HOMILY
Corpus Christi Sunday – June 22, 2025
Today, we join with the Church throughout the world to celebrate the great Feast of the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus – Corpus Christi Sunday – a day that calls us to reflect upon the gift of God given to us in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist – a day that in so many ways captures the heart of our Catholic faith and why we so often gather at the table of the Lord as we do this morning.
And so, our hearts should indeed well up in praise of God for the sublime gift of his presence, found in the simple gifts of bread and wine. And likewise, our spirits should gratefully claim the promise of Jesus to be with us always and to give us food for the journey of faith that we are called to live with and for a broken world – our struggling sisters and brothers.
Early on in his pontificate, Saint John Paul II wrote to the bishops of the world about the treasure of the Eucharist. He spoke of the gift of God found in the sacramental presence of Jesus that we honor and receive this day. He also said this: “The authentic sense of the Eucharist is that it becomes the school of active love for my neighbor. If authentically received, Eucharist must make us grow in awareness of one another.”
In the gift of the Eucharist, then, we are given nothing less than the very presence and life of Jesus. Today’s feast of the Body and Blood of the Lord reminds us never to take this gift for granted; never to see it as a routine element of our worship – but to maintain a sense of wonder and awe at the gift of God’s presence – here – in the midst of our broken world; here – in the midst of our fragile lives; here – in this parish community.
Yet, in the same gift of the Eucharist, we also discover something else. We discover the essence of who we are and what we are called to be as Christians. Recall again the words of Saint John Paul II. Yes, he spoke of the awesome presence of God in the Eucharist. But he also called Eucharist “the school of active love” for our neighbor.
So, when God’s people assemble in faith as we do today, yes, we are called to recreate the ritual meal of the Last Supper. But we are also called to do something else. We are called to open our lives to the presence of Jesus that we receive and give him room to transform our lives. The great Saint Augustine put it best: “Become the mystery you celebrate.” … Become the broken Christ whose life was poured forth for those that he loved. … Become the loving, compassionate Christ who multiplied loaves and fish and fed the hungry multitudes, satisfying not only their physical needs, but their desire to be nourished by the God.
Receive Christ, the living bread that sustains us on our journey of faith. Receive Christ and so become Christ in loving service to one another. … Become Christ for your husband/your wife. Become Christ for your mother/your father; your son/your daughter. Become Christ for your neighbor, for the stranger, the unborn child, the hungry, the immigrant, the forgotten. … Become the Christ whom you adore and whom you worship.
In short, the great sacrament of the Eucharist that we celebrate this day is both a gift to be cherished and a responsibility to be embraced by all who seek to follow the Lord Jesus with sincerity of heart.
The great Saint John Chrysostom put this in perspective when he spoke of the bond between reverence for the sacramental presence of Christ and our relationship with his mystical body: “Would you honor Christ’s body? Then do not permit him to be despised in his members, that is, in the poor who are in need of clothes. Do not honor him here in church clothed in silk, while outside, you neglect him when he is cold and has no clothes. … What advantage is it to Christ if the altar is covered with gold vessels while he himself is starving in his poor? First, feed those who are hungry and only then, adorn the altar with what remains.”
Our beloved Holy Father, Pope Francis, in reflecting upon the Eucharist, called us to deepen our understanding of this great gift of God. “In the Eucharist, Jesus gives Himself totally; He keeps nothing for Himself, not even His life. At the Last Supper, with His friends, He shares the bread and distributes the chalice for us. He consigns His Body and his Blood into our hands to be with us always, to dwell among us. … So, what does this mean for us? It means that Jesus’ way is my, your, our way. … It means that we must reach out to others, to be the first to move towards our brothers and sisters, especially those who are most in need of understanding, consolation and help. There is so much need to bring to our world the living presence of Jesus, merciful and full of love!”
And so, my brothers and sisters, may our prayer on this great day in the Church embody these simple words: As we receive Christ in the Eucharist, may we, in turn, become Christ for others. Amen.