The Eucharist and Social Transformation

Sacrosanctum Concilium (Sacred Council), the first Decree on the Liturgy of the Second Vatican Council, no. 6, states “…the Church has never failed to come together to celebrate the paschal mystery, reading those things ‘which were in all the scriptures concerning him’, celebrating the Eucharist in which ‘the victory and triumph of his death are again made present’…” This is more clearly expressed in the acclamation after the consecration of the bread and wine: “We proclaim your death, Oh Lord, and profess your resurrection until you come again.”

Because Christ’s resurrection has permeated humanity and nature, life for us who believe He is alive always happens in terms of transition and transformation: from death to life, from darkness to light, from weakness to strength, from slavery to freedom, etc. Pope Francis mentions this in his papal exhortation Joy of the Gospel (Evangelii Gaudium, n. 276).

Rooted in the Holy Trinity the paschal mystery expresses the inner “passover” tendency of humans and the environment towards rebirth, renewal, regeneration. In other words, when our human psyche is dis-membered in death, or when atoms break-up in environmental destruction, we and they do not disappear into nothingness. We re-member (this is the meaning of the Eucharist) that is, we with body-soul-spirit reunited rise again to new life, and the splintered atoms coalesce with other atoms to form a new organism/new organic life. According to Catholic theologians and scientists like Theilhard de Chardin, SJ this globally permeating power of the resurrection has made the Risen Jesus the Cosmic Christ.

The Eucharist therefore, which celebrates the paschal mystery, is a constant call to transformation of our personal, social and environmental life. Our faith that Jesus is alive is a faith-in-action or, in the Letter of St.James (2:14-18), the faith that produces good works. In theological terms this is the faith-that-does-justice, the absence of which has caused social injustice, abject poverty, scandalous corruption, oppressive inequalities, environmental degradation and dangerous climate change.

The Cross symbolizes all these.

In the prayer after Holy Communion for the International Eucharistic Congress next year we should think of the above when we say, “Send us your Holy Spirit that He may lead us to walk humbly with the poor and the marginalized in the company of Mary your most holy mother and ours”. I hope and pray that our “eucharisticized” Archdiocese will be an active participant in the social transformation of our country.