Sacrament of Unity

Saint Anne Hospital - June 24, 1973

Today we celebrate a joyous feast to honor our Lord in his Eucharistic Body. This is the feast of Corpus Christi: the feast of the Body of Christ, his Eucharistic Body.

Christ, before dying, to express his great desire to remain with us, instituted a Sacrament of Communion. In this sacrament, he would forever proclaim his presence in our midst, an active presence culminating in a communion with us.

He chose to signify his life-giving presence by using food and drink, bread and wine. These are the staples of life. They now signify and contain Jesus, the living bread come down from heaven to give us unending life. "This is my body, this is my blood; he who eats my flesh. and drinks my blood has eternal life in him; and I will raise him up on the last day."

Eating and drinking are not normally a private affair. You normally gather with others around a common table to take your meals. When you want to befriend someone, you invite him to share your family meal. All through the centuries, eating together has been seen as a sign of kinship, affection, love.

That too is a characteristic of the Holy Eucharist. Jesus wanted to bring his followers together regularly. And so after consecrating the bread and wine on Holy Thursday, he added the injunction to "Do this in memory of me." The Eucharist not only calls to mind what Jesus did on Holy Thursday or his Passion on the Cross of Good Friday; it brings the Lord Jesus right in our midst: "This is my body; this is my blood. I am (today and until the end of time) the living bread come down from heaven." At Mass, we are united around the table of the Lord. As brothers and sisters at a love feast, with Jesus as our Host. He comes to us to strengthen the bonds of love among us, so that his life, his love may truly be in each of us. Our hearts are open to Jesus only if they are open to our brothers and sisters too. That is why Jesus warned us: "If anyone, coming to make his offering at the altar, recalls that a brother has some grievance against him, let him first go and be reconciled with his brother; then let him present his offering to the Lord."

May our Holy Mass and Communion be truly a love feast for all of us gathered around the Lord this morning. Let us put aside all ill feelings, grudges, coldness of heart and indifference that might hurt or choke the love of Christ in our hearts, and receive Jesus, the life of our souls with renewed fervor.

As we reflect this morning on the Eucharist as Sacrament of brotherhood in Christ and unity, it is interesting to note that the Holy Eucharist which, for several centuries, had ironically become one among many causes of disunity with our Protestant brethren, is now becoming broadly accepted as a bond of unity among us all. And this is one of the most wonderful results of the contemporary ecumenical movement.

In April 1970, a meeting of theologians representing many Christian Churches, came to an unprecedented agreement on the doctrine of the Eucharist. A statement was published in which we find a basic exposition of the meaning of the Eucharist that can be accepted by Roman Catholics, Orthodox, Episcopalians, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, Disciples of Christ, Southern Baptists and, despite some hesitations, even by Quakers.

All agree, for example, that in the Eucharist, Christ is really present and acts to reconcile his people and make them one. The word "transubstantiation" is not used, but all confess that in some way Christ is "really present".

All agree that communion, together with baptism, is at 'the heart of the church's worship; that the Eucharistic celebration involves the whole Church, beyond those actually present in the congregation; that it is truly the sacrament of Christian unity.

The statement makes no direct recommendation conceding a common sharing of the Eucharistic meal but it is a necessary and important step toward the day when divided Christians can unite around the table of the Lord, partake of the same bread and drink of the same cup.

Lastly, we must not take this statement as an official position of the various churches represented at that meeting. It was simply a meeting of respected theologians of the different Churches involved. Yet, it does show the immense progress made toward a common understanding of the Holy Eucharist, sacrament of Christian unity and brotherhood in Christ.

For the gift of the Holy Eucharist and for the progress toward its actual fulfillment as the Sacrament of love and Christian Unity let us praise the Lord with joy and thanksgiving this morning. Amen.

Sermons on the Eucharist Index