Reflection by Rev. Leonard N. Peterson
Just to satisfy my curiosity in preparing this piece, I browsed the web to find out how many commercial products carried the word “miracle” in their label. I stopped at 12, which I thought fit well with the number of our first bishops, the Apostles. There is Miracle Whip, a kind of salad dressing; Miracle-Gro, a plant and garden fertilizer; then Miracle Rice, Noodles, Fruit Berries, Moo, a milk supplement); Oil, Elixir, Honey, Curls (for hair), Organics, and Prostate pills. Enough is enough.
My point is that we must be careful in how we toss around certain words like “miracle” because we can cheapen, or even lose, the use of the word in a religious context. Today’s feast of “Corpus Christi” the pleasant-sounding Latin name for the Most Holy Body and Blood of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Before coming to reflect on this ultimate miracle, there are a few general comments. Miracles are a certification of holiness present, as when something like a cure is attributed to a person slated for canonization. They are proofs not only of God’s existence but also of His power. Above all, they manifest His goodness and love.
The Holy Eucharist that we celebrate today is certainly in that last category. Jesus knew quite well that it certainly is not our “fault” that we have been born and raised 2,000 years plus from the holy days that He
walked on this planet. How could He project His presence to benefit all those who believe in Him? How could He guarantee that “all those who are weary and heavily burdened” experience His comforting presence?
He answered those needs in the context of the Jewish Passover meal of His people. St. Paul describes it in today’s Second Reading from first Corinthians, the oldest account of the event, preceding the Gospels.
When Jesus added the instruction to the astonished men with Him around the table: “Do this in memory of Me,” He created His first priests. Their successors live among us even now. Through them, the Mass is with us even daily, until time comes to an end.
So, as we gather and “proclaim Christ’s death until He comes again” we celebrate this priceless gift. Among its many good effects is the fact that He wants to be close to us, and not to be thought of as an aloof figure living beyond the cosmos. Dare we not reciprocate?
Allow me to quote St. Maximilian Kolbe, the Franciscan priest who was executed at Auschwitz prison camp: “If angels could be jealous of men, they would be so for one reason: Holy Communion.”
God love you and give you His peace.
Rev. Peterson’s Reading & Gospel Summary
Reading I: Genesis 14: 18-20
Melchizedek, translated as “King of Righteousness”, is the first person in the Bible to be called a priest. He is a “type” of Christ the Messiah. He offers bread and wine, a celebratory meal, to bless Abram’s victory.
Reading II: 1 Corinthians 11: 23-26
Jesus fulfills Melchizedek’s offering in a marvelous way. He gives to us Himself, under the appearances of bread and wine. This is the oldest account of the Eucharist, as given by St. Paul.
The Gospel: Luke 9: 11b-17
Apart from the Resurrection, the multiplication of the loaves is the only miracle recounted in all 4 Gospels. Of course, it foreshadows the miracle of the Eucharist, inaugurated at the Last Supper.