About four hundred years ago, a Spanish galleon sunk off the coast of Ireland.

When they began to discover the treasures of the ship they found a mans wedding ring, and inscribed on the ring was a heart, and the words I have nothing more to give you. What a beautiful testimony of that man to his wife, recognizing that he has given all he has and is giving himself he wrote these words on the ring as a sign of the love and commitment. Tonight/Today, we celebrate the gift that God gives to us also a sign of his love and commitment in the Eucharist. Jesus has given his life for us. His death and resurrection became the sublime gift of his love. That was a historical moment, a moment in time. But to keep that moment alive, like the mans ring, he gave us the Eucharist. Our celebration of the Eucharist keeps Jesus alive for us in a special sacramental way, making himself present to us on the altar. In the gospel (Mark 14:1216, 22-26) we see Jesus giving himself to his apostles at the Last Supper. Under the form of bread and wine, he makes himself present to us, so that we might eat and drink and be satisfied, be blessed and nourished by his life and grace. This is a gift that keeps on giving. In the gospel, Jesus said, This is my blood of the covenant. I see the word covenant as central to all the readings of tonight/today. A covenant is a holy pact of faith and love between two people that is forever and one hundred percent. In the Hebrew Scriptures God made a covenant with his chosen people. Sealed by the blood of the lamb sacrificed by Abraham, he promised his love, protection and blessing to his people, and asked of them their love and obedience. In the First Reading from the Book of Exodus (24:3-8) we see how Moses offers a sacrifice to God with the blood of the covenant. God was with his people. As they journeyed in the desert after their escape from Egypt, they continued to discover the ways of God. He had given them the Ten Commandments which expressed his will for them, and how they would respond to him and one another in community. The Israelites came to the realization that their relationship with God was extremely important. They were not only interested in his blessings and promises, but they wanted to know, love and serve God in a deeper way. The covenant is all about a relationship with God a relationship of faith and love. This is reflected when they said, We will do everything that the Lord has told us. They got it! They understood the covenant! In the Second Reading from the Letter to the Hebrews St. Paul tells us that Jesus is mediator of a new covenant. The people of God became unfaithful and sometimes did not do everything that the Lord had asked. And so God offered a new covenant, through the blood of the lamb, Jesus the Lamb of God. St. Paul assures us that we share in the life of God through that deliverance from transgressions, and that we will receive the promised eternal inheritance. Through our Baptism we share in that new covenant. We are in relationship with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, Corpus Christi, gives us an opportunity to reflect on what this giving of Jesus to us in the Eucharist really means.

Unfortunately, in our human condition, we can take it for granted. I remember on one occasion celebrating Mass in the Parish of the Carmelite Fathers in La Paz, and seeing in the sacristy a framed verse that said, Father, celebrate this Mass as if it were your first, as if it were your last, as if it were your only. WOW! That really made me think! Anything we do over and over again can easily lose its meaning if we forget the purpose of it, if we forget as in the case of the Eucharist that this is about building a relationship with God the covenant. Today twenty-four children of our Parish Community will receive Jesus for the first time. For a long time their faces have got longer as they come forward for a blessing (with their arms crossed over their chest) waiting for the day when they get the real thing, when they get to receive Jesus in Holy Communion. Tomorrow/Today is that day! What does the Eucharist mean for us? We believe, as Catholics, that this bread and wine are transformed by God into his Body and Blood. Why? Because he told us so as in todays gospel! He didnt say. This represents my Body, or This is a symbol of my Blood. This is my Body This is my Blood. The fact that the consecrated hosts not consumed during the Mass are put into the tabernacle shows us that it continues to be the Body of Christ. We dont return the bread to the bag, or dispose of it. It is the Body of Christ! How do we show respect for the Eucharist? We should be showing respect for the Eucharist throughout the celebration of Mass listening, and actively participating. Before we come forward to receive the Eucharist s a time of intense prayer, as we prepare to receive Jesus. At that moment of encounter with Jesus when the Minister or I say The Body of Christ, is truly sublime. After a small bow of our head (acknowledging the Lord) we put out our hands, one on top of another the hand we are most agile with on the bottom, to take the host from our hand to our mouth before we leave the presence of the priest or Minister. The host should not be received with our fingers, or eaten directly from our palm. Our hands should form a throne on which to place the sacred Host. After our reception of the Eucharist once again we enter into prayer this time in thanksgiving for the gift of sharing in the life of Jesus in Holy Communion. Can we remember the first time we received the Eucharist? If we do, I am sure we will remember the joy, happiness and peace it brought. Yet at times we see a lack of regard for this moment, as we take it for granted those who approach Communion talking, or chewing gum, or showing a disregard for what I am putting in their hand as if it was unimportant or trivial. We share in the covenant with God. Over and over again especially through the Eucharist God shares this life with us. He tells us I have nothing more to give you. What else do we need? He has given us everything salvation through his death and resurrection, and his abundant grace through our faithful reception of his Body and Blood.