This is My Body and Blood Given for You

by Fr. Tony Okolo C.S.Sp., V.F.  |  06/07/2026  |  Weekly Reflection

Beloved Parishioners,

Happy Corpus Christi. The solemn feast of Corpus Christi is the Church’s radiant hymn of love for the Eucharist; the sacred mystery where heaven stoops low to feed the hunger of humanity. In a world where many souls wander like travelers in a desert, Christ becomes the living Bread and Blood, broken and poured out for the life of the world.

The Holy Eucharist is not just a sacred reminder of Jesus’ union with his apostles; it is his real presence, his love stretched wide like arms upon the cross, embracing everyone. I invite you to see the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ as a hidden treasure buried beneath ordinary appearance yet today revealing an infinite glory under the form of bread and wine. We are invited once more to share in love because bread shared in love never diminishes.

From the book of Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14a-16a we see the deep mystery and striking tenderness of the Eucharist as heaven’s provision for weary pilgrims today. In the first letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (10:16- 17), we are equally reminded of the sacred bond of unity that the Eucharist provides. Then, in the Gospel of John 6:51-58, Christ presents himself as the living bread that came down from heaven offering himself for us. He is the compassionate shepherd who refuses to send the hungry away empty. Like rain falling upon cracked earth, Jesus feeds the crowd abundantly, showing that divine grace always overflows human need. This is a point of recount for us to always remember the poor and hungry among us, especially in moments of crisis. We should never forget that our God does many immeasurable things for the kind- hearted; one who knows the need of others.

The teaching of Saint Thomas Aquinas on the “Doctrine of Transubstantiation” is a source of strengthening on our faith in Christ. For Aquinas, although the appearance of bread and wine remain, their substance truly becomes the Body and Blood of Christ. Thus, the altar becomes both table and sacrifice, banquet and Calvary mysteriously joined together. The Eucharist is not mere spiritual decoration but heaven’s medicine for wounded hearts. We are encouraged to long daily for the Body and Blood that last forever. When we long for this, we shall become what we consume, becoming imago Dei and capax Dei.

Let us not forget the words of Pope Francis in his 2021 Corpus Christi homily, where he reminds us that in the Eucharist Christ makes himself bread broken for others and asks us to give ourselves for another. So, I encourage you to remember that our faith cannot remain locked inside church walls like a lamp hidden under a basket. As those nourished by Christ, we must become bread for the poor, hope for the weary, and love for the marginalized. I pray that every Eucharistic procession may silently proclaim that Christ still walks through the rough roads of human suffering, feeding hearts that ache for a love that never fades, Amen.