No Corpus Christi procession this year as the Pope is indisposed

Benedict XVI: "If, in the name of a secularised faith, the Corpus Christi procession were abolished, the spiritual profile of Rome would be flattened".

Although the Feast of Corpus Christi is officially celebrated on the Thursday after the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity, in some countries and dioceses the feast has been abolished.  In some countries and dioceses, this Feast has been moved to Sunday to fit in with the work calendar.

Today, we are bringing you the homily given 10 years ago by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in the Basilica of St.  John Lateran.  As a curious fact, right at the end of the homily, the then Pope Benedict XVI warned that "if, for example, in the name of a secularised faith and no longer in need of sacred signs, this civic procession of Corpus Christi were abolished, the spiritual profile of Rome would be "flattened", and our personal and community conscience would be weakened".

This year there will be no procession in Rome.   It was suspended by Pope Francis due to his physical discomfort. (Cathcon: NB: there are other parochial processions in Rome but this is normally the main one)

Two Pope and two very different relationships to Christ

We offer you the complete homily delivered by Benedict XVI:

Dear brothers and sisters:

This evening I want to meditate with you on two interrelated aspects of the Eucharistic Mystery: the worship of the Eucharist and its sacredness.   It is important to take them into consideration again in order to preserve them from incomplete visions of the Mystery itself, such as those which have been given in the recent past.

First of all, a reflection on the value of Eucharistic worship, in particular adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.  This is the experience that we too will have this evening after Mass, before the procession, during the procession and at its conclusion.  A unilateral interpretation of the Second Vatican Council had penalised this dimension, restricting the Eucharist in practice to the moment of celebration.  Indeed, it was very important to recognise the centrality of the celebration, in which the Lord calls his people together, gathers them around the twofold table of the Word and the Bread of Life, nourishes them and unites them to himself in the offering of the Sacrifice.  This appreciation of the liturgical assembly, in which the Lord acts and accomplishes his mystery of communion, obviously remains valid, but it must be placed in the right balance.  In fact - as often happens - in order to emphasise one aspect, one ends up sacrificing another.  In this case, the right emphasis placed on the celebration of the Eucharist has been to the detriment of adoration, as an act of faith and prayer addressed to the Lord Jesus, truly present in the Sacrament of the altar.  This imbalance has also had repercussions on the spiritual life of the faithful.  Indeed, by concentrating the entire relationship with Jesus in the Eucharist on the one moment of Holy Mass, one runs the risk of emptying the rest of the existential time and space of his presence.  And so the sense of the constant presence of Jesus in our midst and with us, a concrete presence, close to us, in our homes, as the "beating heart" of the city, of the country, of the territory with its various expressions and activities, is perceived less.  The Sacrament of Christ's charity must permeate all our daily life.

Bread of Angels on Thee we feed

In fact, it is a mistake to set celebration and worship in opposition to each other, as if they were in competition.  It is precisely the opposite: worship of the Blessed Sacrament is like the spiritual "environment" within which the community can celebrate the Eucharist well and truly.  The liturgical action can only express its full meaning and value if it is preceded, accompanied and followed by this interior attitude of faith and adoration.  The encounter with Jesus in the Holy Mass is truly and fully realised when the community is able to recognise that he, in the Sacrament, dwells in his house, waits for us, invites us to his table, and then, after the assembly has dispersed, remains with us, with his discreet and silent presence, and accompanies us with his intercession, gathering our spiritual sacrifices and offering them to the Father.  In this sense, I am pleased to underline the experience we will have together this evening.  At the moment of adoration we are all on the same level, kneeling before the Sacrament of love.  The common priesthood and the ministerial priesthood are united in Eucharistic worship.  It is a very beautiful and meaningful experience, which we have experienced many times in St.  Peter's Basilica, and also in the unforgettable vigils with young people; I remember for example those in Cologne, London, Zagreb and Madrid.  It is clear to everyone that these moments of Eucharistic vigil prepare the celebration of Holy Mass, prepare hearts for the encounter, so that it becomes even more fruitful.  To be all in prolonged silence before the Lord present in his Sacrament is one of the most authentic experiences of our being Church, which is accompanied in a complementary way by that of celebrating the Eucharist, listening to the Word of God, singing, coming together to the table of the Bread of life.  Communion and contemplation cannot be separated, they go together.  To truly commune with another person I must know them, know how to be in silence near them, listen to them, look at them with love.  True love and true friendship always live from this reciprocity of gazes, from intense, eloquent silences, full of respect and veneration, so that the encounter is lived deeply, in a personal and not superficial way.  Unfortunately, if this dimension is missing, even sacramental Communion can become, on our part, a superficial gesture.  On the other hand, in true communion, prepared by the colloquy of prayer and life, we can say to the Lord words of trust, such as those that resounded recently in the responsorial Psalm: "Lord, I am your servant, your servant, the son of your handmaid: you have broken my chains.  I will offer you a sacrifice of praise, calling on the name of the Lord" (Ps 115:16-17).

I would now like to turn briefly to the second aspect: the sacredness of the Eucharist.  Here too, in the recent past, the authentic message of Holy Scripture has been somewhat misunderstood.  The Christian novelty of worship has been influenced by a certain secularist mentality of the sixties and seventies of the last century.  It is true, and it is still true, that the centre of worship is no longer in the ancient rites and sacrifices, but in Christ himself, in his person, in his life, in his paschal mystery.  And yet from this fundamental novelty it must not be concluded that the sacred no longer exists, but that it has found its fulfilment in Jesus Christ, divine Love incarnate.  The Letter to the Hebrews, which we heard this evening in the second reading, speaks to us precisely of the newness of the priesthood of Christ, "the high priest of the ultimate good" (Heb 9:11), but it does not say that the priesthood has come to an end.  Christ "is the mediator of a new covenant" (Heb 9:15), established in his blood, which purifies "our conscience from dead works" (Heb 9:14).  He has not abolished the sacred, but has brought it to fulfilment, inaugurating a new worship, which is indeed fully spiritual, but which, while we are still on our way in time, still makes use of signs and rites, which will only disappear at the end, in the heavenly Jerusalem, where there will no longer be any temple (cf.  Rev 21:22).  Thanks to Christ, sacredness is truer, more intense and, as with the commandments, also more demanding.  Ritual observance is not enough; it requires purification of heart and involvement of life.  I am also pleased to stress that the sacred has an educational function, and its disappearance inevitably impoverishes culture, especially the education of the new generations.  If, for example, in the name of a secularised faith no longer in need of sacred signs, this civic Corpus Christi procession were abolished, the spiritual profile of Rome would be "flattened", and our personal and community conscience would be weakened.  Or think of a mother and father who, in the name of a de-sacralised faith, would deprive their children of all religious rituality: in reality they would end up leaving the way open to the many substitutes present in consumer society, to other rites and other signs, which could more easily become idols.  God, our Father, did not work in this way with humanity: he sent his Son into the world not to abolish, but to fulfil the sacred as well.  At the culmination of this mission, at the Last Supper, Jesus instituted the Sacrament of his Body and Blood, the memorial of his Paschal Sacrifice.  In so doing he put himself in the place of the ancient sacrifices, but he did so within a Rite, which he commanded the Apostles to perpetuate, as the supreme sign of the true Sacred, which is himself.  With this faith, dear brothers and sisters, we celebrate today and every day the Eucharistic Mystery and adore it as the centre of our life and the heart of the world.  Amen.

Source

Cathcon:  Since when has the Pope's presence been essential for Corpus Christi.