said, “Take this. It is my body.” Then he took a cup; and after he had given thanks, he passed it to them and they all drank from it. And he said, “This is my blood, the blood of the Covenant, poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not taste the fruit of the vine again, until that day when I drink the new wine in the kingdom of God.” After singing psalms of praise, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Lectio Divina
Read: Moses sprinkles the blood of the Covenant on the people who declare obedience to God. Christ, as the mediator of the new Covenant, offers his own blood for the cleansing of the people. At the Last Supper, Jesus institutes the Eucharist offering his own body and blood as the spiritual food for his people.
Reflect: Hunger is the greatest drive of human beings, and eating-drinking is the primordial and primal act. Without food, we die. Hence, food is the least common denominator of human edifice. The same dynamics works in the spiritual realm as well: just as our body needs bodily food, our soul needs spiritual food. In his visions on the evolution of soul, German mystic Jakob Böhme saw soul eating of God and becoming God. Indeed, the food our souls need is the very essence of God – his own body and blood so that we consume them and become like God. This is what Jesus offers us – his own life so that we grow into him. It is our Christian calling, too – to be the food for the world.
Pray: Lord, give me the generosity to become eucharistic for the good of the world.
Act: Feed a hungry person today.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2018