Corpus Christi – a Celebration of God’s Solidarity with Us

“To come out of this crisis better, we have to recover the knowledge that as a people we have a shared destination. The pandemic has reminded us that no one is saved alone. What ties us to one another is what we commonly call solidarity. Solidarity is more than acts of generosity, important as they are; it is the call to embrace the reality that we are bound by bonds of reciprocity. On this solid foundation we can build a better, different, human future.” (Pope Francis, Let us Dream, The Path to a Better Future)

The call to solidarity resonates powerfully in our celebration of the Solemnity of Corpus Christi because during the pandemic, the one thing that we hopefully have learned to treasure is the importance of Presence.

Before the pandemic, everyday accessibility made us take for granted the gift of presence that every person has been blessed with. When we are all forced to isolate ourselves due to the lockdown protocols and are unable to be physically present with people we care about, then our hearts start to yearn and regret those missed opportunities to lovingly be present with one another.

Not to mention that for a long time, our society has made us comfortable in putting the demarcation line in the way we share our lives together in this one world – we have been more at ease building those fences and walls around our lives to protect our private properties while at the same time longing to connect with the world but only with our created virtual identities. The common experience of the pandemic reminds us of the bridges that we should have built to strengthen our communities and to recognize the value of community life and solidarity.

And the Solemnity of the Holy Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus is precisely a celebration of the gift of His Real Presence in the Eucharist. If we have learned to treasure a person’s presence, how much more when we talk of the Presence of our Lord Jesus.

Every time we come together to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, we do not just recall mentally, not even emotionally, the sacrifice of Christ at Calvary but we are made present at that very moment of His self-giving on the cross. We are brought to this moment to join Our Lord in His offering; yes, to die with Him but only to share His resurrection. And being with Him and He being with us – is this not what Solidarity is about?

But God being in solidarity with us in the Eucharist, however, does not mean He will free us from all trials, provide us with undisturbed existence and a cure-all vaccine for any future viruses. While nothing is impossible for Him, his solidarity, however, is manifested in His willingness to be with us into our trials, our troubles and virus outbreaks. Such solidarity brings us to a face to face encounter with His compassionate presence; a presence that cares, a presence that endures, a presence that is real and this is what we celebrate on Corpus Christi.

But such solidarity does not end with God encountering us in His heart. Consequently, we also encounter all our brothers and sisters who have journeyed into that heart of God and we are summoned to a solidarity with one another.

And as the pandemic continues, how does our Catholic faith help us be a presence that cares, a presence that endures, a presence that is real? How have we become a Eucharistic Presence? (Fr. Apolinario Ty, SSS)