Non mihi sed tibi gloria

The Most Holy Eucharist

0. Intro: God has given us lots of gifts…

1) The whole creation!

- creation is a sacrament: it conveys God’s grace. (water washes our sins, oil
bestows blessing…)
- a new “Materialism”: Material can convey grace, can be glorified…
2) Himself!
- still in a sacramental way; through bread and wine. This is the Eucharist.

1. What’s the Eucharist?

In the Eucharistic liturgy, “under the appearances of bread and wine, the Lord
Christ is 1) contained, 2) offered, and 3) received.” - Baltimore Catechism

1) CHRIST IS CONTAINED

“After the consecration of bread of wine, the whole Christ is a) really, truly, and b)
substantially present in the Holy Eucharist.” - Baltimore Catechism

a) Really & truly ?

- REAL PRESENCE

- Therefore, NOT: merely symbol, merely power…

- What’s there: Body Soul Divinity

- Why Real Presence? The Bible says so!

- Christ promised the institution of the Eucharist

“The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh” …
“Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and
drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and
drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last
day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who
eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.” (John 6:
51-56)

- Christ instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper

He took bread, blessed and broke it, and giving it to His apostles,
said: "Take and eat; this is My body;" then He took a cup of wine,
blessed it, and giving it to them, said: "All of you drink of this; for this
is My blood of the new covenant which is being shed for many unto
the forgiveness of sins;" finally, He gave His apostles the commission:
"Do this in remembrance of Me."

Christ could not have used clearer, more explicit words than "This is
My body." He did not say, "This is a sign of My body," or "This
represents My body," but, "This is My body." When Our Lord said,
"This is My body," the entire substance of the bread was changed into
His body; and when He said, "This is My blood," the entire substance
of the wine was changed into His blood.

- From the Last Supper to Mass

Christ says, “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his
blood, you do not have life within you.” Therefore, literally “for our
lives’ sake,” the last supper has to continue. Xt told his disciples– "Do
this in remembrance of Me." – That is the Mass.

During the consecration at Mass, the priest acts in the person of

Christ, manifesting Christ’s power, and thereby consecrate the bread
and wine to the body and blood of Christ.

Therefore, the sacrifice of the Eucharist and the sacrifice of the cross
is one single sacrifice. And since the sacrifice of Xt is not confined in
 history, the Mass as a “memorial” is not about recalling an event in
the past. The one we remember lives forever, and therefore through
our commemoration we actually encounter him.

- More about the Real Presence in the Bread and Wine

- Xt’s Presence is WHOLE

- "Christ having risen from the dead, dies now no more" (Romans
6:9). Since Xt is living, his Presence has must always be whole:
Body, blood, soul, and divinity. Whole even in bread alone, in wine
alone, and still whole in each little portion of them when they are
distributed.

b) Substantially? = It looks the same!

- On the one hand, the substance of the bread and wine had been
changed into Our Lord's body and blood

- on the other hand, there remained the appearances of bread and

wine. By saying “appearance” we mean the color, taste, weight,
shape, chemical composition. Everything that can be observed by
human senses.

- The change of the entire substance, but substance only, is called

Transubstantiation – a change of substance.

An important side note: Xt’s presence in the Eucharist is a

sacramental presence, that means, God does not have to leave heaven
to be there. When you break the bread, you don’t hurt the Trinity;
when you elevate the bread, God doesn’t get dizzy.…etc.

- Ultimately, we can only give some descriptions of what’s going on, but the
mystery of Eucharist cannot be reduced to a theological statement. It’s not
comparable to anything we know.

2) CHRIST IS OFFERED - Mass as a sacrifice

- Back to the Cross

 John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, who died
on the Cross for our sins. Xt’s sacrifice on the Cross is:

- the only worthy sacrifice: Xt as the only righteous priest and the only
unblemished offering

- once for all: Since Christ, who is God, offered himself completely, there
nothing more to offer

- both the sacrifice and its fruits (union with Christ, separation from sin, ) are
everlasting. Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross was historical but is not confined
in time.

- From the Cross to the Altar

Whatever Xt did once for all, the Body of Xt, i.e. the Church, keeps doing.
The self-offering of Xt is perpetuated on the Altar.

The Church, endowed with the priesthood of Xt, always re-present (=

always make present) Xt’s sacrifice on the cross and apply its fruits, i.e. the
forgiveness of sins, to all generations to come.

Moreover, as the church offers Christ, she also offers herself in a whole and
entire manner. As individuals, we are not worthy. But as members of the
Body of Christ, our lives: praise, sufferings, prayer, and work, are united
with those of Christ and become acceptable to God the Father.

3) CHRIST IS RECEIVED – how does it in fluence us?

a) We receive life

- The eucharist presuppose that Jesus gave his life TO OTHERS. From the
point of view of the eucharist, what is most significant about Xt’s passion is
not that he suffered and dies, but that he died FOR OTHERS and gave his
life that all MAY LIVE.

- A wonderful image in John 6:

 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never
hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst… For this is the will of
my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have
eternal life, and I shall raise him [on] the last day.” (John 6: 35, 40)

- if we define bread by its function, i.e. what sustains life, then Xt would
have more right than bread to be called “bread,” bc/ he brings eternal life.

2) We receive unity / One Body

- Broken is the never-divided, consumed to make us one. Those who receive

the Eucharist are united more closely to Christ. Through it, Christ unites
them to all the faithful in one body - the Church. Communion renews,
strengthens, and deepens our incorporation into the Church.

- if we define bread by its function, i.e. when partaking it, people are brought
together, then Xt would have more right than bread to be called “bread,” bc/
he brings all together, not only Catholics from all around the world, but even
bring together the living and the dead, because in Xt we all live life eternal.

4) Who can receive?

The Church strongly encourages the faithful to receive the holy Eucharist on
Sundays and feast days, or more often still, even daily. However,

"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.
Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup." (1
Cor 11:27-29)

- Baptized

Baptism forgives sins. Eucharist, as heaven on earth, is for those whose sins
are forgive, for the new humanity redeemed and transformed by the death
and resurrection of Xt.

- AND Catholics
 Why Catholics? Eucharist is a sacrament of the Church. Ultimately, no one
is holy enough to be united to Christ – unless we are part of a Church which
is His Body. Therefore, to receive communion requires a union with this
body, not in a vague way, but its institution, its teachings, including its
doctrine on the Eucharist itself, for example, the Real Presence… “- Body of
Christ. - Amen”

- AND in a “state of grace”, i.e. not with mortal sin. (Sin: tear yourself away
from God; hurt the church. You’re moving to the opposite direction to
Communion with God and with the Church. You have to fix this through
Confession first,)

- AND fast from food and drink (except for water) before receiving the
Eucharist. (For us: 1h.)

P.S. Obligation: Receive the Eucharist at least once a year, better during the
Easter season.

5) Summary:

Matter: Bread & Wine

Form: Institution narrative.  Only exists as part of the Order of Mass!

Celebrant: Priest  Only as the head of the whole Body of Christ.

Recipient: Baptized Catholics + state of grace + fasting  Again, as the

Body of Christ.

6) Response to some common questions

a) Why can’t I feel God during Mass? Probably Mass is not the best way for
every one to get closer to God?

b) Why do we have to pray for the whole world during the intercession in
the Mass? I don’t really care people far away.
 c) Can Mass be private?

d) The word “Eucharist” means “thanks giving.” To whom and for what can
we give thanks during the Eucharist?

2. Eucharist in light of the Old Testament

Eucharist as the fulfilment of … (pretty much) everything

Typology: Brett’s baptism: flood, crossing of the red sea… [ask for example]

So what? What’s the conclusion? Under the Divine Revelation, the Bible is written
in such a way that everything in the OT, is actually talking about Xt and pointing
to him. This is esp true for our case, the Eucharist. [….] We can easily get 30
examples but let’s just talk about three of them that I think is especially sweet.

1) Manna from heaven

(Background: The Israelites were wandering in the wilderness and they needed
food…)

Then the Lord said to Moses: I am going to rain down bread from heaven for
you… In the morning there was a layer of dew all about the camp, and when the
layer of dew evaporated, fine flakes were on the surface of the wilderness, fine
flakes like hoarfrost on the ground. On seeing it, the Israelites asked one another,
“What is this?” for they did not know what it was. But Moses told them, “It is the
bread which the Lord has given you to eat. (Exodus 16:4, 13-15)

The Church’s take-away:

Ecce panis Angelórum, Factus cibus viatórum: Vere panis filiórum,Non mitténdus
cánibus. (Lauda Sion, Sequence for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi)

(Trans: Lo! the Angel's Food is given, To the pilgrim who hath striven; See the
children's Bread from heaven, Which to dogs may not be cast.)
Reflection:

Manna: Food for the journey to the Promised Land.

The Eucharist: The food for the Church on her pilgrim to heaven.

2) Passover

(Background: Israelites were suffering slavery in Egypt, and Pharaoh refused to let
them leave the land.)

Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to
take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household… …l shall slaughter it at
twilight. They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the
lintel of the houses in which they eat it… It is the Passover of the Lord. For I will
pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in
the land of Egypt.... The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live:
when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I
strike the land of Egypt.
(Exodus 12:3-13)

The church’s take-away:

In those days (i.e. Passover in Egypt), when the destroying angel saw the blood on
the doors he did not dare to enter, so how much less will the devil approach now
when he sees, not that figurative blood on the doors, but the true blood on the lips
of believers, the doors of the temple of Christ. (St. John Chrysostom, 4th Century)

Reflection:

The Eucharist saves us from eternal death and protect us from the attack of sin.
That’s why the church encourage us that, every time after we go to confession, we
should receive the eucharist ASAP.
3) Wheat and honey from the Rock

But I would feed you the finest wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy
you.” (Ps 81:16)

The church’s take-away:

For that Heart (i.e. the heart of Jesus) overflows with mercy, and there is no lack of
clefts by which they are poured out. They pierced His Hands and Feet and opened
His Side with a lance. And through these clefts I am permitted to “suck honey out
of the Rock, and oil out of the hardest stone.” That is to say, I am enabled to “taste
and see that the Lord is sweet.”

(St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermon 61 on Song of Songs)

Reflection: It is the same love that drives God to die for us on the Cross and come
into the Eucharist. The grace of the Passion is bestowed on us in a sensible way to
us through the Eucharist. We normally say, “This coffee/cake… tastes good”, but
now we can say, “Taste and see that the LORD is good”.

3. SENSE the Eucharistic liturgy: The Kingdom is at hand!

The real Presence is not sensible, but God still work through our senses in other
liturgical expression in the liturgy.

1) Eucharist: A manifestation of the Kingdom

2) Manifestation vs Illustration

Say, a cat. The illustration of a cat would be a picture, a text, or a lecture on it.
While the manifestation of a cat would be a cat hair on my sweater or a food print
of cat in the snow. What’s the difference?
- The manifestations of the cat not only tell us ABOUT the cat, but also tell us that
THE CAT IS AROUND. In the same way, the fancy/solemn liturgy of the
Eucharist tell us that GOD IS AROUND. His Kingdom is not only “to come” but
already “at hand.”

Some examples:

1) the ceilings of the basilica

Angels, stars…

not: FYI, there are angels in heaven; But, FYI, heaven is here!

2) vestments

The fancy vestments of the priest manifests the glory of the church as the new
creation, the prefiguration of the kingdom of God who forever “reigns; he is robed
in majesty.” (Ps 93:1)

3) “Holy Holy Holy” – the Sanctus prayer at Mass

I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe
filled the temple. Above him were seraphim (i.e. a kind of angel), each with six
wings… And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord
Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” (Isa. 6:1-3)

We sing this not as a rehearsal for heaven, but because God is around!

Actually, the last supper, the church and the eucharist are not linked but cause-and
-effect connection, but through their common and single referral to the kingdom of
God, which is manifested at the last supper, granted to the church, and remembered
– in its presence and actuality – in the eucharist.

4. ITE, MISSA EST. (= Go, this is the Mass)

- The stem of the word “missa” means to send forth, to send for a mission.

- Here we see the universal priesthood of the church: THE ENTIRE WORLD IS
CREATED AS THE ALTAR OF GOD.
How to realize our universal priesthood?

As we’ve said, the point of the Passion IS NOT THAT Christ suffered and died,
but that he died FOR US. Ultimately, sacrifice is not about destruction but about a
complete self-gift. God gives himself to us at Mass. Now is our turn. By taking the
body of Christ, we are made the bread for the world. We get prepared to be broken
for the world. E.g. a mother allows her sleep to be broken by the baby’s cry; a
student allow his study to be broken by a classmate who has questions to ask; you
let your walk be broken when you stop to pick up a piece of litter from the
ground…

It is precisely in these little moments of self-gift that we become “godly” by

manifesting (!) the love of our Lord Jesus Christ, who reigns with the Father and
the Holy Spirit, One God, forever and ever. Amen.

========

Final words

Jesus stopped and directed that the man be brought to Him. When he had been
brought near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want Me to do for you?” “Lord,” he
said, “that I may see.” “Receive your sight!” Jesus replied. “Your faith has
healed you.”… (Luke 18:40-42)

The Eucharist is ultimately a mystery. One can easily learn what the Church
believes about it, but ultimately, the real presence of God is not something that can
be observed by our eyes.

There is a saying in the church, that one could, and could only see God’s presence
through the “spiritual eyes,” that is through one’s “eyes of faith” – but faith is a
GIFT, and we have to ASK God for it.

Therefore, whenever we feel indifferent, confused, even disturbed – in front of the

blessed body and blood of Christ because we couldn’t decide whether we should
believe, let us pray with that blind beggar:

“Lord, that I may see.”

Wen

2/23/ 2019