Category Archives: Body and Blood of Christ

Words are easy and cheap. People can say anything and everything under the sun or moon, but what they say would be mere words, if there is no action. For example, a person can say: “I love you.” But does the person really mean what he or she says? After all, we hear the words “I love you” in so many places, such as in advertisements, on TV, in the cinemas, that the words seem to lose their meaning or significance. That is why, for many of us, we do not only want to hear such words, we want proof of action. Only through action can we come to believe or be convinced that someone really loves us.

Today we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi. Today we remember Jesus’ promise that He loves us. His promise is not merely words, but is shown in His action. Jesus proves His love for us by giving us His own body and blood, by sacrificing his own life for us to save us from our sins. Every time we come to receive the body of Jesus at Mass; every time we come to adore Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, we are acting out our belief that we are important, we are special, we are loved by God.

But sometimes, some of us may have taken for granted God’s tremendous love for us. Some of us may have not prepared well for Mass, by going for confession, by observing the one hour fast prior to receiving Holy Communion, by spending time in prayer and reflection, by dressing in our Sunday best. Some of us just come to church and receive Holy Communion just like that, without ensuring that we are clean and well prepared, both physically and spiritually. If we go to meet a king or royalty or some VIP (Very Important Person) for an official dinner or an official function, surely we would prepare ourselves to make a good impression and to show that we have good manners and proper upbringing. What about Mass then? Do we do the same?

Today, let us be thankful and grateful that God loves us so much. God loved the world so much that He gave us His only Son so that all who believe in Him may have eternal life. Jesus loves us so much that He offers us His Body and Blood, each and every time we receive Holy Communion at Mass. May we show our love, by being well prepared, and by being genuine in our love towards others.

Why do we attend Mass? Some do so because they supposingly want to be closer to God and be part of a community of believers; but sometimes their actions and attitude seem to show that they are only concerned about themselves or their families and friends. There are people who come to church for Mass, and find that the church parking space is getting congested, then what do they do? Some just park indiscriminately and enter the church. Then when others affected by such indiscriminate parking find that they are unable to move their vehicle, tempers begin to flare and people who call themselves so called brothers and sisters in Christ, end up screaming and shouting at each other. There also are some who, upon entering the church, find that many of the seats have already been booked or “chope” by others who only want their family members or friends to seat together (a common tactic theses people use is to place a bag, handbag or some personal item on the seat). When we do these kind of things, are we really coming to church for the right reasons? What has happened to our being brothers and sisters in Christ?

When we celebrate the Mass, Jesus extends hospitality to all of us. He does not extend hospitality only to those who are thought to be good and holy, but also to strangers, lukewarm Christians, and sinners. The Mass is not confined only a few select people, but all are welcomed to be nourished and cared for. Also, we sometimes come across Christian communities who have broken into factions. There are factions between the rich and the poor. There are those who think themselves holier than others. There are those who support a certain leader and others who support another leader. But in the Mass, there can be no room for factions. All are united in the Body of Christ, and we should die to ourselves, die to our selfishness, our pride and prejudice, our suspicion of others.

Perhaps we should take a good look at ourselves and be honest: why do we come for Mass? Do we really come as a community of brothers and sisters in Christ? Or have we become individualistic and indifferent towards others? Every Mass is meant to be an occasion and a great opportunity for each and every one of us to extend hospitality to others, especially strangers, migrants, the weak, the elderly, little children and those who seem to be alone. We should not think that such a task is meant only for the hospitality ministers or the parish priest, but each and every one of us are expected to do our part, if we call ourselves Christians, the body of Christ, a member of God’s family, brothers and sisters in Christ. After all, Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. As Christians, followers of Christ, are we not to do the same?

Some of us go through great effort or great extend to find good food and drink. We make trips to remote areas, long distances, brave through bad weather, traffic jams, difficult road conditions; all this just to taste and savour food and drink which will not last. Sometimes, the food and drink we crave for may just our luck be not available or sold out when we arrive.

However, how many of us truly value the body and blood of Christ? Today we celebrate Corpus Christi or the Body and Blood of Christ. Christ gave us His body and blood as real food and drink, not only to nourish us physically, but especially to nourish us spiritually. Do we see the value and preciousness of receiving Jesus’ Body and Blood? At every Mass, we are reminded to prepare ourselves before receiving communion. Are we properly prepared to receive communion? Have we discovered any serious sins and gone for confession?

Perhaps some of us have become complacent about receiving communion. Some of us may have not been regular in attending Mass and receiving communion. Seems strange that we can be so diligent in looking for temporary food on this earth, but neglect in preparing ourselves and receiving food which is for our eternal benefit. Let us be aware of how precious, how significant, how special the food Jesus has offered us; and let us be properly disposed and prepared to receive it.