Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (B)

(Corpus Christi)

June 3, 2018 

Readings:

First Reading; Exodus 24: 3-8

Psalm: 116

Second Reading: Hebrews 9: 11-15

Gospel reading according to Mark (14: 12-16, 22-26)

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Homily:

This day, we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi (Latin for "Body and Blood of Christ"), it is the Roman Catholic Rite liturgical solemnity celebrating the real presence of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, in the Eucharist—in the form of bread and wine.  A short history of this feast happened when Juliana of Liège, a 13th-century Norbertine canoness, also known as Juliana de Cornillon, always longed for a Corpus Christi feast day outside of Lent in its honor. Her life reports that this desire was enhanced by a vision of the Church under the appearance of the full moon having one dark spot, which signified the absence of such a solemnity.  In 1208, she reported her first vision of Christ in which she was instructed to plead for the institution of the feast of Corpus Christi.  The vision was repeated for the next 20 years but she kept it a secret. When she eventually relayed it to her confessor, he relayed it to the bishop (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Christi_(feast).

On the Feast of the Passover, every year, Jesus and his parents went to Jerusalem when he was young to celebrate the Passover, to commemorate the liberation from slavery of the Jews in the hands of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.  This year it was different.  Jesus with his disciples went up to Jerusalem.  He was now in the company of his disciples in celebrating the feast day of Passover. They were there on the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread were they sacrificed the Passover lamb, who is Jesus Christ.  “On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb” (Mk. 14: 12).  The Feast of Unleavened Bread is a feast that is generally lasts for seven days.  Passover, however, is only one day (24 hour) period.  The Feast of the Unleavened Bread is one of the most important feasts in the celebrations of the Jewish people; there are other feast, such as the Feast of the Pentecost and the Feast of Booths, etc.

What is the significance of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread in the celebration of the Passover?   Going back in the Book of Exodus (12: 17-18). God said, ¹⁷ “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. ¹⁸ In the first month you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day” (New International Version (NIV)).  On the evening after Passover God told the Hebrew people exiting Egypt not to allow their bread to rise, but to grab everything and go.  The ancient peoples used to gather yeast on grape leaves to leaven their bread if they needed to speed up the process, but God said "Don't even let any leavening touch the dough. Just bake it and go."  In their haste they grabbed the necessities and fled toward the Promised land God was preparing for them.  God then told them that in the future they were to commemorate this feast by getting all yeast out of the house for seven days.  God even told us what the yeast represented. Yeast represents sin.  Because of our ancestors, Adam and Eve, sin had the chance to enter the originally perfect world. We are now born into a sinful world and no matter what we do growing up; there isn't a thing we can do to get all of the sin out of us.  We may be able to convince other humans we are "clean," but not God.  He knows our born-in-sin nature completely.  So as we clean out our homes of the yeast and eat Matzo, yeast-less bread, we are reminded that it is a hopeless case.  Just like our inability to clean out the junk in our souls/spirits.  We need someone perfect to do it for us – Jesus Christ.  Matzo has a special way it is made now. It has stripes that look like bruises and is pierced through. The Rabbi's reason for this is to make the bread cook fast, from start to finish in 18 minutes actually. Eighteen minutes is supposedly the amount of time it takes to prepare and cook it in a manner that will keep all yeast out. What they don't seem to realize is that they have created the perfect symbolism that God initiated long ago.  Jesus was beaten and bruised and pierced for our sins. He was and is the only sinless person on this planet and His body is represented by the matzo. Even in modern day Judaism they can't get away from God's plan of redemption.  We need Jesus' atoning blood to cleanse us of those sins. We have to let Him come in to live inside of us, in the form of the Holy Spirit, where He can slowly find all that yeast and "burn it up."  He burns up the sin just like the families burn up the left-over yeast before these two feasts.  This feast is the perfect celebration of our Savior whose body was broken for our sins.(http://www1.cbn.com/biblestudy/the-feast-of-unleavened-bread...-wait-isn%27t-it-passover%3F).

Upon arrival to Jerusalem, the first thing his disciples asked from Jesus was the place where they will stay on this day of Passover, on the first day of Feast of the Unleavened Bread which last for seven (7) days.  “Jesus’ disciples said to him, “Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?” (Mk. 14: 12).  Beforehand, Jesus already contacted and prepared the place they will stay to celebrate the Passover by contacting one of his friends living in Jerusalem. “He sent two of his disciples and said to them, ‘Go into the city and a man will meet you, carrying a jar of water.  Follow him’.” (Mk.14: 13).  He has chosen two of his disciples and sent them to the place they are staying tonight. Everything was already set except for the arrangement of the place. “Wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”  Then he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready.  Make the preparation for us there.’  The disciples then went off, entered the city, and found it just as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover.” (Mk. 14: 14-16).  That’s why he sent two of his disciples to follow up the house (actually upper room) where they will stay overnight.  Everything was done according to what Jesus planned and instructed to the owner(s) of the house.

When evening came and at supper, “while they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, ‘Take it; this is my body” (Mk. 14: 22).  This was the last supper of Jesus with his disciples.  He was about to offer his self – his body up to Calvary as an unleavened bread (Matzo, bread without yeast), fruit of the earth to be broken or Lamb to be slaughtered for the remission or cleansing of sins (yeast) of the world and of our personal sins.

“Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it.  He said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many’.” (Mk. 14: 23-24).  This was his last drink with his disciples.  The wine was made from the fruit of the vine, representing the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ to be poured out to many for the forgiveness of sins. 

After saying this, he continued, “Amen, I say to you, ‘I shall not drink again the fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it new in the Kingdom of God.’  Then, after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”  Dying you destroys our death; rising you restores our life, Lord Jesus come in glory.  When we eat this bread and drink this cup we proclaim your death Lord Jesus until you come in glory.