{"id":26010,"date":"2020-06-14T07:00:09","date_gmt":"2020-06-14T06:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/er\/StNinians\/?p=26010"},"modified":"2020-06-13T22:25:37","modified_gmt":"2020-06-13T21:25:37","slug":"homily-from-father-stephen-for-the-most-holy-trinity-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/er\/StNinians\/homily-from-father-stephen-for-the-most-holy-trinity-2\/","title":{"rendered":"HOMILY FROM FATHER STEPHEN FOR THE SOLEMNITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Sunday our staff and pupils intended to be on pilgrimage to Whithorn, with Fr Eoin, <\/strong>celebrating the life of our school patron, St. Ninian. Sadly due to the virus, this has not been possible. Today, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, traditionally known by its Latin name \u2018Corpus Christi\u2019, where many parishes have their Eucharistic Processions with their First Communicants, again this has not been possible. In the readings we are encouraged to trust in God. Despite what may be going on around us, we are his people and we are loved with an everlasting love.<\/p>\n

The Pope recalled that the month of June is dedicated in a special way to the Heart of Christ. He said, it is \u2018a devotion that unites the great spiritual teachers and the simple among the people of God<\/em><\/strong>.\u2019 Indeed, he continued, \u2018the human and divine Heart of Jesus is the wellspring where we can always draw upon God\u2019s mercy, forgiveness and tenderness. We can do so by focusing on a passage from the Gospel, feeling that at the centre of every gesture, of every word of Jesus there is love, the love of the Father.\u201d We can also do so, Pope Francis said, \u201cby adoring the Eucharist, where this love is present in the Sacrament. Then our heart too, little by little, will become more patient, more generous, and more merciful.<\/p>\n

Homily<\/strong><\/p>\n

Feast of Love<\/strong><\/p>\n

Pope Benedict XVI once described today\u2019s feast as \u2018a day on which heaven and earth work together.\u2019 He said: \u2018Corpus Christi is an expression of faith in God, in love, in the fact that God is love. Love does not consume: it gives and, in giving, receives.\u2019 This is a wonderful way to approach Communion. When we receive the body and blood of Jesus, it is a gift of love. But if we keep this gift for ourselves, and do not give in return, that is not love.<\/p>\n

Jesus says to us today \u2018I am the Bread of Life.\u2019 Usually we see this as a spiritual sense, as if he was solely talking about the Eucharist. For Christians, we see the bread of the Eucharist as being very special bread. Without it we would not have the strength to follow Christ. This is highlighted so much today with the Covid-19 Virus; with only being allowed to celebrate a private Mass with Deacon Joe and none of our parishes can celebrate with the public. But we still hunger for many kinds of hunger. Mother Theresa often tells us this. Obviously there is hunger for ordinary bread as we saw with the lack of flour in our shops, but more so in the poorer countries of the world. I have a friend Sr Ann McAllister who has recently returned from the Missions in Africa. She always spoke of what money people gave to her on her holidays and on her return to Africa used it for flour and foodstuffs \u2013 and unless this is satisfied, no life is possible.<\/p>\n

There is also the hunger for meaning, and unless this is satisfied we will always be miserable, lifeless, dissatisfied, angry, sarcastic, bitter \u2026 I would like to think the word \u2018BREAD\u2019<\/strong> has a wider meaning. In the Gospels Jesus offers a variety of different kinds of bread, satisfying their many hungers.<\/p>\n