Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ

The Parish of the Last Supper of Our Lord (PLSOL) held the Eucharistic celebration for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. Main celebrant is no less than Most Reverend Jesse Mercado, D.D., Bishop of Paranaque, last Sunday, June 2, 2013. 

Also known as Feast of Corpus Christi, which is Latin word for "Body of Christ", this is celebrated properly on a Sunday after the Holy Trinity Sunday.

St. Paul says in the 2nd Reading (1 COR 11:23-26)

I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you,
that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over,
took bread, and, after he had given thanks,
broke it and said, "This is my body that is for you.
Do this in remembrance of me."
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
"This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.

Recounting Bishop Jesse's Homily:

>Bishop Jesse mentioned that our parish' celebration of the Feast of Corpus Christi is in consonance with the Diocesan Year of the Eucharist, which the Diocese of Parañaque is observing this year.  

In his homily, Bishop Jesse expounded the dynamics and structure of the mass, which is in two parts, the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

The entrance song is supposedly a gathering song, encouraging the parishioners to congregate inside the church while singing joyfully in preparation for the upcoming celebration of the Holy Mass.

The Liturgy of the Word begins with the First Reading which is taken from the Old Testament, to which we respond by way of the Responsorial Psalm.  This is followed by the Second Reading which usually comes from the letters of St. Paul as written in the New Testament.  Again, we respond by singing the Alleluia which at the same time anticipates the proclamation of the Gospel.  

The Gospel is God's word/message to us written by any one of the four Evangelists which is explained through the Homily.  The Homily correlates what God's message is to our everyday life and that serves as our guide as we live in the modern times.  This establishes the truth that God is the same yesterday, today and forever.  Our response to God's message is by way of praying the Apostles Creed.

As a community, we then lift and pray for our petitions through the Prayers of the Faithful followed by the Offertory, where we offer ourselves and our gifts to God.

The Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the Doxology, where the priest recites "through Him, with Him, in Him, in unity with the Holy Spirit, all Glory and Honor is Yours, Almighty Father, forever and ever", to which we respond "Amen".  This is the part where Jesus Christ is offered as a sacrifice, whereby the bread and wine are transformed to Christ' Body and Blood.

As an expression of being one family and one with God, we pray the Lord's Prayer ("Our Father").  We then share the peace of Christ as a sign of being one family.

As we share Christ' peace, Jesus then shares Himself to us during the Holy Communion.  When we receive Him, we receive life.  When we eat His body, we become part of that bread which will transform us to become more and more like Christ, and not Him becoming a part of us.

Towards the end of the mass, we are all enjoined to go and live the message of God, to live the Eucharist and be an instrument of God's love.  This we can do in simple ways, a gentle touch, a sincere smile, an act of kindness.  We become brothers and sisters, and that is the secret to become "Eucharist". <By Deity Lim> 

Parish priest Rev. Fr. Angel Venancio Sanchez; Rev. Fr. Vincent B. Rozario; Rev. Fr. Rodyn R. De La Torre and Rev. Fr. Jojo Sadia, Uphdmc Chaplaincy co-celebrated the Holy Mass.

Since it is the first Sunday of the month, all parishioners celebrating their birthdays and wedding anniversaries for the month of June, got a special blessing from the good Bishop.

Bishop Jesse during his homily.

The highlight of the celebration... Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ!

Fiesta message from. Rev. Fr. Angel Sanchez. our parish priest.
Commentator Bro. Romy introduced the special guest.
Senator-elect Cynthia Villar during her "thank you" message to us.

Birthday and wedding anniversary celebrants for the month of June.
Final Blessing of Bishop Jesse.

Some photos during the fiesta lunch held in the formation center.

More photos....

More...

Awarding of the winners of the BEC Quiz Bee.

Glory to God!