[Magdalen] The Adoration Corpus Christi

[Roger Stokes]

In the Church of England the official title of the day is now 
"Thanksgiving for the Institution of Holy Communion" which indicates the 
rationale behind the observation. In the Eucharist we are expressing our 
unity as the Church, the mystical Body of Christ, and are united with 
him as we take the elements which are, in some way, for us the Body and 
Blood of Christ. We are identifying with those gathered in that room 
thousands of limes away millenia ago. In God there is no sense of time 
or distance and so, in his presence, we are there with them.

Since Christ has left us this way of uniting with him in a special and 
sacramental way should we not give thanks for this sacrament? To have 
such an observation or feast of thanksgiving on Maundy or Holy Thursday 
would be confusing since we are about to seg into the remembrance of 
Christ's time in the Garden of Gethsemane, leading up to his 
crucifixion. By moving it nine weeks later it can become a free-standing 
Feast. It is no longer in the Easter season or in the days following 
Pentecost, which themselves have been observed as a mini-season of not 
quite an octave since there are only seven days, the eighth being 
Trinity Sunday.

Roger

On 15/06/2017 06:04, Lynn Ronkainen wrote:
> ... so far I've not seen anyone actually say why the 'Holy Day', why 
> the monstrance.  The Monstrance, containing a consecrated host,
> is revered as the real presence of Jesus by those who participate - 
> the visible and present Christ (corpus Christi/ body of Christ) - to
> be worshipped, prayed to, and experience at-one-ment.
>
> peace