Sunday mass is the most important event of the week. It is the source and summit of eve= rything we do. We come to mass weekly= because at the Last Supper Jesus took bread and wine, gave thanks to God, and hande= d them to his disciples, saying, “This is my body; this is my blood.”<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Then he said, “Do this in me= mory of me.” Jesus commanded= it, so we do it.

We believe Jesus is truly present in the eucharist; we believe that we eat and drink his body and blood. Today’s feast celebrates this belief. It used to be called Corpus Christi, the Latin words for “t= he body of Christ.” Back <= span class=3DGramE>then we had a separate feast of the most precious bloo= d of Christ. The epistle for that = day survives as the second reading for today’s mass. Jesus is just as present under the = form of bread as he is under the form of wine, so the two days are now joined as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Chris= t.

Why do you come to mass?= Most Catholics will answer, “To receive communion,” but = there are other important reasons why we gather.= The word eucharist means “thanksgiving”, so one reason for mass is to give thanks to God= for all the blessings we have received. We gather on Sundays because that is the day Jesus rose from the dead. Just by being here toda= y, we proclaim our faith in the resurrection.&nb= sp; We come together – because our discipleship is not just between each one of us and Christ, but between all of us= and Christ. Sunday mass forms us as a communit= y, so that as a community we give thanks to God and go forth to serve others and = to tell the world about Christ. Mass = is not about what we get out of it, but what God gets out of it, and what the world gets out of it.

Here are a few reminders about Sunday mass. Come every week. Come prepared; say prayers at home= every day – at meals, waking up or going to bed. Include in those prayers the scrip= tures you will hear at mass on Sunday; this will open your ears to the readings, = the homily and the music. Fast fr= om food and drink one hour before communion; that includes gum. Dress appropriately. Come early to greet other people a= nd prepare yourself for mass. Tu= rn off your cell phones. You might e= ven leave your watch at home to minimize distractions while you are here. Sing the songs and make the responses. If you think you <= span class=3DGramE>don’t sing well, please pick up the hymnal, mout= h the words of the songs, and join in the prayer of the community; if you donR= 17;t pick up a hymnal, you diminish everyone’s experience of common prayer. When the lector is re= ading or the cantor is singing verses, listen attentively. Use the periods of silence to refl= ect on the readings and to thank God for the eucharist.= Stay for the end of mass. If you leave mass after communion,= you are not fulfilling part of your responsibility here. Stay to thank God for the eucharis= t, to hear the announcements of parish activities in the coming week, and to be dismissed with your brothers and sisters in Christ as a sign that you go in= to the world not alone – but with them to proclaim your faith by word and deed. Then, come again next w= eek so we can do it all over again.

On this Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Chri= st, when we thank God for the gift of the eucharist, let us treasure this gift enough to prepare for it, celebrate it, and live it.