(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis delivered the homily at Mass being celebrated on the steps of Rome’s cathedral Basilica of St. John Lateran on Thursday, to mark the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Our Lord. Below, please find the full text of the Holy Father’s prepared remarks, in their official English translation.
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« Do this in remembrance of me » ( 1 Cor 11 :24-25).
Twice the Apostle Paul, writing to the community in Corinth, recalls this command of Jesus in his account of the institution of the Eucharist. It is the oldest testimony we have to the words of Christ at the Last Supper.
“Do this”. That is, take bread, give thanks and break it; take the chalice, give thanks, and share it. Jesus gives the command to repeat this action by which he instituted the memorial of his own Pasch, and in so doing gives us his Body and his Blood. This action reaches us today: it is the “doing” of the Eucharist which always has Jesus as its subject, but which is made real through our poor hands anointed by the Holy Spirit.
“Do this”. Jesus on a previous occasion asked his disciples to “do” what was so clear to him, in obedience to the will of the Father. In the Gospel passage that we have just heard, Jesus says to the disciples in front of the tired and hungry crowds: “Give them something to eat yourselves” ( Lk 9:13). Indeed, it is Jesus who blesses and breaks the loaves and provides sufficient food to satisfy the whole crowd, but it is the disciples who offer the five loaves and two fish. Jesus wanted it this way: that, instead of sending the crowd away, the disciples would put at his disposal what little they had. And there is another gesture: the pieces of bread, broken by the holy and venerable hands of Our Lord, pass into the poor hands of the disciples, who distribute these to the people. This too is the disciples “doing” with Jesus; with him they are able to “give them something to eat”. Clearly this miracle was not intended merely to satisfy hunger for a day, but rather it signals what Christ wants to accomplish for the salvation of all mankind, giving his own flesh and blood (cf. Jn 6:48-58). And yet this needs always to happen through those two small actions: offering the few loaves and fish which we have; receiving the bread broken by the hands of Jesus and giving it to all.
Breaking : this is the other word explaining the meaning of those words: “Do this in remembrance of me”. Jesus was broken; he is broken for us. And he asks us to give ourselves, to break ourselves, as it were, for others. This “breaking bread” became the icon, the sign for recognizing Christ and Christians. We think of Emmaus: they knew him “in the breaking of the bread” ( Lk 24:35). We recall the first community of Jerusalem: “They held steadfastly… to the breaking of the bread” ( Acts 2:42). From the outset it is the Eucharist which becomes the centre and pattern of the life of the Church. But we think also of all the saints – famous or anonymous – who have “broken” themselves, their own life, in order to “give something to eat” to their brothers and sisters. How many mothers, how many fathers, together with the slices of bread they provide each day on the tables of their homes, have broken their hearts to let their children grow, and grow well! How many Christians, as responsible citizens, have broken their own lives to defend the dignity of all, especially the poorest, the marginalized and those discriminated! Where do they find the strength to do this? It is in the Eucharist: in the power of the Risen Lord’s love, who today too breaks bread for us and repeats: “Do this in remembrance of me”.
May this action of the Eucharistic procession, which we will carry out shortly, respond to Jesus’ command. An action to commemorate him; an action to give food to the crowds of today; an act to break open our faith and our lives as a sign of Christ’s love for this city and for the whole world.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) The Prefect-emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Cardinal Francis Arinze, shared a reflection with Vatican Radio for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Our Lord, Jesus Christ.
The central focus of Cardinal Arinze’s extended meditation was the abiding Eucharistic faith of the Church, and the great joy of Christians in giving witness to that faith – especially in the Eucharistic processions that mark the Feast of Corpus Christi here at Rome and in countless towns and cities around the world. “Everybody is there,” he exclaimed. “Flowers, singing – the excellent Eucharistic hymns that incorporate very much the faith of the Church in the Holy Eucharist – listen to them, sing them, read them,” he said. “It is just a wonderful feast.”
Click below to listen to Cardinal Arinze’s extended meditation
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis sent a video message on Wednesday to participants in the 100th Katholikentag , or Catholic Day, taking place in Leipzig, Germany, from May 25th to 29th. First organised in 1848, this popular festival brings together Catholics, as well as people of other religious traditions, in dialogue with political, cultural and business leaders.
Philippa Hitchen reports:
Speaking in German, a language he learnt during his student days, Pope Francis greeted participants and praised the good relations between Christians of different denominations in Germany.
Noting the title of this 100th Katholikentag, ‘ Ecce homo ’, or ‘Behold, the man’, the Pope said this theme shows us that it’s not exterior success that counts in life, but rather the ability to stop, to look and to be attentive to the needs of others.
Peace with Creation
Every person, the Pope said, wishes to live in peace with others, but this will only happen if we foster peace in our own hearts. These days, he said, so many people are in a constant hurry and tend to trample on everything around them, including our own environment. Instead, he said, we must take time to restore harmony with the world, with creation and also with our Creator.
A voice for the oppressed
Through contemplation and prayer, the Pope said, we can draw closer to God and see that as he shows love and mercy to us, so we are called to be merciful to each other. So often, he noted, we see people ill-treated and deprived of their dignity – the elderly, the sick, the unemployed and the refugees. Pope Francis concluded his message with a blessing for participants, urging them to find more time in their lives to give a voice to the poor and the oppressed.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Wednesday said “prayer is not a magic wand.” He was speaking during his weekly General Audience in St. Peter’s Square.
The Pope was discussing the Parable of the Unjust Judge – also known as the Parable of the Persistent Widow – from the Gospel of Luke.
In the parable, the persistence of a widow forces the unjust judge to grant her request for justice, “so that she will not eventually wear [him] out.” ( Lk 18: 1-8 ).
“Widows, together with orphans and foreigners, were the most vulnerable groups of society” – Pope Francis said – “The rights secured to them by the Law could be easily trampled upon because, being alone and helpless, it was difficult from them to avail themselves: A poor widow, there, alone, no one to defend her, she could be ignored, even denied justice; thus also with the orphan, the foreigner, the migrant…at that time this was a very great problem.”
The Holy Father said the widow in the parable used the only weapon she had: Her persistence is presenting her request for justice, “and this persistence achieved its goal.”
Pope Francis said if the widow can bend the will of the Unjust Judge, then God, who is “a good and just Father,” will “do justice to those who cry out to him day and night.”
“All of us experience moments of fatigue and discouragement, especially when our prayers seem ineffective,” Pope Francis said.
“But Jesus assures us: unlike the unjust judge, God promptly answers promptly his children, although this does not mean he does it in the time and manner that we would like. Prayer is not a magic wand!” – continued the Pope – “It helps to preserve our faith in God, and to trust in Him even when we do not comprehend His will. In this, Jesus himself – who prayed so much! – is the example.”
Pope Francis gives the example of Our Lord’s prayer at Gethsemane, where he prayed for the Father to “deliver him from the bitter cup of the passion.”
“But his prayer is permeated by faith in the Father, and trusts without restraint in His will: But – says Jesus – not as I will, but as you will,” Pope Francis explained.
“The goal of the prayer is of secondary importance; what matters above all is the relationship with the Father,” – the Pope continued – “This is what makes the prayer transform the desire and shape it according to the will of God, whatever it may be, because the person who prays first of all aspires to union with God, who is Merciful Love.”
Pope Francis concluded his catechesis by mentioning the parable ends with a question: When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?
“And with this question we are all warned: we must not desist from prayer, even if it is not answered,” the Pope said. “And it is the prayer which keeps the faith, without this, the faith wavers”
“We ask the Lord for a faith which becomes unceasing prayer, persevering, like that of the widow in the parable, a faith that is nourished by the desire of his arrival. And in this prayer we experience the compassion of God, like a Father who comes to meet his children full of merciful love.”
After his catechesis, Pope Francis prayed for the victims of terrorist attacks that took place in Syria on Monday, and also made an appeal for International Missing Children’s Day.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a message to participants at a conference on pre- and perinatal care taking place at Rome’s Agostino Gemelli Teaching hospital.
The Conference, entitled “Guarding Life: the perinatal hospice, a scientific, ethical and human response to prenatal diagnoses,” is presenting the initial results of therapeutic approaches to care for newborns, including those with grave pathological conditions, developed by the new “Perinatal Hospice” established at the Gemelli Hospital. The Hospice has been established in the context of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis.
In the Message, signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy Father expressed his hope for the continued success of the project “in the service of the person and in the progress of medical science, in constant reference to perennial human and Christian values.” He noted their efforts in “seeking to respond in the best possible way to the poverty which is the situation of the child with grave pathologies, with the greatest possible love, spreading a concept of science that that is directed to service, not selection.”
Pope Francis also praised accomplishments already achieved, and called for “a daily commitment to the actualization of the project of God with concerning life and protecting it with courage and love, with the ‘style’ of nearness and proximity, distancing oneself from the throwaway culture that proposes only an itinerary of death, thinking to eliminate suffering by eliminating those who suffer.”
At the conclusion of the Message, Pope Francis extended his Apostolic Blessing to all those taking part in the Conference.
(from Vatican Radio)…