Liturgical Living: Corpus Christi

                 

 

The Solemnity of Corpus Christi (which is Latin for “Body of Christ”) celebrates the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist: his Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. 


The feast is traditionally observed with Mass, followed by a Eucharistic procession where the Blessed Sacrament is adorned in a monstrance and carried through the streets. The faithful follow the procession singing hymns and stopping at decorated altars along the way to pray. The procession leads back into a church where there is Eucharistic Adoration and solemn Benediction.

Taking the Blessed Sacrament into the community is a reminder that the Eucharist is not just for us, but for the whole world. Jesus came that we might all be saved. By processing together into the community, we are able to give public witness to our faith and give glory to God.



What are some ways you can celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi?

  1. Attend Mass with a Eucharistic procession. Please consider joining us at St Peter's Church in Lewiston for the 10:00am Mass, followed by an outdoor procession.
  2. Go to Eucharistic Adoration. Find a church or chapel in the area offering Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament today.
  3. Read John 6 in the bible today, aka the "Bread of Life" discourse. Jesus teaches that his flesh is true food and his blood true drink. You can find a good Catholic lesson on the Bread of Life discourse here.
  4. Pray the Litany of the Blessed Sacrament. You can find it here.
  5. Listen to Eucharistic hymns. This is a lovely Gregorian chant of Pange Lingua; the words of this hymn were written by St Thomas Aquinas.
  6. Watch The Veil Removed. I recommend this video a lot! It is only 7 minutes long, and does a beautiful job of showing us what is happening in the Mass that is invisible to our earthly eyes.


Here’s some inspiration from Pope Francis: “The Eucharist brings us together with others — young and old, poor and affluent, neighbors and visitors. The Eucharist calls us to see all of them as our brothers and sisters, and to see in them the face of Christ.”