The mystery of faith

Listening to the Spirit

Pange Lingua

Hail our Saviour’s glorious Body,
which his Virgin Mother bore;
hail the Blood which, shed for sinners,
did a broken world restore;
hail the sacrament most holy
flesh and Blood of Christ adore!

To the Virgin for our healing,
his own Son the Father send;
from the Father’s love proceeding
sower, seed, and Word descends;
wondrous life of Word incarnate
with his greatest winder ends!

On that paschal evening see him
with the chosen twelve recline,
to the old law still obedient
in its feats of love divine;
love divine, the new law giving,
gives himself as Bread and Wine!

By his word the Word almighty
makes of bread his flesh indeed;
wine becomes his very life-blood;
faith God’s living Word must heed!
Faith alone may safely guide us
where the senses cannot lead!

Come, adore this wondrous presence;
bow to Christ, the source of grace!
Here is kept the ancient promise
of God’s earthly dwelling-place!
Sight is blind before God’s glory,
faith alone may see his face!

Glory be to God the Father,
praise to his co-equal Son,
adoration to the Spirit,
bond of love, in Godhead one!
Blest be God by all creation
joyously while ages run!

Translated by James Quinn sj (1919–2010)

Listening to the Word

Luke 9:11b-17

Jesus spoke to the crowds about the kingdom of God, and cured those who had need of healing. Now the day began to wear away; and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away, to go into the villages and country round about, to lodge and get provisions; for we are here in a lonely place.” But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.” For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Make them sit down in companies, about fifty each.” And they did so, and made them all sit down. And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. And all ate and were satisfied. And they took up what was left over, twelve baskets of broken pieces.

Reflection

The Church has received the Eucharist as Christ’s gift par excellence, and not only as a gift among many others. It is the gift of Christ himself, of his person in his holy humanity, and his work of salvation. This gift is not referred to the past, but it is always present when we celebrate the Eucharist every day. The reason is because everything that Christ is and everything he did and suffered for men participates in the divine eternity and thus dominates all times.

When the Church celebrates the Eucharist, the memorial of the death and resurrection of the Lord, this central event of salvation becomes truly present and the work of our redemption is realized. This sacrifice is so decisive for the salvation of the human race, that Jesus Christ has realized it and has returned to the Father only after having left us the means to participate in it, as if we had been present. This is the faith that the Christian generations have lived through the centuries. This is the faith that the Magisterium of the Church has continually reiterated with joyful gratitude for such an inestimable gift. I wish, once again, to draw attention to this truth, placing myself with you in adoration before this Mystery: Great mystery, Mystery of mercy. What else could Jesus do for us? Truly, in the Eucharist he shows us a love that reaches to the extreme, a love that knows no measure.

The salvific efficacy of the sacrifice is fully realized when we receive the body and blood of the Lord. In itself, the Eucharistic sacrifice is oriented to the intimate union of us, the faithful, with Christ through communion: we receive Him Himself, who has offered Himself for us; His body, which He has given for us on the Cross; his blood, "shed for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Mt 26, 28). Let us remember his words: "As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me." (Jn 6:57). Jesus himself assures us that this union, which he puts in relation with the Trinitarian life, is effectively realized. The Eucharist is a true banquet, in which Christ offers himself as food. When Jesus announces this food for the first time, the listeners are amazed and confused, forcing the Master to emphasize the objective truth of his words: " Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you"(Jn 6:53). It is not a metaphorical food: "My flesh is true food and my blood is real drink" (Jn 6:55).