Today, the Church celebrates its very nature, life and activity: the Eucharist! The Body and Blood of Jesus Christ are not "just a mere memory" as the Patarina Heresy and its modern day renditions wants us to believe. The Eucharist is the real Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour.
In John 6, the Jews asked Jesus what kind of sign he would perform to have them believe in him. When they came up with the challenge that "our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness" (John 6: 31), Jesus replied by saying that "the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven, and gives life to the world" (verse 33). Naturally, they asked him: "Lord, give us this bread always" (verse 34). Jesus told them: "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst" (verse 35).
At this point the Jews misunderstood him. They thought he was talking metaphorically to them. In fact they said: "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" (verse 42). And Jesus not only reiterated his teaching but summed it up once more. "I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh" (verse 51). Again, "the Jews ... argued among themselves, saying, 'How can this man give us his flesh to eat?'"
Now his listeners clearly understood him. Their literal comprehension of his words created a controversy and a great debate. And Jesus answers to their contentions by simply repeating his words empathically. In doing this he also offered the teaching regarding drinking his blood. "So Jesus said to them, '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; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him'" (53-56).
The great Saint Paul, whom many Christians, irrespective of their denomination, revere and consider him as a reliable teacher and guide of their Christian faith, openly confirms Jesus' teaching when he writes to the Corinthians: "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?" (1 Cor 10:16). Thus, according to the Apostle of the Gentiles when we receive the Eucharist we really take part in the Body and Blood of Christ and not simply eat symbols of them. "Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord... For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment upon himself" (1 Cor 11:27.29).
The Christian tradition is replete with teachings that confirm that the Eucharist is truly the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Take, for instance, Saint Augustine's Sermon 227. "That Bread which you see on the altar, having been sanctified by the word of God is the Body of Christ. That chalice, or rather, what is in that chalice, having been sanctified by the word of God, is the Blood of Christ. Through that bread and wine the Lord Christ willed to commend his Body and Blood, which he poured out for us into the forgiveness of sins."
In our times, our Christian brethren are pouring out their blood for Jesus Christ because they are being massacred for their faith. Furthermore, countless Christians pour their blood because they give themselves for those in need.
Why not become Christ's body and blood by serving and giving our lives for others?
Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap
Paola