Thoughts & Homilies

LOVE AND LITURGY
Father Jim Poulsen’s Homily for the
Solemnity of Body and Blood of Christ
June 22, 2003
Exodus 24:3-8, Hebrews 9:11-15, Mark 14:12-16,22-26

I Love You

There is no sound so sweet to the ears as those three powerful words: I love you. We all love to hear it, and probably none of us says it enough. But as extraordinary and meaningful as those words are, if the words are all we get, they become pretty thin and even meaningless.

Every human exchange has to have more than words behind it. If we want to buy something, we have to back up the transaction with cash or plastic or valuables of some kind.

If we want to engage an organization, there’s almost always paperwork, signatures, terms, a contract to clinch the deal.

If we really love someone, our actions are what proves it - our time, our attention, our kindness, our committed deeds.

Words can be beautiful, but experience teaches us that words are not enough. If we don’t see the signs that show us the words are real, then the words are no better than lies.

That’s how rituals came into being.

Signs and Witness
As humans, we need signs and witness.

When we are committed to someone and want to spend a lifetime together, we can say, "I love you", but are we willing to make it public, a holy vow?

We can call ourselves Catholic, but do our actions show it?
Do our values show it?
Do we take part in the life of the church? Ritual is the difference between a private word and a public one, between just talking and witnessing.

The Rituals of Goodbye
When people who love each other have to be apart for a while, what are the most common things they do? Two in particular come to mind, they hug long and close and they leave something of themselves behind.

Countless stories have been written and many films have been made about people who have to say good bye – not knowing when they will be together again. Someone goes off to battle, or on a long journey. They kiss, they hug, and so often they leave something behind – some small treasure:
a picture,
a poem,
a ring,
a locket.

In some of the more romantic versions, they leave part of something and take the other part with them (like one of those heart shaped locket that come in two pieces).

With the gift goes the promise that the one going away will return. They will be together again. These kinds of gifts, farewell gifts, gifts given in love, no matter what physical form it takes, is saying
"when you touch this, you are touching me, and somehow we are together."

The Last Supper Farewell
Jesus was in that situation at the last supper. He was about to put all his words into the most profound action possible.

He was about to give his life for those he loved.

As with all great and true lovers, he left something behind, some way to be present and not just to those who were at the Last Supper, but to all people of every place and time.

He wanted to leave a way for us to know
- see –
feel that he was still with us.

As we might expect from someone who was both human and God, the way he chose was breathtaking when you think about it – which none of us does often and deeply enough.

He created a way to leave his body,
his blood,
his very life with us
in a way that would always be accessible, not just a symbol, not half a locket, but his very life,
something we can see with the eyes of faith, and touch and taste, something that would be nourishment for our lives.

"Do this in memory of me"
"This is the new covenant"

Covenant
A covenant is a solemn pact, an agreement, a bond.

All three readings today speak of the covenant between God and us.
Moses read the Law to the people and sprinkled the altar and the people with the blood of animals offered in sacrifice. He did this to signify, to seal, to "ritualize" the Covenant.
(Aren’t you glad we don’t do that any more? It would get quite messy in here.)

But think about it: Blood meant life. It still does.
Blood is what keeps us alive. It courses through our veins bringing in oxygen, taking out carbon dioxide. A simple transfusion of a pint of blood can often mean the difference between life and death.

When Jesus said,
"Drink this.
This is the cup of my blood, the new covenant"
he was speaking of his sacrifice, the shedding of his blood for our salvation.

To share together in this holy meal, this intimate and eternal ritual, is to share in his life and its deepest meaning. That’s why what we do here each week and how we do it so important.

Some Changes in the Liturgy
For the past four weeks there have been articles in the bulletin stressing the importance of the Mass and our participation in it. We don’t come here to watch other people do something.

The Eucharist is something we all do together.

It is our best prayer and the most important ritual in our life as Catholics. And so we should do it well – with full conscious and active participation. We should also do it with the utmost reverence and respect. More than the words we speak, our actions, our gestures, our body language reveal our true attitudes and beliefs.

I think most of us would agree that sometimes we are a little too casual about the way we worship.

Some of you remember a church of strict silence when you were growing up – I do.
I’m glad that those days are gone.

I’m glad that we can sing and laugh when it is appropriate and greet each other and see each other as we celebrate (and not just the backs of people’s heads). I’m glad that children feel comfortable here and see church as a friendly place. All of that is as it should be.

After all worship is Liturgy and Liturgy is communal.
It is not private devotion.
It’s a faith action of God’s people.

But sometimes I think we lose sight of where we are and the awesomeness of the Eucharist.

It is a gift!

Pope John Paul II calls it "Christ’s greatest gift", but sometimes we seem to take it for granted and forget just how sacred it is. In the Eucharistic Liturgy we combine words with ritual actions to create a public, communal and holy statement about who we are and what we believe.

A New Gesture of Reverence
Beginning today we add a gesture of reverence to the way we receive Holy Communion.
It’s a simple thing, just a brief bow of the head, but its one more way of remembering just what it is we are about to receive. Sometimes the simplest and the smallest gestures speak loudest.

As we come forward for Communion, we bow toward the Host or the Cup. This is best done while the person in front of us is receiving the Eucharist, or as the priest/minister says "the Body of Christ".

The only other changes have to do with when we stand and when we kneel, and the priest will give these directions from the altar at the proper time, and will do so for the next couple of weeks until we’re all familiar with it.

Other Ways to Show Reverence
The other thing our Bishop has asked us to do is clarify and re-emphasize some other ritual gestures that we seem to be unaware of or have forgotten.

The first has to do with other times when we should bow – namely to the altar when we arrive and enter the pew and when we leave at the end of mass.

Just as the Priest and Deacon bow to the altar, It is something we should all do.
The altar is not just an ordinary piece of furniture. This is an altar, the Lord’s table! Bowing before it is a way of showing respect and acknowledging the sacred meal, the sacrifice that is served from this altar.

We are also asked to bow during the Creed/Profession of Faith at the words that proclaim the Incarnation:
"By the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary and became man"

You will find a fuller description of these changes and clarifications in today’s bulletin (and on this website).

There is also a summary of the Holy Father’s newest Encyclical on the Eucharist, a deeply personal reflection on the Eucharist as the central mystery of his life… and ours. You will also find some very sound suggestions on how we can increase our devotion to the Eucharist and show more reverence toward the Liturgy.

You Inspire Me
Finally, I want to thank all of you who inspire me so much by your devotion and your love of the Eucharist. As a priest of almost 35 years, I have been privileged to preside at the Mass thousands of times. It is still my greatest joy, but it wouldn’t be without a community like this and all of you who minister in the Liturgy and all of you who celebrate the Mass with great commitment, faithfulness and with grateful hearts.

After all that’s what Eucharist is
– thanksgiving
– our gratitude to a God
who just loves to be in our company.

Such a gracious God is worthy of our praise and our best efforts to worship with "full, active and conscious participation."

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