DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME
Looking at the rite of consecration of Bread and Wine, I would like to emphasize once again that it is not the words of the priest that consecrate, but the words of Christ repeated by the celebrant. The Eucharistic sacrifice is made through the words said by Christ in the Upper Room: "This is my body ...", "This is my blood ...". It was Christ who instituted it. In the Upper Room, anticipating the sacrifice of the Cross on Golgotha, he gave us his body and blood as a gift to us and for our sins. At the same time, he ordered that this mystery to be performed until his second coming.
In the Upper Room, therefore, we find the source of the Eucharist. This is confirmed by the Scriptures, which give us the description of the Upper Room event four times. At this point, I would like to highlight a small apparent detail that we find in the description of the Last Supper. It is about the words: "and after supper ...". It is a reference to the unique Paschal Feast eaten by Jews once a year, recalling their exodus from Egyptian bondage in the mid-thirteenth century BC.
It must have been a great surprise for the apostles present with Jesus when Christ overthrew the holiness of the tradition of the Paschal Banquet and made known to them a completely new reality of salvation. The New Testament, to be fulfilled first by them, and then by all the faithful until the end of time. Christ then foretold that the bread and wine would be deified.
When the priest dares to utter those biblical words of Christ that have consecration power, he is aware that with his words and deeds he touches the heart of our faith. That is why he utters these words with anointing, which is why he himself kneels twice, therefore the faithful looking at the raised Body and Blood kneel in an adoring posture, which is why bells ring or a gong is heard during this time.
It is worth noting here that our kneeling does not have a penitential character, but has the dimension of adoration. The priest, holding in his hands highly raises the Bread and Wine, does the same as Christ did two thousand years earlier.
Here the priest repeats with Christ that he is doing this in remembrance of him. What remembrance is this about? It is about making the memory of Christ himself present. This is a very important article of our faith! For we are constantly faced by the same real Jesus Christ, and not His historical, hazy image or some "memory". He himself - alive - is among us. It is about him, about his closeness, about his sacrifice for us. This is what our Church has preached from the very beginning. Christ in the Upper Room also assured us that his Body and Blood would be offered as a redemptive sacrifice, as a payment for the forgiveness of our sins. At this price, God made a new and everlasting covenant with man. Therefore, every Holy Mass is always sacrificial.
Memorial of Saint MarthaGospel – Jn 11:19-27 or Lk 10:38-42
Today in the calendar we remember the saint cook - Marta. She is one of the most beloved saints, although she does not have the best reputation in the Gospels ...
But let us go back to the poor opinion about Martha - in the Gospels. Today the Church offers a choice of two Gospels: John and Luke. You can read one or the other. In both Gospels, Martha complains! Rarely does anyone make such remarks towards Jesus; are on the verge of insolence ...
Let us first reach out to Luke. Here is a scene of Christ's visit to the house of three siblings: Lazarus, Martha and Mary. The problem was only with Mary. Because when she listened, she forgot about everything else! So, all was depending on Marta.
And hence her grievances - indeed - very cleverly expressed - so as to involve Jesus as well. Let us give the floor to Marta: “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me! "
And yet Christ, to everyone's surprise, protects the listening Mary. It is possible that in this house everyone - in front of Marta - was on watch! It was only the presence of Jesus that introduced some breathing and slack. His visits were always like a great celebration. They felt very loved then.
However, in John's Gospel we have a much more serious situation. Jesus came to his beloved friends shortly after the death and funeral of Lazarus. "“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.!" - Marta fired at the beginning. She must have blushed after all, because she quickly added: "But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.”
And we see Marta's resourcefulness again. In one sentence, she contained both an apology for her courage and an act of childlike faith in Jesus. And Jesus obviously liked it, because he immediately recognized it: “Martha, I am the life! With me there is no death! You believe in that?" "Sure!" - Marta engaged with fire in her eyes: "I have always believed that you are the Son of God!" As we remember; then allwent to the tomb, where a miracle of miracles happened: Lazarus came back to life!
These scenes are beautiful ... What do they show? First of all, one thing can be seen: Martha felt truly loved by Jesus. But it is not everything. Martha believed that Jesus was a God who, even if he were late, would not fail! And this kind of trust was the secret of her resourcefulness. What is the secret of your resourcefulness?
Until Tomorrow
fr. george