“You are what you eat,” Father Joe Mamich told those gathered in the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist on April 17 for the Mass of the Lord’s Supper. He is serving as administrator of the cathedral while its rector, Father Sean Ralph, is on sabbatical. Father Mamich also serves as the diocesan vicar for clergy and religious.
He said that seemed appropriate for Holy Thursday, the day on which three aspects of our faith are highlighted: the institution of the Eucharist, institution of the priesthood and Christ’s command of service.
“Each one of these take their meaning from what we eat: the body and blood of Christ,” Father Mamich said.
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Whenever we gather for this sacred meal, we receive the Eucharist, the true body and blood of Christ, not just a symbol. And we become people of presence, the presence that reminds our world of Christ’s first Eucharist and his ongoing involvement within our world, he added.
“Each time we eat the body of Christ and drink the blood of Christ, we are strengthened … The Eucharist gives us a communion with each other and with Christ. Our reception should cause us to become people of communion who seek to end divisions, break down walls and to draw people together.” Father Mamich said.
Referring to the institution of the priesthood, Father Mamich said priests “strive to provide for the care, well-being and needs of our communities – to bring them to Jesus. This cannot occur without the Eucharist at our center.”
He said St. John Paul II reminded us that there can be no priesthood without the Eucharist.
And finally, Father Mamich told the faithful there is no such thing as a free meal. In fact, after the disciples finished their meal. Jesus showed them the price for being a part of that first Eucharist: the call to service. He had been called teacher and master, but that night, he knelt in humble, loving service as he washed the feet of his apostles.
“This humble and loving service begun by Jesus became the disciples’ thank you for partaking in the meal with Christ, just as our service to neighbor is meant to be our thank you for the gift of receiving Jesus in the Eucharist,” he added.
We probably won’t ever kneel to wash someone’s feet, but service can occur in many forms throughout our daily lives, Father Mamich said, like smiling at a cashier, wiping away a child’s tears or being courteous in traffic. “These are the ‘cost’ of our ‘free’ Eucharistic meals. By our reception of the Eucharist, our expression of service becomes holy as what we have received is holy.”
Father Mamich said that by participating in the sacred supper, “We become something great. Receiving the Eucharist, we become what we eat – a holy people of presence who are strengthened towards communion with God and one another. So, too, may we always remember that this meal isn’t free, but comes with a price – service to our neighbors.”
During the liturgy, Bishop Edward Malesic, the principal celebrant, washed the feet of a dozen cathedral parishioners in memory of what Jesus did at the Last Supper.
After Communion, the Eucharist was moved to the altar of repose in the Blessed Mother’s nave and the altar was stripped in preparation for the Good Friday Passion liturgy. The faithful were invited to spend time in prayer and adoration before night prayer.