Complete Nourishment

The Body and Blood of Christ
26 June 2011


Come, let us worship Christ, the bread of life.


First reading Deuteronomy 8:2-3,14-16 3
Moses said to the people: ‘Remember how the Lord your God led you for forty years in the wilderness, to humble you, to test you and know your inmost heart – whether you would keep his commandments or not. He humbled you, he made you feel hunger, he fed you with manna which neither you nor your fathers had known, to make you understand that man does not live on bread alone but that man lives on everything that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
‘Do not become proud of heart. Do not forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery: who guided you through this vast and dreadful wilderness, a land of fiery serpents, scorpions, thirst; who in this waterless place brought you water from the hardest rock; who in this wilderness fed you with manna that your fathers had not known.’

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 147:12-15,19-20

Second reading 1 Corinthians 10:16-17
The blessing-cup that we bless is a communion with the blood of Christ, and the bread that we break is a communion with the body of Christ. The fact that there is only one loaf means that, though there are many of us, we form a single body because we all have a share in this one loaf.

Gospel John 6:51-58
Jesus said to the Jews:
‘I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.
Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever;
and the bread that I shall give is my flesh,
for the life of the world.’
Then the Jews started arguing with one another: ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’ they said. Jesus replied:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you will not have life in you.
Anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood
has eternal life,
and I shall raise him up on the last day.
For my flesh is real food
and my blood is real drink.
He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood
lives in me
and I live in him.
As I, who am sent by the living Father,
myself draw life from the Father,
so whoever eats me will draw life from me.
This is the bread come down from heaven;
not like the bread our ancestors ate:
they are dead,
but anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.’

Reflection
By Benj Santiago

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven”

One of my favorite family activities is going on an “eat-out”. We love to check out what’s new and good in a place, be it local or outside the country. We have not found anything yet that can sustain us for several days. We always end up eating our five (5) meals a day. The Israelites during the 40 years they were in the desert, did not have the same luxury as we now experience. They cannot order their pack lunch, nor do they have the luxury of planting, harvesting, and growing what they need for their daily sustenance. At one point, they complained to Moses that they want to return to Egypt and be slaves rather than be free and die of hunger. They asked for food to sustain them. Moses admonished them by saying “that not by bread alone does man lives, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Dt 8:3). Now, what really sustain us? What food do we crave for? The Pharisees were completely baffled when they heard Jesus say that “I am the living bread that came down from heaven, whoever eats this bread will live forever. And the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” (Jn 6: 51). In the last supper before Jesus offered His life on the cross, Jesus left us a wonderful celebration in which we can eat the food that sustain our souls. This is the Holy Eucharist which is continuously celebrated everyday in all churches around the world. And we love to partake in this Holy Meal, where we fully believe that we do receive the Body and Blood of Christ in the form of the bread and wine. We are completely nourished, body, heart, and soul. Truly, Jesus was the Word made flesh. And do understand that it is not just by believing in Him and living what He preached and commanded to all of usshall we inherit eternal life. It is also by eating His flesh and drinking His blood.

Lord, transform me to be more like You through Your Holy Eucharist, so that like You, I may be able to transform other people’s lives. In Jesus' name. Amen

Celebrate the Holy Eucharist constantly!