Corpus Christi, Thursday 11 June 2020

Corpus Christi; the Body of Christ, traditionally this festival has focused on the Eucharist, on the gift of receiving Christ in the sacrament of bread and wine, on the act of taking and eating Christ’s body and blood. And so it is very strange to be celebrating this festival when we are unable to come together and receive the Body of Christ.

I have to admit that in recent weeks, I have found it increasingly difficult to see the Eucharist being performed on zoom, and not being able to join in and receive myself. It seems to go against, what Communion is all about; the act of sharing together, receiving Christ together.

Because at the end of the day, Christianity is a deeply incarnational faith. The physical matters; physical touch during the peace, physical eating and drinking, sharing; it matters. Christ became incarnate and dwelt amongst us. His physical body was crucified, broken. He was resurrected physically, and he left us physical signs; water, oil, bread and wine, as sacraments in which we receive and encounter him.

And so today, I am lamenting the loss of this physicality. The loss of the ability to share and the ability to touch, to eat and to drink. I am lamenting our loss of freedom. And this feeling of lament feels incredibly appropriate given our current situation. There is so much to lament about; not only the inability to meet as the body of Christ, in person, and to share the eucharist, in person, but also, the political situation globally; and the ongoing struggles for racial equality and justice.

And as we lament our own loss of freedom, I think at this time, as the body of Christ, the church needs to lament for the part it has played in contributing to the loss of freedom of so many others. We need to lament for the times that the church has promoted injustice, inequality or suppression. We need to remember and repent of the part our church has played in holding onto power, oppressing those of different beliefs or lifestyles, even encouraging the removal of freedom and dignity from individuals, during times such as the crusades, or the slave trade. As well as the many good things that the church has done, we also have a history of invasion, greed and domination. And on this festival of Corpus Christi, we are reminded that we are called to be the Body of Christ, just as we receive the Body of Christ…..and we have fallen short, so we need to lament of our past and we need to repent.

Maybe at this time, we are being called as Christ’s body, to be broken open and poured out, just as he was. Maybe we need to break our hold on power, break away from our history of being complicit with powers that oppress and deny basic human dignity, break away from our fear of speaking out, making waves.

Even today, I have seen more pictures of Donald Trump holding a Bible than I have heard the church speaking out about racial injustice; yes, we issue statements, but we should be shouting, we should be leading the demand for justice, for equality and for basic dignity of every human being.

Christianity is a revolutionary religion; it is subversive, speaking against power structures and suppressors of any kind, we are called to cry out for justice, equality and freedom. Because we are Christ’s body; we are his people here on earth, and as such, we are called to follow in his path; not to take up arms or resort to violence, but to be heard, to shout out and act to demonstrate God’s love for all people. And I’m not sure we are always very good at this.

So maybe today, as we celebrate Corpus Christi, as we celebrate the incarnation of Christ, and the gift of receiving Christ in Bread and Wine, we can also remember Christ’s calling to his church; to be his Body here on earth, to follow his example of healing the sick, caring for the poor and challenging power structures and injustice wherever he encountered them. And as we repent of the many ways that we have fallen short, let’s pray for God’s Spirit to show us the way and guide us, so that, until we can meet again and receive Christ together, we can continue to be his Body here on earth, and continue his work of sharing God’s love and caring for the oppressed, the poor and the vulnerable, as he always intended.