Christ the Cornerstone
Embrace the Eucharist, and let Jesus renew our country
Last weekend, we celebrated the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi). On this feast day, we were given a unique opportunity to proclaim the marvelous mystery of the Eucharist in a very public way—in procession, with songs of great rejoicing.
St. John Paul II reminded us that the Church “does not only celebrate the Eucharist but solemnly bears it in procession, publicly proclaiming that the sacrifice of Christ is for the salvation of the whole world.” Corpus Christi is a day when missionary disciples of Jesus boldly declare that we are one in him and that he unites all of us with one another as one bread, one body, in him.
Eucharistic processions, like the ones that proceeded the 10th National Eucharistic Congress held in Indianapolis on July 17–21, 2024, are public ceremonies in which the Blessed Sacrament is carried reverently through the streets so the faithful can honor and adore Jesus truly present in the Eucharist.
They are not just symbolic parades; they express and proclaim the Church’s faith in the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. A eucharistic procession means that we are accompanying Jesus in the Eucharist with reverence, love and public faith, while asking his blessing upon the Church and the world.
In the Gospel reading for Corpus Christi (Jn 6:51-58), Jesus says to the Jewish crowds: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (Jn 6:51). Immediately they quarreled among themselves saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (Jn 6:52). It’s not an unreasonable question, especially since Jesus was not speaking symbolically or metaphorically but, as the rest of the Gospel passage makes clear, he meant exactly what he said:
Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever. (Jn 6:53-58)
The Jews were understandably scandalized and confused by the Lord’s emphatic statement. The very idea that we who wish to follow Jesus must eat his flesh and drink his blood is outrageous. It makes no sense unless we can surrender our minds and hearts completely and then place all our trust in his divine power.
We have to trust Jesus implicitly when he tells us that he himself is the source of our life, and that the only way we can truly be alive is by receiving him in Holy Communion. The bread that we eat and the wine we drink are Christ himself. We who are many diverse individuals become one body in Christ, and we participate actively in his mission by our reception of his body and blood in the Eucharist. We express this unity when we gather publicly to accompany the Blessed Sacrament in eucharistic procession.
In honor of America’s 250th year, the 2026 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is carrying the theme “One Nation Under God.” This is not a slogan—it’s an invitation to realign our lives, communities and country under the sovereignty of Christ. It’s a call to build unity and to let Jesus, present in the Eucharist, renew and heal the heart of our country.
The pilgrimage began on Memorial Day weekend in St. Augustine, Fla., near where the first Mass in the “New World” was celebrated. It is continuing up the Eastern Seaboard through most of the 13 original colonies. Stops will be made in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, our country’s first diocese, as well as in the Archdiocese of Boston to visit significant historical sites. The pilgrimage concludes over the 4th of July weekend in Philadelphia, where the Declaration of Independence was signed 250 years ago.
As St. Paul teaches (1 Cor 10:16-17), the cup of blessing that we bless is a participation in the blood of Christ, and the bread that we break, is a participation in his body. This summer, let’s give witness to our participation in this mystery by celebrating the Holy Eucharist with both profound reverence and great rejoicing. †