Fr. Leo's Spiritual Reflections

By Fr. Leo Schneider (6/14/2009)

Dear People of Holy Name,

As we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi today many thoughts and images come to mind. We may think of the human body of Christ as he lived among humankind and gave his life for us. We may think of the Church as the body of Christ, many members made one in the mystical union of faith. Or we may also think of the Eucharist, God’s continued presence with us through the sacrament of the Church. All of these images are correct. What I would like to reflect on here is the roots of the Eucharist in the covenant of the Old Testament.

In our first reading from the Book of Exodus, Moses took blood and sprinkled it on the people, saying “this is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you.” In that action Moses celebrates and makes real the covenant relationship between God and his people. God will be faithful to his people and enters into a sacred relationship with those he calls his own. The covenant is between two unequal parties, but binds them together for eternity. We will always be in relationship with God for to be, is to be in God.

When we celebrate the new covenant we are celebrating the blood of Christ who died to restore our relationship with God the Father. To celebrate the Eucharist and to receive Christ is to enter into a sacred relationship with God that is restored through the forgiveness of our sins. Eucharist is about relationship, our being made one with God and in that oneness, one with all things. Eucharist is reconciliation and accomplishes in us what Jesus came among us for, unity with our God.

The power of the Holy Spirit is what makes the Eucharist real in us and it is upon the Holy Spirit that we call to sanctify our gifts in the celebration of the Eucharist so that in turn we may be sanctified. We are made holy in our receiving of the Lord in the sacrament of Corpus Christi. What we celebrate and make real during our Eucharistic liturgy really is beyond worlds. It humbles me to think that God renews his presence and his life in us as we gather around his table that extends into time eternal, and at whose side are gathered believers of all times and places, past and present. As we go forth from our Sunday celebration we bring the Eucharistic presence into the world. We as the body of Christ make him known and loved in our time. Opening our minds and hearts to the Holy Spirit makes us a channel of God’s love to the world. When we pray, the Spirit prays in us. When we pray for the world, we invite the Holy Spirit into the world. When we live and act as Jesus, we make him known to those who may have no other way to come to know the Lord’s goodness but through our words and deeds.

We are the body of Christ made so by the Holy Spirit that dwells in us. Made one with God through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we continue God’s mission in the world revealed to us through the life, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. So let us ask today for the Spirit to make us one, to consecrate us he consecrates our gifts of bread and wine. Let our offering of ourselves be made holy this day, as we celebrate the gift of God’s life that draws us into the sacred life of the Holy Trinity that is all things.

May the Lord bless you and help you know that you are a member of his body sharing in God’s everlasting love.

In Christ’s peace, Fr. Leo