Sacred Triduum Holy Thursday Homily
As we gather tonight to celebrate the Lord’s Supper, there are three very important questions that are answered for us: Where have we been? Where are we right now? Where are we going? This great sacrifice of Christ takes us from where we have been and we now celebrate it in the present as a promise of the heavenly Feast that is to come.
Where have we been? In the course of history, God has made countless covenants with us, his people, and we have broken all of them. When it looked as if we were doomed to be lost, God sent his Son Jesus, who has taken our human nature and come to restore as man what we have been unable to do. He offered himself as a perfect sacrifice, an act of love that is so pure, so beautiful and so holy that it is unbreakable. The Jewish people were told to sacrifice and eat a lamb without blemish. Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, tells his disciples to eat his Body and drink his Blood under the humble appearances of bread and wine. With that action, which will be fulfilled on the cross, the apostles are given hope, freedom from sin, and everlasting life. The Apostles are instituted as priests of tjos new and unbreakable covenant and they humby serve the members of the Church by doing what Jesus did, giving them his Body and Blood for their salvation.
Where are we now? We are not far from that first Holy Thursday night. As a matter of fact, we are at the Lord’s Supper tonight and every time we celebrate the Eucharist. Since this action has been offered by the Son of God, it has never ended. Christ’s offering continues until he comes in glory and so we pass on to others the scrament we have received from Christ, this loving action of sacrifice and share in the reception of his Body and Blood. We come here as members of his Body, with our joys and sorrows, our worries and hopes and like Christ, we give thanks for all that the Father has given us. We hear the Word of God with its challenges and consolations. We then present to the priest simple things, bread and wine, and through the invocation of the Holy Spirit and the words of Christ, we have in our midst the true Body and Blood of Christ, glorified and risen. There is no better place for us to be. There is no more perfect gift that we could ever receive- Jesus Christ himself, our food and our God. This great gift is given t us to give us strength, comnfort and grace right now, but there is still something more.
Where are we going? our life on earth is just a beginning. We know that this life is just a preparation for the life to come, the life with God in heaven. this heavenly life has been described t us by the Lord as a heavenly banquet where we will enjoy the love of the Father, son and Holy Spirit forever. The Holy Eucharist helps us live not only in the presence of God right now, but it also forms us in the deepest parts of our hearts so that we will have the fullness of joy in heaven.
The Body and Blood of Jesus Christ is our past, our present and our future. Let us adore his most precious Body and Blood. Let us also humble receive him with generous and loving hearts that he may make us a holy people, who love God and neighbor in word and deed, and who live our lives giving thanks.
