Corpus Christi

Probably should have headed this post The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ...but I'm actually rather pleased I even know what Corpus Christi means (yes, I know, tis not exactly a hard one to work out but you do have to bear one thing in mind...I'm naturally blonde...) plus it takes up less room...

I do, very vaguely, remember this feast from last year and I think this time round I was able to enjoy it an awful lot more. That's most probably because I have a slightly greater grasp of what's going on than I did twelve months ago. I mean like last year I was just swept along in the emotion and excitement of it all and was desperately trying to remember all the responses in the Mass (didn't properly get the hang of the Creed for ages either...kept repeating lines like a broken record...) and to be honest I do still get all caught up with the excitement but it's even better now I understand things that fraction more. While I was in Rome I was fortunate enough to come by a copy of Sacramentum Caritatis (I know what that means too!) and have the time to have a little peruse. I've not read an awful lot by Pope Benedict but so far all the stuff I have has been brilliant and this has got to be one of my favourites. It gave me a deeper appreciation of what the Eucharist is, why Catholics celebrate it so much joy and how it influences each and every part of our lives. On top of all that it made me want to be a proper Catholic even more (and I already wanted that pretty bad...) One of the bits I liked the most (which also ties in quite nicely with today) was this;

"There is nothing authentically human – our thoughts and affections, our words and deeds – that does not find in the sacrament of the Eucharist the form it needs to be lived to the full. Here we can see the full human import of the radical newness brought by Christ in the Eucharist: the worship of God in our lives cannot be relegated to something private and individual, but tends by its nature to permeate every aspect of our existence. Worship pleasing to God thus becomes a new way of living our whole life, each particular moment of which is lifted up, since it is lived as part of a relationship with Christ and as an offering to God."

It knocks me for six sometimes just how much God does in our lives, how much I have to be thankful for...and reminds me that I ought to be more active. Perhaps that's why I enjoyed today more than I did last year, not only did I understand it but it's giving me someting to work on...