ASIA NEWS REPORT:
Celebrating Corpus Domini, Benedict XVI emphasizes two
aspects, that are connected, of the mystery of the Eucharist: the worship of the
Eucharist and its sacredness. A “unilateral interpretation” of Vatican II
“penalized” Eucharistic adoration, “pratically reducing the Eucharist to the
moment of its celebration.” It is “wrong to oppose the celebration and
adoration.” (IMAGE SOURCE: RADIO VATICANA)
Parents who “in the
name of a desacralized faith, would deprive their children of all religious
rituals: in fact they would end up leaving the field open to many surrogates in
the consumer society, with other rites and other signs, which more easily could
become idols.” It is the “educational” role of the sacred, of which Benedict XVI
spoke today, celebrating, in front of the basilica of St. John Lateran, the
cathedral of Rome, the Corpus Domini. Following the liturgy, the Pope led the
solemn procession to the basilica of Saint Mary Major.
The Pope addressed
the theme of the sacred by examining “two aspects, that are connected, of the
mystery of the Eucharist: the worship of the Eucharist and its sacredness”. A
“unilateral interpretation” of Vatican II, Benedict XVI noted, has “penalized”
Eucharistic adoration, “practically reducing the Eucharist to the moment of its
celebration. In fact, it has been very important to recognize the centrality of
the celebration, in which the Lord calls his people, he gathers it around the
twofold table of the Word and the Bread of life, nourishes it and unites it to
Himself in the offering of the Sacrifice. This enhancement of the liturgical
assembly, in which the Lord works and realizes the mystery of communion, of
course, remains valid, but it must be placed in proper balance. In fact – as
often happens – to highlight one aspect, you end up sacrificing another. In this
case, the emphasis placed on the celebration of the Eucharist has been to the
detriment of worship, as an act of faith and prayer to the Lord Jesus, truly
present in the sacrament of the altar. This imbalance has also had an impact on
the spiritual life of the faithful. In fact, focusing the whole relationship
with Jesus in the Eucharist only during Holy Mass, we risk emptying of his
presence the rest of the time and space of existence. And so you feel less a
sense of the constant presence of Jesus among us and with us, a concrete
presence, nearby, including our homes, as a “beating heart” of the city, the
country, the territory with its various expressions and activities. The
Sacrament of the Charity of Christ must permeate all of daily life.”
“In
reality, it is wrong to oppose the celebration and adoration, as if they were in
competition with each other. It’s just the opposite: the cult of the Blessed
Sacrament is constituted as the spiritual ‘environment’ within which the
community can celebrate the Eucharist well and in truth. Only if it is preceded,
accompanied and followed by this inner attitude of faith and worship, can the
liturgical action express its full meaning and value. The encounter with Jesus
in the Holy Mass is accomplished truly and fully when the community is able to
recognize that he, in the Sacrament, inhabits his house, waiting for us, he
invites us to his table, and then, after the assembly is dissolved, remains with
us, with his discreet and silent presence, and accompanies us with his
intercession, continuing to gather our spiritual sacrifices and offer them to
the Father.”
“Now let me turn briefly to the second aspect: the
sacredness of the Eucharist. Here again we have suffered in the recent past a
certain misunderstanding of the authentic message of Sacred Scripture. The
Christian novelty with respect to worship has been influenced by a certain
secularist mentality of the sixties and seventies of last century. It is true,
and it remains valid, that the center of worship now is no longer in the rites
and the ancient sacrifices, but in Christ himself, in his person, his life, in
his paschal mystery. And yet from this fundamental innovation one should not
conclude that the sacred no longer exists, but rather that it has found its
fulfillment in Jesus Christ, Divine Love Incarnate.”
Jesus, “high priest
of good things to come “,”did not abolish the sacred, but he has brought it to
fulfillment, inaugurating a new cult, which is so fully spiritual, but which, as
long as we journey through time, still makes use of signs and rites, which will
cease only at the end, in the heavenly Jerusalem, where there will be no temple.
Because of Christ, the sacredness is more real, more intense, and, as with the
commandments, even more demanding! Mere ritual observance is not enough; it
requires the purification of the heart and the involvement of life.”
“I
also like to emphasize that the sacred has an educational function, and its
disappearance inevitably impoverishes culture, in particular the formation of
new generations. If, for example, in the name of a secular faith that no longer
needs sacred signs, this Corpus Domini procession throug the city was abolished,
the spiritual profile of Rome would be “flattened”, and our personal and
communitarian consciousness would be weakened. Or, we may think of a mother and
father who, in the name of a desacralized faith, would deprive their children of
all religious rituals: in fact they would end up leaving the field open to many
surrogates in the consumer society, with other rites and other signs, which more
easily could become idols. God our Father, has not done so with humanity: he
sent his Son into the world not to abolish, but to bring to completion even the
sacred. At the height of this mission, in the Last Supper, Jesus instituted the
Sacrament of his Body and his Blood, the memorial of his paschal sacrifice. In
so doing he put himself in the place of the ancient sacrifices, but he did it
within a ritual, which he commanded the apostles to perpetuate, as the supreme
sign of the true Sacredness, which is He himself. With this faith, dear brothers
and sisters, today and every day we celebrate the mystery of the Eucharist and
worship him as the center of our lives and the heart of the world.”
In
