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Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
In your resurrection, O Christ,
let heaven and earth rejoice. Alleluia.
Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As once you ransomed your people from Egypt
and led them to freedom in the promised land,
so now you have delivered us from the dominion of darkness
and brought us into the kingdom of your risen Son.
May we, the first fruits of your new creation,
rejoice in this new day you have made,
and praise you for your mighty acts.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God for ever.
John 6.52-59
The Jews disputed among themselves, saying, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’ So Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live for ever.’ He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.
Reflection
Jesus said: ‘Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.’
At the Last Supper, on the day before his crucifixion, Jesus gave us the sacrament of Holy Communion. He told us to gather and intentionally share in the simple and symbolic meal of bread and wine. Jesus told us to do this as an act of remembrance, in order that we might never forget all that he gave to and for humanity.
In 1826, the French author Anthelme Brillat-Savarin wrote a book entitled: Physiologie du Gout, ou Medetations de Gastronomie Transcendante. In that book he wrote (originally in French) ‘Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are.’ This phrase has passed down the decades and exists in the form: You are what you eat, that is: it is important to eat good food in order to be healthy and fit. Eating good food is seen to be essential if we are to sustain and prolong our lives. With this principle in mind I would ask: ‘What can be healthier than partaking in the simple meal that constantly renews our connection with Christ?’
We call the meal that Jesus gave us: Communion. That word … communion … also means fellowship, union and spiritual intercourse. By giving us his flesh and his blood, in the symbolic substances of bread and wine, Jesus was creating a way of perpetually reminding ourselves of that sacrifice which brings us into a state of constant fellowship, union and spiritual intercourse with himself. He is saying: we are what we eat, and we should be careful to choose the menu wisely.
The Christian life is one of prayer and engagement in scripture, but it also entails our participation in the meal of fellowship and thanksgiving, the meal in which we become one with Christ … communion, the eucharist, the mass. As we walk the path of spiritual intercourse with Jesus we will need food and drink to sustain us on our journey. Jesus has provided those essentials for us. It is our responsibility to take that slither of bread and that sip of wine in order that we might know the deep joy and exciting warmth of being in unity with Jesus, our risen Lord and Saviour.
Prayers
To Christ, the Lamb who was slain,
and who now lives in the glory of the Father,
let us lift our voices in praise, saying:
risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
Lord Jesus, you are the Amen, the faithful witness,
the firstborn of the dead:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You are Alpha and Omega,
the one who is, and was, and who is to come:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You search into the thoughts and affections of all people:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You reprove and chasten those whom you love:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You open the eyes of the blind
and set the prisoners free:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
In your paschal victory,
you have proclaimed the coming of the kingdom:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
God of glory,
by the raising of your Son
you have broken the chains of death and hell:
fill your Church with faith and hope;
for a new day has dawned
and the way to life stands open
in our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Rejoicing in God’s new creation,
let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The God of peace,
who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus,
that great shepherd of the sheep,
through the blood of the eternal covenant,
make us perfect in every good work to do his will,
working in us that which is well-pleasing in his sight;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among us and remain with us always.
Amen.