The Corpus Christi Food Drive and Being the Body of Christ

BISHOP KEVIN J. SWEENEY

“The best laid plans…” After the celebration of the Feast of Corpus Christ, on Sunday, June 20, I had been planning to write about my experience on that day, particularly as it was the “Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ” during our Diocesan Year of the Eucharist. That “plan” was still in place on the evening of Thursday, June 23. That plan changed early the next morning, June 24, our diocesan “patronal Feast,” the Birth of John the Baptist, when I heard that the Supreme Court had announced its verdict in the Dobbs v. Jackson case and had overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade case that had legalized abortion throughout our country.

I felt, as Bishop, that I should share some thoughts on what the Dobbs decision means for us and how we might respond. That led me to change plans. You can find my column from last week, Walking with Moms in Need: One Response to the Dobbs Decision.

For a time, I thought that I had missed an opportunity to share my experience of Corpus Christi, but the more I thought about it, the more convinced I was that it would be worthwhile, for a moment, to go back and invite readers to do the same, taking the time to reflect on what we did a few weeks ago.

Do you remember going to Mass on Corpus Christi, which, this year, was on Fathers’ Day weekend? Did anything stand out as particularly memorable? I celebrated a vigil Mass on Saturday, June 19 at St. Vincent DePaul Parish in Stirling during which we celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation. On Sunday, I celebrated Mass at St. Paul Parish in Prospect Park. That Mass was followed by a beautiful Eucharistic procession. Both the Confirmation at St. Vincent’s and the procession at St. Paul’s were memorable and prayerful, yet, in both Masses, there was something else that caught my attention. I saw it in the vestibule in St. Vincent’s both before and after Mass and, at St. Paul’s, I saw it as I preached the homily and as I prayed the Eucharistic Prayer at the altar. I saw what was seen, I believe by almost every priest, parishioner and anyone who attended Mass at (almost) every parish in our Diocese on that weekend. We saw a large collection of boxes and bags, filled with food. We saw the (as always) inspiring and generous response of the people of God in our Diocese, as they were asked to help our brothers and sisters in need, in this case, as part of our annual Catholic Charities’ “Corpus Christi Food Drive.”

What really struck me — especially as I preached and as I celebrated the Eucharistic Prayer at St. Paul’s and could see the pile of donated food — was reflecting on the words of Jesus in that Sunday’s Gospel (Lk 9:11b–17). You may recall that we heard that the Apostles went to Jesus and said, “Dismiss the crowd so that they can go to the surrounding villages and farms and find lodgings and provisions; for we are in a deserted place.” Jesus responds, “Give them some food yourselves.” As we know, they tell him that they only have “five loaves and two fish,” but that is all Jesus needs to feed the crowd of 5,000.

“Give them some food yourselves.” We believe that the Word of God is a “living Word,” that the inspired Scriptures “speak” to us here and now, each time we read them and, especially, when we hear the Word of God proclaimed at Mass. The concern of the Apostles for the people of that time was admirable and Jesus told them to “do something” about it, but to do so with trust in him. We know that, especially since the beginning of the pandemic and now in this time of inflation and economic challenges, so many of our brothers and sisters are struggling to pay the most basic bills and are (literally) struggling to “put food on the table.” In this Year of the Eucharist, on the Feast of Corpus Christi, the people of our Diocese responded to the living Word of God and the call of Jesus and, once again, the crowd, the multitude were nourished with food both for body and soul.

Just as Jesus after the blessing, gave the disciples the task of distributing the food and collecting the leftovers, we were able to “give them some food” thanks to each and every person who made a contribution, but also, thanks to our wonderful Catholic Charities leaders and team, as well as pastors and priests; religious, deacons, and lay leaders; parish staffs and countless volunteers who helped in the collection and will help in the distribution. I would like to take this opportunity, on behalf of the Church of our Diocese to say “Thank You” to each and every person who participated in this wonderful, practical example of being whom we are and who we are called to be, the One Body of Christ.

In a recent column, The Holy Eucharist: Past, Present and Future, I quoted from St. Pope John Paul II’s 2003 Encyclical Letter Ecclesia De Eucharistia (On the Eucharist) and I would like to share another quote from that document here:

A significant consequence of the eschatological tension inherent in the Eucharist is also the fact that it spurs us on our journey through history and plants a seed of living hope in our daily commitment to the work before us. Certainly the Christian vision leads to the expectation of “new heavens” and “a new earth” (Rev 21:1), but this increases rather than lessens our sense of responsibility for the world today. I wish to reaffirm this forcefully at the beginning of the new millennium, so that Christians will feel more obliged than ever not to neglect their duties as citizens in this world. Theirs is the task of contributing with the light of the Gospel to the building of a more human world, a world fully in harmony with God’s plan. (EE, 20)

St. Pope John Paul II is reminding and teaching us, that we must “live the Mass.” As we are nourished by Word and Sacrament, that nourishment must strengthen and inspire us to “Do this in memory (of him).” Yes, by being at Mass and receiving Holy Communion, we are doing what he has taught and commanded us to do, but we must also remember to “love one another as he loves us” by seeing him and responding to his needs in the least of our brothers and sisters.

On the Feast of Corpus Christi, in this Year of the Eucharist, our Diocese reflected on the living Word of God, and “did something,” contributing the light of the Gospel to the building of a more human world, in response to Jesus’ call and instruction, “Give them some food yourselves.”

Thank you!