GOSPEL READING:
Mark 14:12-16,22-2612 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the passover lamb, his disciples said to him, "Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the passover?" 13 And he sent two of his disciples, and said to them, "Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him, 14 and wherever he enters, say to the householder, `The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I am to eat the passover with my disciples?' 15 And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us." 16 And the disciples set out and went to the city, and found it as he had told them; and they prepared the passover. 22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them, and said, "Take; this is my body." 23 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. 24 And he said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. 25 Truly, I say to you, I shall not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God." 26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Meditation: Why did Jesus offer himself as "food and
drink" to his disciples? Jesus chose the time of Passover to
fulfill what he had announced earlier at Capernaum - giving his
disciples his body and his blood (John 6:51-58). Jesus' passing
over to his Father by his death and resurrection, the new
Passover, is anticipated in the Last Supper and celebrated in the
Eucharist or Lord's Supper, which fulfills the Jewish Passover and
anticipates the final Passover of the church in the glory of God's
kingdom.
This is the most significant meal of Jesus and the most important
occasion of his breaking of bread. In this meal Jesus identifies
the bread as his body and the cup as his blood. When the Lord
Jesus commands his disciples to eat his flesh and drink his blood,
he invites us to take his life into the very center of our being
(John 6:53). That life which he offers is the very life of God
himself. Jesus' death on the cross, his gift of his body and blood
in the Supper, and his promise to dine again with his disciples
when the kingdom of God comes in all its fulness are inseparably
linked.
Jesus instructed his disciples to "do this in remembrance of me".
These words establish every Lord's Supper or Eucharist as a
"remembrance" of Jesus' atoning death, his resurrection, and his
promise to return again. "For as often as you eat this bread and
drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes" (1
Corinthians 11:26). Our celebration of the Lord's Supper
anticipates the final day when the Lord Jesus will feast anew with
his disciples in the heavenly marriage feast of the Lamb and his
Bride. Do you know the joy of the drinking Christ's cup and
tasting the bread of his Table in sincerity?
Mark ties the last supper meal with Jesus' death and the coming
of God's kingdom. Jesus transforms the Passover of the Old
Covenant into the meal of the "new covenant in my blood".
In the Old Covenant bread and wine were offered in a thanksgiving
sacrifice as a sign of grateful acknowledgment to the Creator as
the giver and sustainer of life. Melchizedek, who was both a
priest and king (Genesis 14:18; Hebrews 7:1-4), offered a
sacrifice of bread and wine. His offering prefigured the offering
made by Jesus, our high priest and king (Hebrews 7:26; 9:11;
10:12). The remembrance of the manna in the wilderness recalled to
the people of Israel that they live - not by earthly bread alone -
but by the bread of the Word of God (Deuteronomy 8:3).
The unleavened bread at Passover and the miraculous manna in the
desert are the pledge of God's faithfulness to his promises. The
"cup of blessing" at the end of the Jewish passover meal points to
the messianic expectation of the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Jesus
gave a new and definitive meaning to the blessing of the bread and
the cup when he instituted the "Lord's Supper" or
"Eucharist". He speaks of the presence of his body and blood
in this new meal. When at the Last Supper Jesus described his
blood "poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew
26:28), he was explaining his coming crucifixion as a sacrifice
for sins. His death on the cross fulfilled the sacrifice of the
paschal lamb. That is why John the Baptist called him the "Lamb of
God who takes away the sins of the world." Jesus made himself an
offering and sacrifice, a gift that was truly pleasing to the
Father. He "offered himself without blemish to God" (Hebrews 9:14)
and "gave himself as a sacrifice to God" (Ephesians 5:2). This
meal was a memorial of his death and resurrection.
When we receive from the Lord's table we unite ourselves to Jesus
Christ, who makes us sharers in his body and blood. Ignatius of
Antioch (35-107 A.D.) calls it the "one bread that provides the
medicine of immortality, the antidote for death, and the food that
makes us live for ever in Jesus Christ" (Ad Eph. 20,2).
This supernatural food is healing for both body and soul and
strength for our journey heavenward. When you approach the Table
of the Lord, what do you expect to receive? Healing, pardon,
comfort, and rest for your soul? The Lord has much more for us,
more than we can ask or imagine. The principal fruit of receiving
the Eucharist is an intimate union with Christ. As bodily
nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens
us in charity and enables us to break with disordered attachments
to creatures and to be more firmly rooted in the love of Christ.
Do you hunger for the "bread of life"?
Lord Jesus, you nourish and sustain us with your very own presence and life. You are the "Bread of Life" and the "Cup of Salvation". May I always hunger for you and be satisfied in you alone.
Psalm 116:12-18
12 What shall I render to the LORD for all his bounty to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD,
14 I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.
16 O LORD, I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your handmaid. You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.
18 I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Your Word will enlighten and save me, by Clement of Alexandria, 150-215 A.D.
"The commandment of the Lord shines clearly, enlightening the eyes. Receive Christ, receive power to see, receive your light, that you may plainly recognize both God and man. More delightful than gold and precious stones, more desirable than honey and the honeycomb is the Word that has enlightened us (Psalm 19:10). How could he not be desirable, who illumined minds buried in darkness, and endowed with clear vision 'the light-bearing eyes' of the soul? ... Sing his praises, then, Lord, and make known to me your Father, who is God. Your Word will save me, your song instruct me. I have gone astray in my search for God; but now that you light my path, Lord, I find God through you, and receive the Father from you, I become co-heir with you, since you were not ashamed to own me as your brother. Let us, then, shake off forgetfulness of truth, shake off the mist of ignorance and darkness that dims our eyes, and contemplate the true God, after first raising this song of praise to him: 'All hail, O light!' For upon us buried in darkness, imprisoned in the shadow of death, a heavenly light has shone, a light of a clarity surpassing the sun's, and of a sweetness exceeding any this earthly life can offer." (excerpt from EXHORTATION TO THE GREEKS 11.8)
