Festum Santissimi Corporis Christi

A little late but here we go

I just found this....which made me really happy. Roman Fiddlebacks. Pope in the Cathedra at the Lateran. Lace Surplices. :D

and

and

ah. I love the Feast of Corpus Christi. A lot like the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity, we adore God for the sake of adoring God...not some act or saint but God himself, hidden beneath the Eucharistic Veils of the Most Holy and Blessed Sacrament. We become without words in attempting to speak in any coherent and legitimate way about the Blessed Sacrament. I am always reminded of St. Thomas Aquinas who, of course, composed a new liturgy for the Feast including beautiful hymns of adoration to the Blessed Sacrament:

here he is, presenting the Mass to Pope Urban IV (not to be confused with Pope Rural...sorry, couldn't resist that horribly corny joke)

Pange lingua gloriosi
Corporis mysterium,
Sanguinisque pretiosi,
Quem in mundi pretium
Fructus ventris generosi
Rex effudit Gentium.

Nobis datus, nobis natus
Ex intacta Virgine,
Et in mundo conversatus,
Sparso verbi semine,
Sui moras incolatus
Miro clausit ordine.

In supremae nocte coenae,
Recumbens cum fratribus
Observata lege plene
Cibis in legalibus,
Cibum turbae duodenae
Se dat suis manibus.

Verbum caro, panem verum
Verbo carnem efficit:
Fitque sanguis Christi merum,
Et si sensus deficit,
Ad firmandum cor sincerum
Sola fides sufficit.

Tantum ergo Sacramentum
Veneremur cernui:
Et antiquum documentum
Novo cedat ritui:
Praestet fides supplementum
Sensuum defectui.

Genitori, Genitoque
Laus et jubilatio,
Salus, honor, virtus quoque
Sit et benedictio:
Procedenti ab utroque
Compar sit laudatio.
Amen.

----

Sing, my tongue, the Saviour's glory,
Of his flesh the mystery sing;
Of the blood, all price exceeding,
Shed by our immortal King,
Destined, for the world's redemption,
From a noble womb to spring.

Of a pure and spotless Virgin
Born for us on earth below,
He, as man, with man conversing,
Stayed, the seeds of truth to sow;
Then he closed in solemn order
Wondrously his life of woe.

On the night of that last supper
Seated with his chosen band,
He, the paschal victim eating,
First fulfills the law's command:
Then as food to all his brethren
Gives himself with his own hand.

Word made flesh, the bread of nature
By his word to flesh he turns;
Wine into his blood he changes:
What though sense no change discerns?
Only be the heart in earnest,
Faith her lesson quickly learns.

Down in adoration falling,
Lo! the sacred Host we hail;
Lo! o'er ancient forms departing,
Newer rites of grace prevail;
Faith for all defects supplying,
Where the feeble senses fail.

To the everlasting Father,
And the Son who reigns on high,
With the Holy Ghost proceeding
Forth from each eternally,
Be salvation, honour, blessing,
Might, and endless majesty.
Amen.

from this Vespers hymn, we get the tantum ergo used at any benediction:

(btw, this old dude is pretty baller)

Verbum supernum prodiens,
Nec Patris linquens dexteram,
Ad opus suum exiens,
Venit ad vitae vesperam.

In mortem a discipulo
Suis tradendus aemulis,
Prius in vitae ferculo
Se tradidit discipulis.

Quibus sub bina specie
Carnem dedit et sanguinem;
Ut duplicis substantiae
Totum cibaret hominem.

Se nascens dedit socium,
Convescens in edulium,
Se moriens in pretium,
Se regnans dat in praemium.

O salutaris hostia,
Quae caeli pandis ostium,
Bella premunt hostilia,
Da robur, fer auxilium.

Uni trinoque Domino,
Sit sempiterna gloria:
Qui vitam sine termino
Nobis donet in patria.
Amen.

----
The heav'nly Word proceeding forth,
Yet leaving not the Father's side,
And going to his work on earth
Had reached at length life's eventide.

By false disciple to be given
To foemen for his blood athirst,
Himself, the living bread from heaven,
He gave to his disciples first.

To them he gave, in twofold kind,
His very flesh, his very blood:
In love's own fullness thus designed
Of the whole man to be the food.

By birth, our fellow-man was he;
Our meat, while sitting at the board;
He died, our ransomer to be;
He ever reigns, our great reward.

O saving victim, opening wide
The gate of heaven to man below,
Our foes press on from every side,
thine aid supply, thy strength bestow.

To thy great name be endless praise,
Immortal Godhead, One in Three;
O grant us endless length of days
In our true native land, with thee.
Amen.

from which we get the O Saltuaris.

Finally there is the sequence:

Lauda, Sion, Salvatórem,
lauda ducem et pastórem
in hymnis et cánticis.

Quantum potes, tantum aude:
quia major omni laude,
nec laudáre súffícis.

Laudis thema speciális,
panis vivus et vitális
hódie propónitur.

Quem in sacræ mensa cenæ
turbæ fratrum duodénæ
datum non ambígitur.

Sit laus plena, sit sonóra,
sit jucúnda, sit decóra
mentis jubilátio.

Dies enim sollémnis agitur,
in qua mensæ prima recólitur
hujus institútio.

In hac mensa novi Regis,
novum Pascha novæ legis
Phase vetus términat.

Vetustátem nóvitas,
umbram fugat véritas,
noctem lux elíminat.

Quod in coena Christus gessit,
faciéndum hoc expréssit
in sui memóriam.

Docti sacris institútis,
panem, vinum in salútis
consecrámus hóstiam.

Dogma datur Christiánis,
quod in carnem transit panis
et vinum in sánguinem.

Quod non capis, quod non vides,
animosa fírmat fides,
præter rerum órdinem.

Sub divérsis speciébus,
signis tantum, et non rebus,
latent res exímiæ.

Caro cibus, sanguis potus:
manet tamen Christus totus
sub utráque spécie.

A suménte non concísus,
non confráctus, non divísus:
ínteger accípitur.

Sumit unus, sumunt mille:
quantum isti, tantum ille:
nec sumptus consúmitur.

Sumunt boni, sumunt mali
sorte tamen inæquáli,
vitæ vel intéritus.

Mors est malis, vita bonis:
vide, paris sumptiónis
quam sit dispar éxitus.

Fracto demum sacraménto,
ne vacílles, sed meménto,
tantum esse sub fragménto,
quantum toto tégitur.

Nulla rei fit scissúra:
signi tantum fit fractúra:
qua nec status nec statúra
signáti minúitur.

Ecce panis Angelórum,
factus cibus viatórum:
vere panis filiórum,
non mitténdus cánibus.

In figúris præsignátur,
cum Isaac immolátur:
agnus paschæ deputátur:
datur manna pátribus.

Bone pastor, panis vere,
Jesu, nostri miserére:
tu nos pasce, nos tuére:
tu nos bona fac vidére
in terra vivéntium.

Tu, qui cuncta scis et vales:
qui nos pascis hic mortáles:
tuos ibi commensáles,
coherédes et sodáles
fac sanctórum cívium.
Amen. Allelúja.

----

O Sion, thy Redeemer praising,
Songs of joy to Him upraising,
Laud thy Pastor and thy Guide:

Swell thy notes most high and daring;
For His praise is past declaring,
And thy loftiest powers beside.

‘Tis a theme with praise that gloweth,
For the bread that life bestoweth
Goes this day before us out;

Which, His holy supper taking,
To the brethren twelve His breaking
None hath ever called in doubt.
Full, then, be our praise and sounding,
Modest and with joy abounding
Be our mind’s triumphant state;

For the festal’s prosecution,
When the first blest institution
Of this feast we celebrate.

In the new King’s new libation,
In the new law’s new oblation,
Ends the ancient Paschal rite;

Ancient forms new substance chaseth,
Typic shadows truth displaceth,
Day dispels the gloom of night.

When He did at supper seated,
Christ enjoined to be repeated,
When His love we celebrate:

Thus obeying His dictation,
Blood and wine of our salvation,
We the victim consecrate.

‘Tis for Christian faith asserted,
Bread is into flesh converted,
Into blood the holy wine:

Sight and intellect transcending,
Nature’s laws to marvel bending,
‘Tis confirmed by faith divine.

Under either kind remaining,
Form, not substance, still retaining,
Wondrous things our spirit sees:

Flesh and blood thy palate staining,
Yet still Christ entire remaining,
Under either species.

All untorn for eating given,
Undivided and unriven,
Whole He’s taken and unrent;

Be there one, or crowds surrounding,
He is equally abounding,
Nor, though eaten, ever spent.
Both to good and bad ‘tis broken,
But on each a different token
or of life, or death attends:

Life to good, to bad damnation;
Lo, of one same manducation
How dissimilar the ends.

When the priest the victim breaketh,
See thy faith in no wise shaketh,
Know that every fragment taketh
All that ‘neath the whole there lies:

This in Him no fracture maketh,
‘Tis the figure only breaketh,
Form, or state, no change there taketh
Place in what it signifies.

Bread, that angels eat in heaven,
Now becomes the pilgrim’s leaven,
Bread in truth to children given,
That must ne’er to dogs be thrown.

He, in ancient types disguised,
Was the Isaac sacrificed,
For the feast a lamb devised,
Manna to the Fathers shown.

Bread, whose shepherd-care doth tend us,
Jesu Christ, Thy mercy send us,
Do Thou feed us, Thou defend us,
Lead us where true joys attend us,
In the land where life is given:

Thou all ken and might possessing,
Mercies aye to us largessing,
Make us share Thy cup of blessing,
Heritage and love’s caressing
With the denizens of heaven.
Amen. Alleluia.

boy do I miss those sequences

Anywho, as I mentioned, the Feast is aimed at adoring Christ present in the Sacrament. It is different that Holy Thursday in which we commemorate the act of Christ instituting the Sacrament, washing the feet, etc. It was always to occur at the first free Thursday after Eastertide (to show the link to the Feast of the Last Supper) (yes, that includes the Octave of Pentecost). So there we are, we are called to adore the Body of Christ, nailed to the Wood of the Cross for the sake of our sins and salvation. 

Again, now, I go back to the great Angelic Doctor. It is no accident that, having spent thousands of pages summing up Theology (Summa Theologiae), moving from the very simplicity of God and his existence, stops his project in his treatment of the Blessed Sacrament, claiming that mihi videtur ut palea (all that I have written seems like straw to me.) That is not to say that he is being overly humble; rather, it seems that, when treating the truths and realities that are present beneath the Eucharistic veils, no words are adequate and so he is left adoring on his knees. 

When we receive Holy Communion, we are welcomed into a very privileged tenth choir of angels where we, as the angels do for all eternity, adore the Godhead. Though Aquinas may seem to some as confident, counting off his quinque viae, he would be the first to lay prostrate before our God fully and substantially present in the Blessed Sacrament: "I answer that, It is absolutely necessary to confess according to Catholic faith that the entire Christ is in this sacrament." (ST.IIIa.lxxvi.1) It is central and integral; the source and summit of all grace and the whole of a Christian life. It stems from and, finds nutrition in, and is brought to fulfillment in the Blessed Sacrament; that Body bruised and crucified for our sin; that same body St. Thomas the Apostle had the privilege of placing his finger in and that same body the saints, along with the angels, adore in Heaven forever.

To add to this, we get the commemoration of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (halfway...almost due to, I think, faulty Roman counting...from Christmas on the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year so that "I may decrease so that He might increase"...that is, the days, after this longest day, start to get shorter) who was the first to recognize and point out the Lamb of God uttering the very same words we hear before Communion: "ecce agnus dei ecce qui tollis peccata mundi"

                  


Deus, qui infirmitate nostrae ad terendam salutis viam in Sanctis tuis exemplum, et praesidium collocasti: da nobis, ita beati Gulielmi abbatis merita venerari, ut eiusdem excipiamus suffragia, et vestigia prosequamur.
----
O God, Who hast given unto us thy Saints to be an ensample and an help unto our weakness in following the path that leadeth unto life, grant unto us in such wise to honour the worthy deeds of the blessed Abbat William, that we may thereby both gain his prayers, and tread in his footsteps.


With that, let us go to Adore. We must find a reverence that has been lost to the Sacrament. Let us have our Processions. Let us knell and adore. Especially the Priest. The priest detached from the Sacrament will fail miserably. Thus, I end by begging you to pray for me, that I may grow ever closer to Our Lord substantially present in the Sacrament.


Why not, one more song:

and a quote from Archbishop Fulton Sheen who promised, at his ordination, to make a daily holy hour:

"When I stand up to talk, people listen to me; they will follow what I have to say. Is it any power of mine? Of course not. St. Paul says, 'What have you that you have not received and you who have received, why do you glory as if you had not?' But the secret of my power is that I have never in fifty-five years missed spending an hour in the presence of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. That's where the power comes from. That's where sermons are born. That's where every good thought is conceived."


In that tiny white host, the fullness of God and truth and the logos and all that is and ever will be is contained. Come, then, let us adore that Sacrament formed in the Most Sacred Heart and Jesus and, for as St. Jean Vianney says:
"Our Lord is hidden there, waiting for us to come and visit him and ask him or what we want. He is there, in the Sacrament of his love, sighing and interceding unceasingly for sinners before God his Father. He is thereto console us ... See how good he is! He adapts himself to our weakness... In heaven where we shall be triumphant and glorious, we shall see him in all his glory; if he had appeared before us now in glory, we should not have dared to approach him; but he hides himself like one in prison, saying to us, 'You do not see me, but that does not matter; ask me for all you want, and I will grant it you.'" 


and


"All the good works in the world are not equal to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass because they are the works of men; but the Mass is the work of God. Martyrdom is nothing in comparison for it is but the sacrifice of man to God; but the Mass is the sacrifice of God for man."


and finally


"If we could comprehend all the good things contained in Holy Communion, nothing more would be wanting to content the heart of man. The miser would run no more after his treasures, or the ambitious after glory; each would shake off the dust of the earth, leave the world, and fly away towards heaven."