Corpus Christi Sunday

June 25, 2025 Column Father De Celles

---

CORPUS CHRISTI SUNDAY. Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and
Blood of Christ, a feast established to remind the faithful in a particular way of the
Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. As the Catechism of the Catholic
Church teaches us:
“1376 The Council of Trent summarizes…declaring: ‘Because Christ our
Redeemer said that it was truly his body that he was offering under the species
of bread, it has always been the conviction of the Church of God….that by the
consecration of the bread and wine there takes place a change of the whole
substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord and of
the whole substance of the wine into the substance of his blood. This change the
holy Catholic Church has fittingly and properly called transubstantiation.’206
“1381 ‘That in this sacrament are the true Body of Christ and his true Blood
is something that ‘cannot be apprehended by the senses,’ says St. Thomas, ‘but
only by faith, which relies on divine authority.’ For this reason, in a commentary
on Luke 22:19 (‘This is my body which is given for you.’), St. Cyril says: ‘Do not
doubt whether this is true, but rather receive the words of the Savior in faith, for
since he is the truth, he cannot lie.’”
In sum, the Eucharist is the Real and True Body and Blood of Our Lord
and God Jesus Christ, miraculously present under the outward appearance, the
“accidents,” of bread and wine. But there is no bread or wine present any more,
only Jesus.
And what do we do in the real, actual presence of Jesus? What do the
saints do at the heavenly liturgy? The Book of Revelations tells us.
“And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet ….” (1:17)
“The four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the
Lamb.” (5:8)
“All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and
the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and
worshiped God.” (7:11)
“The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and
worshiped God, who was seated on the throne.” (19:4)
Don’t Kneel? You will hear some people nowadays, especially some Bishops,
saying that the norm in the U.S. for receiving Holy Communion is to stand while
receiving. Well, that’s true, and false. Actually it’s half true, as it states only half of
the norm, as if the other half of the norm isn’t an equal half of the norm. The
whole norm, as stated in the “General Instruction of the Roman Missal”—the
governing set of norms for Mass—states at 160.2: “The norm established for the
Dioceses of the United States of America is that Holy Communion is to be
received standing, unless an individual member of the faithful wishes to receive
Communion while kneeling (emphasis mine).
So, the norm has two parts: 1) stand OR 2) kneel if you want. Period. Of
course, for centuries kneeling was required in the Roman Church. In 1970 the

U.S. Bishops changed this, setting a rule, approved by Rome, that we would
stand for Communion. This 1970 U.S. rule, or “norm,” did not mention kneeling,
but that lack did not suppress the practice of kneeling if the communicant so
desired, as was repeatedly made clear by the Congregation for Divine Worship.
So in 2011, when the 2000 Roman Missal was translated and became effective in
the U.S., the U.S. norms were changed to clarify that we can kneel for
Communion.
(And to be clear, when we use the word “norm” here, it does not mean the
same thing as “normally”—it means “rule.”)
Does the reference to an “individual member of the faithful” mean that
parishes, priests or bishops should not recommend kneeling. No.
As Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (later Pope Benedict XVI) wrote in 2000:
“There are groups, of no small influence, who are trying to talk us out of
kneeling. “It doesn’t suit our culture”….It may well be that kneeling is alien to
modern culture — insofar as it is a culture, for this culture has turned away
from the faith and no longer knows the one before whom kneeling is the
right, indeed the intrinsically necessary gesture. The man who learns to
believe learns also to kneel, and a faith or a liturgy no longer familiar with
kneeling would be sick at the core. Where it has been lost, kneeling must be
rediscovered, so that, in our prayer, we remain in fellowship with the apostles
and martyrs, in fellowship with the whole cosmos, indeed in union with Jesus
Christ Himself.”
Or as Cardinal Rober Sarah wrote in 2018: “The liturgy is made up of
many small rituals and gestures — each of them is capable of expressing these
attitudes filled with love, filial respect and adoration toward God. That is precisely
why it is appropriate to promote the beauty, fittingness and pastoral value of a
practice which developed during the long life and tradition of the Church, that is,
the act of receiving Holy Communion on the tongue and kneeling. The greatness
and nobility of man, as well as the highest expression of his love for his Creator,
consists in kneeling before God. Jesus himself prayed on his knees in the
presence of the Father….
“Father, What Should I Do?” If you ask me, I encourage you all to kneel to
receive Our Lord in Holy Communion. But I do not judge anyone who does
not, and I admonish all of you to make no judgments about someone who does
not kneel. Some want to kneel and can’t because of physical limitations. Some
chose to stand—it is their right to freely do so and judging their hearts is simply
contradictory to the very meaning of Communion. Others do not understand,
maybe no one has explained to them, maybe it was explained badly, who
knows? We do not judge.
CHOIR TAKES THE SUMMER OFF. With Corpus Christi Sunday behind us, the
choir will take the rest of the summer off. I’m sure you join me in appreciation for

all the beautiful music they have provided us with this last year. The Mass is not
about the music, but the music our choir provides is definitely about the Mass,
and helps us to more deeply enter into the solemnity and reverence of the Holy
Sacrifice. Thank you, choir members, and especially Elisabeth Turco (director)
and Denise Anezin (organist), and have a great and restful summer.
VACATION. I was on vacation last week visiting family in Indiana (South Bend
and Indianapolis) and Chicago. I had a great time visiting two of my siblings (a
brother and a sister) and their families. I really enjoyed visiting with a bunch of
my nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews—they are always the
highlight of these trips. And I always like visiting Notre Dame (my brother is an
alumn, not me) and the stunning Basilica and peaceful Grotto. But I didn’t enjoy
getting stuck in downtown Chicago traffic for 1½ hours. Thank the Lord Jesus for
a fun, restful and safe trip.
Oremus pro invicem. Fr. De Celles