Dear Friends,
This weekend, we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi which is also known as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. This Feast celebrates our belief in the true presence of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament and that He is powerfully ever-present in our Church, in the World, and in our lives, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity.
Saint Juliana of Liège (1192-1258) laid the foundation for instituting this feast day. While having visions of Christ over a period of 20 years, she developed a special love and veneration for the Blessed Sacrament. With St. Juliana’s encouragement, her local bishop ordered an annual celebration of Corpus Christi to be held in the diocese beginning in the year 1246. Less than 20 years later, in 1264, Pope Urban IV instituted the Solemnity of Corpus Christi for the entire Church.
In early April, I raised the desire to comply with the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, which states: “In accordance with the structure of each church and legitimate local customs, the Most Blessed Sacrament should be reserved in a tabernacle in a part of the church that is truly noble, prominent, conspicuous, worthily decorated, and suitable for prayer.” (Paragraph 314). I mentioned that returning the tabernacle to its original place meets all of those requirements within the Instruction. Further, our beautiful church was designed to secure the tabernacle in the center of the church as can be seen in early photos of its interior.
I asked for your thoughts on this idea, and I only received favorable responses and not a single objection or concern. I mentioned that a most fitting day for this transition would be the Feast of Corpus Christi which arrives this Sunday, June 2, 2024. Accordingly, the tabernacle has now been restored to its original and most prominent and conspicuous placement.
This movement of the tabernacle also falls within The National Eucharistic Revival, which began in 2022 and continues until Pentecost of 2025. During this revival we are asked to become ever more aware that the Eucharist is the source and summit of all Christian life. Through the Eucharistic celebration we are united with the liturgy of heaven and are given a foretaste of eternal life while here on earth.
In Christ,
Fr. Jim