The Church celebrates the Solemnity of Corpus Christi with such joy and devotion. It stems from the profound love we, the faithful, have for the Eucharist. It is often surprising to learn that this feast was not added to the Church calendar until the 13th century, as we naturally assume it was one of the very first. This delay reveals something about the early Church. The first generations of Christians believed so deeply in the Real Presence of the Lord that they did not need a specific feast day to remind them of it. 

In fact, the feast was introduced precisely after a Eucharistic miracle took place during a Mass in Orvieto, Italy. The priest who celebrated this Mass was having doubts about the Real Presence. At the moment of the consecration, the wine became real blood and spilled onto the cloth underneath. The pope at that time learned about the miracle and ordered the introduction of the feast. He also asked St. Thomas Aquinas to compose the hymns for the liturgy of the hours which the Church has been singing ever since.

Turning to today’s readings, the Book of Deuteronomy is set at the pivotal moment when the Israelites are about to enter the Promised Land. Moses addresses the people, offering them a blueprint for a successful and faithful life. Moses reminds them of how they were fed with manna, the bread from Heaven, during the forty years of their journey to the Promised Land. This manna tasted like honey. And honey was one of the products the Promised Land had in abundance, according to the way God announced it to the people in Egypt: “A land flowing in milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8). Each time the people ate of this manna, they were reminded of the Land they were journeying to.

The Second Vatican Council defined the Eucharist as the source and summit of the Christian life. The Eucharist brings us together as a parish family each Sunday. Since I came to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, I have been doing things with the intent of improving our celebration of the Eucharist. We have come a long way, but we still have more to do.  

For instance, our parish has not yet reintroduced the reception of Holy Communion under the species of the Precious Blood. Before we do that and according to guidelines from the bishops, the faithful should be properly catechized on several matters before proceeding. Specifically, this catechesis must cover the ecclesial nature of the Eucharist as the common possession of the whole Church; the Eucharist as the memorial of Christ's sacrifice, his death and resurrection, and as the sacred banquet; the real presence of Christ in the eucharistic elements, whole and entire—in each element of consecrated bread and wine; the kinds of reverence due at all times to the sacrament, whether within the eucharistic Liturgy or outside the celebration; and the role that ordinary and, if necessary, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist are assigned in the eucharistic assembly.

Reintroducing the Precious Blood will also require us to rethink the logistics of the Communion procession. I hope to conduct this necessary catechesis over the coming months ahead of Advent, planning accordingly for the implementation of Holy Communion under both kinds. 

As the Pastoral Council is currently setting goals for the next pastoral year, we are considering the following goal: to improve church building accessibility and functionality to support the dignified celebration of the sacraments of the Eucharist, Baptism, and Penance. The parish is in possession of $45,000 allocated for the purchase of a new Tabernacle, candelabra, and related sanctuary appointments. We need to use these donations, but a larger plan for the church is necessary. I will elaborate more about this plan in the next two months. 

I would like to finish my reflection on this beautiful feast by going back to the taste of the manna. The taste of honey reminded the people of Israel of the land they were traveling toward through the desert. The new people of God, the Church, are now fed with the real Bread from heaven, God himself. The Lord gave us the Eucharist as a foretaste of eternal life. Each time we eat the Eucharist, we too are reminded of the Land we are going to. Eternal life is given to us already as a pledge. We cannot thank the Lord enough for this beautiful gift of the Eucharist.