Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (July 1st 2012)
Mark 5:21-43
Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio


There are two stories in this week’s Gospel. Don Fabio considers the story of the woman with the haemorrhage to provide a classic account of the stages of being healed by the Lord. The Gospel passage reveals what it is that prompts us to seek encounter with Christ; it tells us how to approach him; how to touch him; and, finally, how our encounter with the Lord must be proclaimed aloud.

SUMMARY OF THE HOMILY

1. Awareness of the shame of one’s own wounds can prompt encounter with Christ

2. It is vital that we stop trying to heal our spiritual ailments with the false solutions that are the idols of this world
3. The first step in the road towards healing is to receive witness from others regarding Jesus of Nazareth
4. The fringe of a cloak for the Jews was a reminder of the covenant with God. Healing involves remembering the covenant and following the Lord in obedience
5. What brings us into contact with Jesus? For all of us there are different “fringes of his cloak” that bring us into the presence of the Lord
6. There are various levels of coming into contact with Jesus. Do I come into genuine contact with him in the sacraments, or have I made myself impermeable to his grace?
7. Our experience of encounter with Christ is not a private thing and must be proclaimed aloud


The original homily now follows . . .


Awareness of the shame of one’s own wounds can prompt encounter with Christ
The Gospel passage for this Sunday tells of the healing of a hidden wound, the sort of intimate wound that touches a person on the deepest level. The embarrassment and shame of the lady is evident in the way she approaches Jesus furtively from behind, hidden in the midst of the crowd. This is relevant for our own approach to Christ, because the story highlights the fact that encounter with Christ is prompted by awareness and shame of one's own wounds. 


It is vital that we stop trying to heal our spiritual ailments with the false solutions that are the idols of this world
The second point emphasized by the passage is that many of the cures and treatments that we undergo for our wounds end in miserable failure. False solutions to our ailments abound. We seek to heal our internal "ulcers" in many different ways, and these "solutions" are the idols of this world. It is vital that we bring to an end this process of pursuing false solutions to our problems. The fact is that we are continually turning to new “solutions” and futile "therapies", instead of accepting that certain illnesses can only be healed by God. Medical science is limited by the laws of nature, in which nothing can be created or destroyed, whereas God is capable of making us into a new creation. Only God can change us in the depths of our being.


The first step in the road towards healing is to receive witness from others regarding Jesus of Nazareth
The lady with the haemorrhage heard about Jesus of Nazareth. This is an important theme of the passage. She didn't take the initiative and discover Jesus by her own efforts of research. Instead she received the word about Jesus from someone else. And this is how it is for all of us. It is not that we wake up in the morning and decide that we are going to find Jesus. Rather, someone bears witness to us of him. It is important that we store in our memory the things we hear of Jesus, and in this way we too will emerge from the crowd and arrive at his shoulder, as the woman with the haemorrhage did.


The fringe of a cloak for the Jews was a reminder of the covenant with God. Healing involves remembering the covenant and following the Lord in obedience
When the woman approaches Jesus, she says to herself that she will be contented if she only manages to touch the fringe of his cloak. The fringe of a cloak has a special significance for the Jews. Orthodox Jew to this day carry fringes, tassels or cords with knots whose function it is to remind the bearer of the covenant with God and to dissuade the bearer from doing things that are not in keeping with the covenant. The covenant is the fringe or "knot" that ties God and us. Jesus, it appears, wore a cloak with a fringe, and the woman sought to touch this fringe. As such, she sought to touch the most minimal part of him. She did not seek to touch his body, or any other piece of clothing, except for the part that was most external.


What brings us into contact with Jesus? For all of us there are “fringes of his cloak” that bring us into the presence of the Lord
There is a distinct movement in the text. First one must be aware of one's own wounds, and the futility of the solutions that the world offers us. Next one must receive the word about Jesus and begin to approach him.  Then one must know how to touch him. What are the things that bring us into contact with Jesus? These are things that one knows by intuition. We can encounter Jesus in the word of God, in the reception of the sacraments, in life of the church, in the living out of good habits, and through prayer. In our hearts we can come to know how to touch Jesus. In the Gospel passage, a huge crowd is pressing on Jesus, but only this lady is healed, because she has understood how to make contact with him. It is not that she has approached Jesus with a sense of obligation, believing that if she forces herself to pray to him in a certain way then something might be conceded to her in return. Instead, she spontaneously prays and touches the fringe of Jesus cloak, and enters with faith into a sacrament of healing.  We too must use our intuition in the way we approach Jesus, remembering the things that brought us into contact with him in a natural and effective way. We must not be afraid to repeat the things that bring us before God, the things that help us to face tribulation and that give us peace.

There are various levels of coming into contact with Jesus. Do I come into genuine contact with him in the sacraments, or have I made myself impermeable to his grace?
The woman then feels herself to be healed. This feeling is not some sort of bureaucratic statistic of the action of God, such as we find in the parish baptismal register. Here we have a personal experience of the power of God, of the healing influence of touching the fringe of his cloak. Jesus then begins to ask who has touched him. The disciples reply, "The crowd are pressing in on you and you ask who has touched you!". "No!" Jesus replies, "Someone has touched me". Here we have a distinction of different ways in which we can make contact with Christ. Many people receive the sacraments without being in the least bit touched by the Lord. They remain completely resistant to the bountiful grace of the event.


Our experience of encounter with Christ is not a private thing and must be proclaimed aloud
Jesus looks around and waits for the woman to emerge from the crowd. Why does Jesus does this? Is this an aggressive act on his part by which he brings the woman and her former ailment out into the open? No, this is an essential element of the life of the church. Faith is something explicit that must always be proclaimed openly. The Christian faith is not about going into church in private, saying one's own prayers to God, and engaging in hidden acts of adhesion to the Lord. The Christian faith is an ecclesial thing and must be manifested publicly. There is a widespread notion that faith is private and individualistic, a belief that the Christian life is all about my own spiritual wellbeing. This is a mistake and faith instead must be a relational thing. The woman must proclaim what has happened to her. She must speak the complete truth and in this way possess her own story. A person only comes to fully possess the work of God in their lives when they proclaim their story to others. It is not important that they be great orators, only that they express their story honestly and completely. They must emerge from the crowd. This thing that was once hidden and private must be proclaimed and manifested publicly. What a wonderful Gospel for setting down the stages of healing! Let us assimilate these stages, because all of us have need of healing. All of us need to walk in the way of the lady with the haemorrhage.

Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (July 1st 2012)         

Mark 1:29-39

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio considers the story of the woman with the haemorrhage to provide a classic account of the stages of being healed by the Lord. The Gospel passage reveals what it is that prompts us to seek encounter with Christ; it tells us how to approach him; how to touch him; and, finally, how our encounter with the Lord must be proclaimed aloud.

SUMMARY OF THE HOMILY

1. Awareness of the shame of one’s own wounds can prompt encounter with Christ

2. It is vital that we stop trying to heal our spiritual ailments with the false solutions that are the idols of this world

3. The first step in the road towards healing is to receive witness from others regarding Jesus of Nazareth

4. The fringe of a cloak for the Jews was a reminder of the covenant with God. Healing involves remembering the covenant and following the Lord in obedience

5. What brings us into contact with Jesus? For all of us there are different “fringes of his cloak” that bring us into the presence of the Lord

6. There are various levels of coming into contact with Jesus. Do I come into genuine contact with him in the sacraments, or have I made myself impermeable to his grace?

7. Our experience of encounter with Christ is not a private thing and must be proclaimed aloud

Awareness of the shame of one’s own wounds can prompt encounter with Christ

The Gospel passage for this Sunday tells of the healing of a hidden wound, the sort of intimate wound that touches a person on the deepest level. The embarrassment and shame of the lady is evident in the way she approaches Jesus furtively from behind, hidden in the midst of the crowd. This is relevant for our own approach to Christ, because the story highlights the fact that encounter with Christ is prompted by awareness and shame of one's own wounds.

It is vital that we stop trying to heal our spiritual ailments with the false solutions that are the idols of this world

The second point emphasized by the passage is that many of the cures and treatments that we undergo for our wounds end in miserable failure. False solutions to our ailments abound. We seek to heal our internal "ulcers" in many different ways, and these "solutions" are the idols of this world. It is vital that we bring to an end this process of pursuing false solutions to our problems. The fact is that we are continually turning to new “solutions” and futile "therapies", instead of accepting that certain illnesses can only be healed by God. Medical science is limited by the laws of nature, in which nothing can be created or destroyed, whereas God is capable of making us into a new creation. Only God can change us in the depths of our being.

The first step in the road towards healing is to receive witness from others regarding Jesus of Nazareth

The lady with the haemorrhage heard about Jesus of Nazareth. This is an important theme of the passage. She didn't take the initiative and discover Jesus by her own efforts of research. Instead she received the word about Jesus from someone else. And this is how it is for all of us. It is not that we wake up in the morning and decide that we are going to find Jesus. Rather, someone bears witness to us of him. It is important that we store in our memory the things we hear of Jesus, and in this way we too will emerge from the crowd and arrive at his shoulder, as the woman with the haemorrhage did.

The fringe of a cloak for the Jews was a reminder of the covenant with God. Healing involves remembering the covenant and following the Lord in obedience

When the woman approaches Jesus, she says to herself that she will be contented if she only manages to touch the fringe of his cloak. The fringe of a cloak has a special significance for the Jews. Orthodox Jew to this day carry fringes, tassels or cords with knots whose function it is to remind the bearer of the covenant with God and to dissuade the bearer from doing things that are not in keeping with the covenant. The covenant is the fringe or "knot" that ties God and us. Jesus, it appears, wore a cloak with a fringe, and the woman sought to touch this fringe. As such, she sought to touch the most minimal part of him. She did not seek to touch his body, or any other piece of clothing, except for the part that was most external.

What brings us into contact with Jesus? For all of us there are “fringes of his cloak” that bring us into the presence of the Lord

There is a distinct movement in the text. First one must be aware of one's own wounds, and the futility of the solutions that the world offers us. Next one must receive the word about Jesus and begin to approach him.  Then one must know how to touch him. What are the things that bring us into contact with Jesus? These are things that one knows by intuition. We can encounter Jesus in the word of God, in the reception of the sacraments, in life of the church, in the living out of good habits, and through prayer. In our hearts we can come to know how to touch Jesus. In the Gospel passage, a huge crowd is pressing on Jesus, but only this lady is healed, because she has understood how to make contact with him. It is not that she has approached Jesus with a sense of obligation, believing that if she forces herself to pray to him in a certain way then something might be conceded to her in return. Instead, she spontaneously prays and touches the fringe of Jesus cloak, and enters with faith into a sacrament of healing.  We too must use our intuition in the way we approach Jesus, remembering the things that brought us into contact with him in a natural and effective way. We must not be afraid to repeat the things that bring us before God, the things that help us to face tribulation and that give us peace.

               

There are various levels of coming into contact with Jesus. Do I come into genuine contact with him in the sacraments, or have I made myself impermeable to his grace?

The woman then feels herself to be healed. This feeling is not some sort of bureaucratic statistic of the action of God, such as we find in the parish baptismal register. Here we have a personal experience of the power of God, of the healing influence of touching the fringe of his cloak. Jesus then begins to ask who has touched him. The disciples reply, "The crowd are pressing in on you and you ask who has touched you!". "No!" Jesus replies, "Someone has touched me". Here we have a distinction of different ways in which we can make contact with Christ. Many people receive the sacraments without being in the least bit touched by the Lord. They remain completely resistant to the bountiful grace of the event.

Our experience of encounter with Christ is not a private thing and must be proclaimed aloud

Jesus looks around and waits for the woman to emerge from the crowd. Why does Jesus does this? Is this an aggressive act on his part by which he brings the woman and her former ailment out into the open? No, this is an essential element of the life of the church. Faith is something explicit that must always be proclaimed openly. The Christian faith is not about going into church in private, saying one's own prayers to God, and engaging in hidden acts of adhesion to the Lord. The Christian faith is an ecclesial thing and must be manifested publicly. There is a widespread notion that faith is private and individualistic, a belief that the Christian life is all about my own spiritual wellbeing. This is a mistake and faith instead must be a relational thing. The woman must proclaim what has happened to her. She must speak the complete truth and in this way possess her own story. A person only comes to fully possess the work of God in their lives when they proclaim their story to others. It is not important that they be great orators, only that they express their story honestly and completely. They must emerge from the crowd. This thing that was once hidden and private must be proclaimed and manifested publicly. What a wonderful Gospel for setting down the stages of healing! Let us assimilate these stages, because all of us have need of healing. All of us need to walk in the way of the lady with the haemorrhage.

Twelfth Sunday of Ordinary Time (June 24^th 2012)     

Birth of St John the Baptist. Gospel: Luke 1:57-66, 80

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

The Gospel this Sunday recounts how John the Baptist was given a new name that had never been used in his family previously.  As always, Don Fabio asks us to apply this Gospel message thoroughly to our personal lives. He exhorts each one of us to be "renamed", moving away from our habitual preoccupations and fixations, and opening our hearts to the blessings that God is bestowing on each of us in the present moment.

SUMMARY OF THE HOMILY

v John the Baptist is to be given a name that has never before been used in his family. This indicates that God is doing something that is new

v We too must be renamed. We must break out of our habitual patterns of behaviour and be renewed by the Lord

v How is this renewal of our lives to be achieved? Let us look at the Gospel text and consider what it says

v The play on names in the Gospel is highly significant. The meaning of "Zechariah" emphasizes the PAST action of God. The meaning of "John" is "The Lord is blessing us with grace right NOW"

v  We should not think that the great events of salvation history all occurred in the past. The only moment that God is active in history is in the present.

v  Our lives can be renewed by a radical opening of our hearts to the way that God is blessing us in this very moment

The original homily follows . . .

The child is to be given a name that has never before been used in the family. This indicates that God is doing something new

This Sunday we celebrate the joyful birth of John the Baptist. The theme of the Gospel passage revolves around the naming of the newborn child. All the relatives and friends wants to call him "Zechariah" like his father, but Zechariah has been struck dumb because he refused to believe the prophecy given to him by the angel. Elizabeth speaks up and declares that the child is to be called "John", a name that had never before been used in the family. Here we have the principal theme of the passage. The child is to be given a name that none of his ancestors have. Something new is happening. The Lord's plan is about to unfold in an extraordinary way.

We too must be renamed. We must break out of our habitual patterns of behaviour and be renewed by the Lord

What happens in this text must also happen for each one of us if we wish to follow the Lord Jesus seriously. Our lives are filled with things that are always done the same old way. We are bogged down in habitual ways of looking at the world. We are laden with fixations and preoccupations - idols that demand our daily homage. To exit this cul-de-sac, each one of us desperately needs to be "renamed"! If we do not change the horizon out of which we operate, then we will always find ourselves going around in circles, living out the same patterns of behaviour and preoccupied with the same old things. How can this change be achieved? The Lord Jesus is coming into the world and has sent his precursor ahead of him. This precursor is a sign of change, of an event that will alter the direction of history. Let us return to the Gospel text to see if we can discover the kind of transformation that the Lord is planning for each of us.

The names are highly significant. The meaning of "Zechariah" emphasizes the PAST action of God. The meaning of "John" is "God is blessing us with grace right NOW"

The family wish to call the child "Zechariah". Elizabeth says that he is to be called "John", and the father resolves the dispute by writing the name down. At this very moment, Zechariah is finally obedient to the angel, accepting that his own name is not going to be given to his son, and acknowledging that something new is happening that does not originate in him. The play on names in the text is highly significant. The name "Zechariah" means "Yahweh remembers the past". Remembering the past is one of the themes of the liturgy. The Passover was the memorial of the night of liberation from Egypt. The glorious past was something beautiful that was not to be forgotten. It was something that should inspire us in the present and be a model for following the Lord. But this Gospel is saying something new and different. The name "John" means "God is giving his grace right now", or "God, in this moment, is blessing us with benevolence". The change of name from Zechariah to John indicates explicitly that we are moving from an emphasis on the past to an emphasis on the present. God is doing something new. In the Second Letter to the Corinthians, St Paul tells us to forget the things of the past. Whoever is in Christ, he says, is a new creation. In another text, Paul says that he no longer looks to the past but is running onwards towards the prize that awaits him. In other words, we will not be open to the redemption unless we open our hearts to what the Lord is doing in our lives right now.

We should not think that the great events of salvation history all occurred in the past. The only moment that God is active in history is right now. We must open our hearts to the way that God is blessing us in this very moment

The Lord not only knows how to do new things, he knows how to make all things new. God can give a new flavour and a new heart to all of reality. We must stop thinking that the great things of salvation history have already occurred in the past! The century with the greatest number of martyrs for the faith was the twentieth century. The only moment of history in which God is active is this one. Christians are called to live in the present. Jesus tells us, "Do not worry about the future, what you will eat or drink, or what you will wear. The pagans worry about these things." In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, "Whoever is born of the Spirit hears His voice, like the wind, but he does not know where it comes from". The Christian must be rooted in the fact that God is giving his grace to each individual now. Remembering the past is important, and we must purify our memories of the past. But the business of opening our hearts to God is something that can only be done in the present moment.

            With the birth of John the Baptist, a new chapter in the plan of God starts to unfold. A child is born and something new begins. When a new baby comes into the world, we often have to hope that the parents and relatives of this child will allow him the freedom to be himself, and not try to live his life for him. When a young person is trying to discern his vocation, then he must be liberated completely from the expectations and preoccupations of his family. He must, as it were, be "renamed" John, and not Zechariah. He must be made aware that God makes all things new. Even if he has made mistakes in the past, this will not hinder the power of God. God can enter a life and make a sterile woman give birth, or the dumb speak. The Gospel this week exhorts us to contemplate on the fact that the Lord is bestowing his grace on us right now. Let us open ourselves to that grace of God in this present moment.

Is there anyone in the Philippines who is following this blog? If you have any suggestions on how we can improve our presentation of Don Fabio's homily, we would love to hear your comments!

Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (June 17^th 2012)   

Gospel: Mark 4:26-34

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio finds in these two parables of the Kingdom of God a meditation on the nature of God's action in our lives. The Kingdom comes to maturity in our lives in unexpected ways that defy human reasoning. Our job is to provide the ground in which the seed of the Kingdom can grow. "Providing the ground" involves trusting in God at times when it seems absurd to trust in him. If we provide the ground, the seed of the Kingdom will come to fruition in our lives in dramatic ways

The parables of the Kingdom defy common-sense interpretation

These two short parables (regarding the seed that produces fruit spontaneously, and the tiny mustard seed that yields a great harvest) cannot be understood fully unless we examine the end of the Gospel passage. We are told here that Jesus only spoke to the people in parables, but when he was alone with his disciples he would explain the parables to them. This indicates that there is an aspect of the parables that is straightforward, and there is another aspect that requires explanation.

The Kingdom of Heaven comes to maturity in our lives in ways that we do not understand or expect

The first parable tells how a seed has its own inner dynamism and power. In the same way, the Kingdom of Heaven is something that has its own logic and that must be allowed to come to fruition according to its own internal dynamic. Welcoming the Kingdom of God requires being open to something that does not square with our way of thinking. It doesn't matter whether the farmer is awake or asleep. All he must do is simply provide the ground, and then the seed will grow according to principles that he cannot understand. In the same way, the power of God is working in our lives in ways that cannot be appreciated by our limited framework of understanding.

In Jesus, the Kingdom comes to maturity at the moment when all seems lost

Then we have the parable of the smallest seed that grows to become the largest plant of its type. This story illustrates that the relationship between cause and effect is not accessible to human understanding. Once we open our hearts to the Kingdom of God, it is no longer a question of judging things according to our logic, or according to human principles of measurement. We must refrain from making judgements based on our principles of what is small or great, and instead trust in the power of God. God makes use of the things that are small and despised, things that are considered the least in human terms. Jesus himself became the smallest of seeds, condemned to death by the crowd, and discarded by everyone. As a consequence of making himself the least, he becomes Lord of all, capable of saving those who obey him. Jesus follows a logic that is incomprehensible to us. At the moment when we think he is going nowhere, he is on the point of resurrection. The crucifixion seems an insurmountable scandal, an event that can bring no good, but what seems like a never-ending moment of tragedy comes to maturity when the time is right.

Genuine love involves becoming the despised seed that yields fruit in God's time

In today's scientific, rationalistic, culture there is a tendency to accept everything that makes sense to us, and to dismiss everything that is incomprehensible. Anything that does not fit in with our preconceived notion of life is considered mistaken. The cross never fits in with our approach to life, but the cross is an absolutely essential part of the experience of love. It is not possible to love someone unless we are willing to stand beside that person and serve them at times when it seems absurd. The little thing that Jesus has done explodes into the great tree where all the birds find rest and everyone comes to find shelter. Whoever has faith finds shelter in this great tree; whoever is willing to wait until God brings his designs to maturity, refraining from making judgements according to the size or greatness of what the eyes can see, trusting only in the action of God.

Our plans, no matter how well-worked out, will one day founder. The Kingdom of Heaven will come to maturity in ways that defy human principles and planning

The seed that is planted and grows by itself, and the spectacular flowering of the mustard seed, are examples of the laws of nature in operation. The Kingdom of Heaven operates according to the laws and ways of God, and these are not our ways. Our projects and schemes, no matter how carefully worked out, will eventually founder. One of the Psalms tells us that the Lord brings to nothing the designs of the nations. Saints like Francis of Assisi and Philip Neri give us a model of how to live according to God's times and seasons, and this way of life is none other than to enter into the mystery of Easter. Blessed John Paul II did wonderful things during his life, but that which wounded the heart of countless people was the helplessness of his last days. John Paul II was truly great when he became a tiny grain of suffering in the sight of the entire world, and this grain became a flowering of faith for many people at the very moment when he died.

The life of faith consists in PROVIDING THE GROUND in which the seed of the Kingdom can grow. "Providing the ground" involves trusting in God despite all obstacles

This is how the life of faith is. It does not follow obvious routes that make perfect sense to us. Instead it leads us in ways where we are confronted with obstacles that prevent us from going any further. There are times when we find ourselves powerless, and the only thing that remains is to trust in God. At these times, what is essential is that we continue to provide the ground in which the seed can grow. In this way, something small and despised can become in our lives the great work of God.

The Body and Blood of the Lord (June 10^th 2012)       

Gospel: Mark 14:12-16; 22-26

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

On this feast of Corpus Christi, Don Fabio tells us that our preparation for the Eucharist should mirror the disciples' preparation for the Passover as described in the Gospel of Mark. The Sabbath should not simply be a day when activity ceases: it is a day of blessing that should be prepared for all week long. Don Fabio asks three principal questions of us: When do we encounter the body and blood of the Lord? In what state should we be before embarking on that encounter? In what kind of place does this encounter occur?

The Sabbath is not just a day of inactivity. It must become the fulcrum of the week.

This Sunday we hear the account of the institution of the Eucharist as it is presented by St Mark in the oldest of the Gospels. First of all we have a description of the preparations that preceded the celebration. In the Old Testament Law, the Jews were asked to "remember" the Sabbath day. This "remembering" involved not just the observance of the Sabbath, but required preparation for it all the week long. After all, if one is to rest completely on the Sabbath, then one needs to get the food and other supplies necessary for that day ready in advance. The Sabbath, then, is not just a day where activity ceases. The Sabbath is a day of blessing, and the activities of the rest of the week should revolve around it. In the same way, the Passover that Jesus celebrated was something that was prepared for in advance. In fact, the text from the Gospel of Mark can be used as a model upon which to base our preparations for the Eucharist.

When do we encounter the body and blood of Jesus? At our weekly parish Eucharist

At the beginning of the passage, the disciples ask Jesus where he would like to eat the Passover. This is an important question. When? Can the Lord's body be encountered in this special way anytime and anywhere? No. Jesus gives us precise instructions on when to meet him. Our parish celebration of the Eucharist is the principal occasion when the Lord wishes to meet us. Recall the story of Thomas. He was not present the first time that Jesus appeared to the other apostles. Exactly one week later, he made sure he was present at the gathering when Jesus appeared again. In other words, we all have a weekly appointment where we can meet the Lord. It is important that, like Thomas, we make ourselves present at that gathering.

In what state should we be in order to encounter the body and blood of Jesus? In the state of actively following our baptismal commitment.

So Jesus gives us an appointment when we can meet him. The text from this week's Gospel gives us other indications too. In order to encounter the body and blood of Jesus we must follow him in obedience, laying to one side our own projects and interests, and seeking instead to do what the Lord wants. The text says, "You will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him". Who is this enigmatic figure? The Fathers of the Church have a common-sense interpretation of this text. We must pass through water before entering into the Eucharist. We must pass through baptism before entering into full communion with the Lord. In following John the Baptist we are led to water and to redemption. It is interesting to note that the penitential rite at the beginning of Mass can be replaced with the ritual of sprinkling holy water from the baptismal font on the congregation. This all makes perfect sense. In the first place, as a result of baptism, we are children of God, and we need regular nutrition in order to remain so. To follow the man carrying water signifies living a life in accordance with our baptismal promises before celebrating the Eucharist.

Where do we encounter the body and blood of the Lord? In shrines and holy places?

So we have an appointment with Jesus, and we must live our baptismal commitment before encountering him. But in what kind of place will we meet him? In the text, Jesus instructs the disciples to seek out the "room" where the Master can eat the Passover with them. In the Old Testament, the Temple is described as a place that had a secret room, the Holy of Holies in which God was present. During the crucifixion of Jesus, the veil of the Temple was torn in two, and that room was no longer a secret place. Jesus had already told the Samaritan woman that people would no longer seek to worship the Lord in Jerusalem or in any other place, but instead would worship him in spirit and in truth. The room in which we meet the Lord thus ceases to be a particular historical place. Jesus, in reality, wishes to enter into our spaces, our Eucharistic assemblies, and make them his room, the place where we encounter him.

           

How should we view the adornment of the places where we celebrate the Eucharist?

The room, we are told in the Gospel, is an upper room. This signifies the house of a wealthy family, since only the well-off had a two-storey house in those days. The upper room would be large, well-furnished, with everything ready for the celebration. This mirrors our experience on Sundays when we go to beautiful churches and find everything ready for the celebration. When we enter a church, we should not consider the human effort that has gone into the church or the preparations. We should instead consider the work that the Lord has inspired people to do in these places. Why are our churches beautiful? Why do we surround the celebration of the Eucharist with great beauty? Saint Francis had a vocation to live a life of poverty, but wished that the sacred vessels be of gold. In the Catholic tradition, we have a lot of art that is associated with the Eucharistic celebration. Why so? Because we are aware that no matter how much we adorn the celebration, it is only a shadow of the true beauty of the Eucharist. The beauty of the Eucharist derives from the love of the one who loved us so much that he gave us his body and shed his blood for us. Our images and music will always be a shadow of the beauty contained in the reality of the Eucharist itself.

On this Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, we ponder on our need to prepare ourselves for the Eucharist, on our need to follow our baptismal calling in order to be ready for this encounter. We must also be obedient to the instructions and liturgical norms that the church, in her wisdom, has given us for the celebration of the Eucharist. All of these preparations and instructions have the function of making concrete the central treasure of the faith of the church: the weekly encounter with the true body and blood of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ.