Psalm Reflection: The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ - Cycle A

“Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.” - Psalms 147

There are appropriate times and places for certain things. For instance: brushing your teeth. 

It is perfectly normal to brush your teeth in your home in the bathroom at virtually any time, but usually it is at the beginning and end of the day, and maybe after a particular meal. I have even seen people brushing their teeth in public restrooms in camping areas or airports because people are not able to be at home to do so. 

Totally normal.

I was recently stopped at a red light while driving on my way to work. I caught some motion out of my peripheral vision and turned to look at the car next to me to discover that the driver was brushing his teeth in the car. I was curious, mesmerized and horrified all at the same time. It seemed like such an unusual and inconvenient place to do it, but I guess when you need to brush you need to brush.

The same is true with praise.

We can worship and praise anywhere, but when we start to do it in more public places or situations, it can be uncomfortable or feel strange. But, when you need to praise, you need to praise! However, there is an also a time and a place we have been called to come together to worship.

In the Responsorial Psalm this week, the psalmist invokes Jerusalem, which, at the time, was the epicenter of all Jewish worship and sacrifice. In Jerusalem was the temple, the earthly dwelling place of God, where all Jews could come and offer their sacrifices through the temple priests. 

When Jesus became man, He instituted a new sacrificial system. It did not involve the temple, but it was an offering of Himself as the new Passover lamb for the forgiveness of sins (John 1:29), and participating in it meant eating the new Passover meal and consuming the body and blood of the sacrifice. We call this the Eucharist, meaning “thanksgiving,” because it is a perpetual re-presentation to God the Father of the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for the salvation of all humanity.

There is no more temple, no more sacrifice. The veil in the temple was torn in two when Jesus died on the cross to show there was no longer any separation between us and God because forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God was now possible (Matthew 27:51, Mark 15:38, Luke 23:45). 

We can now encounter God and worship Him anywhere and everywhere. However, He asked us to continue to praise and worship Him in a specific way.

When Jesus instituted the Last Supper, he told the disciples: “do this is memory of me” (Luke 22:19, 1 Corinthians 11:23-25). And they did. For 1500 years, every single Christian in the world worshipped God in the Eucharist. They were all in complete agreement about the fact that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist: Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity.

There is absolutely no Biblical basis for having a private relationship with God, or to simply be a spiritual person disconnected from a communal worship. Jesus specifically commanded that the New Passover be celebrated and told his disciples that unless they ate His flesh and drank His blood, they would not have eternal life:

Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. - John 6:53-56

If we truly want to follow Jesus, be His disciples and worship Him in the way He asked us to worship Him, we must be going to Mass. 

Maybe Mass has become a spectator sport for you. 

Maybe you have not even been to Mass in a while.

Maybe you tend to whisper and make jokes instead of entering in.

Maybe you critique the music and the homily instead of critiquing your own heart.

Maybe you do not understand the depth and gravity of what is happening at Mass.

Maybe Mass is forgotten when you are busy or traveling.

Maybe you read the bulletin instead of paying attention.

Maybe Mass has simply become part of the routine.

Whatever the case may be, this Sunday, the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, is an invitation for all of us to recognize the reality of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. In these years of Eucharistic Revival the Catholic Church is journeying through in the United States, we are being invited to return to Mass, and let Jesus heal, speak, transform and be present to us in the Eucharist.

Praise has an appropriate time and an appropriate place: everywhere and all of the time. 

But praise also has a place of prime importance and priority: the Mass.

The bare minimum we are asked is to come every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation. So, come home to the Eucharist this week, every week, and every day if you want to. There is no greater way to experience the presence of God in your life.

I am praying for you, please pray for me, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

And if you need a reminder of what is really happening at every Mass: WATCH THIS.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, June 11th, 2023, which is The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ - Cycle A: Psalms 147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20