; one of the gospels beautifully says the people reclined on the grass like flower beds. Think of Jesus, having compassion on the many who had nothing to eat. Think of him feeding his people. I recall his words to one of his apostles who said, “How can we possibly take care of so many?” He said, “Feed them yourselves.” That reminds me that even as I am filled with Christ, I must not forget those who are hungry.”

Sometimes I think ahead to the heavenly banquet. The Eucharist is a foretaste of that most appetizing meal. I think of celebrating it with Christ and with those I have known and loved who have gone to their reward before me. I think of the words of Jesus: “I am the living bread come down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever.”

Sometimes, strangely enough, I think of a bird, a pelican. This bird, whether in reality or myth, is said to feed its young with its own blood.  It became a symbol of Christ shedding his blood for us and feeding us with his body and blood. In one of his Eucharistic hymns, St. Thomas Aquinas writes: “O holy pelican, Lord Jesus Christ, wash me in my uncleanliness with your holy blood.”

These are some approaches to thanksgiving after communion that have helped me concentrate on the reality of Jesus within me. They keep me from wondering what’s for lunch and remind me that of his fullness we have all received.