IN THIS MOST SACRED SUPPER, IN WHICH YOUR ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHEN ABOUT TO HAND HIMSELF OVER TO DEATH, ENTRUSTED TO THE CHURCH A SACRIFICE NEW FOR ALL ETERNITY, THE BANQUET OF HIS LOVE, GRANT, WE PRAY, THAT WE MAY DRAW FROM SO GREAT A MYSTERY, THE FULLNESS OF CHARITY AND LIFE. THROUGH OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, YOUR SON, WHO LIVES AND REIGNS WITH YOU IN THE UNITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, GOD, FOR EVER AND EVER. AMEN”.
Ex 12:1-8,11-14; Ps 115:12-13,15-18; 1 Cor 11:23-26; Jn 13:1-15
We commemorate today the Institution of the Holy Eucharist, the spiritual food and nourishment for our souls. Just as the human body will be weak and is vulnerable to anything in the world when it is starved for several days without food, so is the human soul. If the soul is starved of its food for several days, it becomes weak and vulnerable to Satan and temptations. Jesus was aware of this, and so, before his crucifixion, death, and resurrection, when his physical presence would be absent from the world, he instituted the Eucharist to represent him among us. Through the Eucharist, as a Sacrament, we continue to feel Christ’s presence among us.
The readings put before us that, by washing the feet of his disciples, Jesus models the gift of service that he wants all of us to emulate and imitate. Greater yet is the gift of the Eucharist, which is His Body and Blood, which we always receive in Holy Communion. The Holy Eucharist signifies and realises our unity with Jesus and all believers. It is the perpetual celebration in which we proclaim that Christ has died, has risen, and will come again.
HOW THE EUCHARIST WAS INSTITUTED.
The day before his crucifixion, when Jesus was eating with his disciples, “Jesus took bread, and when he had said the blessing he broke it and gave it to the disciples. ‘Take it and eat,’ he said, ‘this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he handed it to them saying, ‘Drink from this, all of you, for this is my blood, the blood of the covenant, poured out for the forgiveness of sins. From now on, I tell you, I shall never again drink wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in the Kingdom of my Father.” (Mt 26:26-29; Mk 14:22-25; Lk 22:19-20; Jn 13:21ff).
The Eucharist is given other titles/names. First of all, it is called the Eucharist, which means "thanksgiving," because in it we thank God for the salvific work of His Son, Jesus Christ, for us. It is called the Lord’s Supper because it commemorates the Passover meal (the last supper/meal) that Jesus ate with his disciples. It is also called Communion in the sense that through it we commune or we gather together with God and with other believers. In it, we see, feel and experience the wonderful spirit of fraternity among us. In fact, the Eucharist as a Sacrament signifies our unity with Jesus and with all believers.
Another principal/main mystery that is strongly stressed in today’s commemoration is Jesus’ Command to his disciples to ‘Love one another’. He demonstrated this by washing the feet of his disciples, an act he performed just before he instituted the Eucharist (Jn 13:1-15). This is a model of love, demonstrated in the – washing of disciples’ feet. This is a humble servant’s attitude (washing of masters’ feet) and Jesus, taking this attitude shows that he is the model servant, worthy of our emulation.
Today’s commemoration is the centre, the summit and the apex of our belief and faith. Without this, there is no Christianity and no Eucharistic celebration, no Church for that matter. That is why this Feast is one of the Feasts of Obligation in the Church. Without attending Church today on this feast and without any justifiable reason, one is not equally worthy for communion wherever one finds oneself. We thank Jesus for instituting this Sacrament for us.
While thanking Jesus, let us pray for families, churches and the world at large that: Where there are divisions and separations, there may be re-union and unity. Where there is hatred, there may be love and forgiveness. Where people exert their dominance, authority or pressure over others, there may be service. Where there is pride coupled with arrogance, there may be humility. Where there is selfishness coupled with greed, there may be sharing, particularly with the poor and the needy. Where there is discrimination, there will be love for all.
We pray that God may always help us to be in the state of grace to enable us to commune with him and fellow believers every time, as this will always spiritually nourish our souls, making us strong enough to withstand Satan and his temptations in the world. Have a fruitful Easter Triduum and God bless you.
WE MEDITATE TODAY, THURSDAY, ON THE MYSTERIES OF LIGHT: ‘THE BAPTISM OF JESUS, THE WEDDING AT CANA, THE PROCLAMATION OF THE KINGDOM, THE TRANSFIGURATION, AND THE INSTITUTION OF THE EUCHARIST’. (WE PRAY FOR OPENNESS TO THE HOLY SPIRIT, PRAY TO JESUS THROUGH MARY, FOR REPENTANCE AND TRUST IN GOD, THE DESIRE FOR HOLINESS, AND WE PRAY FOR THE SPIRIT OF ADORATION) “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb Jesus: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us, sinners, now and at the hour of our death, Amen”.
PRAYER: “GRANT, ALMIGHTY GOD, THAT, JUST AS WE ARE RENEWED BY THE SUPPER OF YOUR SON IN THIS PRESENT AGE, SO WE MAY ENJOY HIS BANQUET FOR ALL ETERNITY. WHO LIVES AND REIGNS FOR EVER AND EVER. AMEN”.
Rev. Fr. Aloysius Kpiebaya, Catholic Diocese of Wa, UW/R, Ghana. (00233) 0207867239/0545462863. Email: aloybaya20@yahoo.
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