The Body and Blood of Christ

This feast has its origin in the middle Ages when a central focus in the Western Church was how and in what way the bread and wine were transformed into the Real Presence of Christ during the Mass. At the same time the Mass had become not the prayer of the community in which all participated but the prayer of the priest which all watched and very few, if any, fully participated in the reception of the Eucharist. This was a radical departure from the Tradition and witness in the Scriptures and the Fathers of the Church. As we return to the sources of our Tradition we are encouraged to expand our narrow approach to the Real Presence. Our Eucharistic Prayers include two transformations – the transformation of the bread and wine into the Real Presence of the Body of Christ and, nourished by that transformation, our transformation into the Body of Christ. This intimate connection between the Eucharist and the way in which we live is expressed in our opening prayer. Our authentic worship is the uniting of our lives with Christ in offering “to our Father in heaven a solemn pledge of undivided love” and “to our brothers and sisters a life poured out in loving service of [your] kingdom”. We are called to see the Sacrament in its full context and to “become what we eat” as St. Augustine encourages us. In this way the Eucharist truly is the source and summit of the Christian life and the life of the Church.