Eucharist Unites Us Over and Above All Differences

At 7 p.m. today, Solemnity of Corpus
Christi, Benedict XVI celebrated Mass on the square in front of Rome's
Basilica of St. John Lateran, then presided at the Eucharistic procession to
the Basilica of St. Mary Major.

In his homily, the Pope spoke of the significance of today's Solemnity
through the three fundamental gestures of the celebration. Firstly "our
coming together around the altar of the Lord to be together in His
presence", secondly "the procession, walking with the Lord", and finally
"kneeling before the Lord in adoration".

Explaining the first of these gestures, the Holy Father quoted St. Paul's
Letter to the Galatians, where it is written that "there is no longer Jew or
Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female;
for all of you are one in Christ Jesus'. ... In these words", said the Pope,
"we feel the truth and the power of the Christian revolution, the most
profound revolution in human history, which we may experience in the
Eucharist where people of different ages, sexes, social conditions and
political ideas come together in the presence of the Lord. The Eucharist can
never be a private matter. ... The Eucharist is public worship, which has
nothing esoteric or exclusive about it. ... We remain united, over and above
our differences, ... we open to one another in order to become a single
thing in Him".

Concerning the second of these gestures, that of "walking with the Lord",
Benedict XVI affirmed that "with the gift of Himself in the Eucharist, the
Lord Jesus ... raises us up again ... and puts us on the journey with the
power of this Bread of life. ... The procession of Corpus Christi teaches us
that the Eucharist wants to free us from all distress and discomfort ... so
that we can resume the journey with the strength God gives us in Jesus
Christ".

"Without the God-with-us, the God Who is near, how can we sustain the
pilgrimage of life, either individually or as a society or a family of
peoples?" asked the Pope. "The Eucharist is the Sacrament of the God Who
does not leave us to journey alone, but puts Himself at our side and shows
us the way. Indeed, it is not enough to keep going, it is important to see
where we are going! Progress is not enough if there are no criteria of
reference".

Finally, the third element of Corpus Christi, that of "kneeling in
adoration before the Lord", is "the most valuable and radical remedy against
the idolatries of yesterday and today, ... it is a profession of freedom:
those who bow to Jesus cannot and must not prostrate themselves before any
earthly power, however strong", said the Pope.

As Christians "we prostrate ourselves before God, Who first bowed down
towards man ... to save him and give him life, Who knelt before us to wash
our dirty feet. Adoring the Body of Christ means believing that there, in
that piece of bread, Christ is truly present and gives real meaning to life,
to the vast universe as to the smallest of creatures, to the whole of human
history as to the briefest of lives".

Following Mass, the Pope presided at a Eucharistic procession that passed
along Rome's Via Merulana to the Basilica of St. Mary Major. Along the way,
thousands of faithful prayed and sang, accompanying the Blessed Sacrament.
An open vehicle transported the Sacrament in a monstrance, before which the
Holy Father prayed.

VATICAN CITY, 22 MAY 2008 (VIS) -