The feast of Corpus Christi is being celebrated today across the world, although, here it is going to be celebrated on Sunday.

That day also sees the beginning of the 50th International Eucharistic Congress in Dublin. The CTS will have a stand at the exhibition centre during the week-long Congress and it is not just us who have been getting ready. Across the Catholic world excitement has been growing.

Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops and Papal Legate to the 50th IEC summed up his expectations:

“My hope is that the Church in Ireland be really strengthened in its identity as communion of God among people and through this testimony of others who are coming to visit and to share the same faith together with the people in Ireland.”

With pilgrims coming from all over the world, it promises to be an extraordinary week, one which will culminate in a closing Mass at Dublin’s 80,000 capacity stadium, Croke Park.

The CTS will be there on Stand 66, so do come and say hello and maybe pick up a Missal.

Catholics throughout the world hope it will be the start of something new for the Faith in Ireland and what better time to begin this renewal than this hugely important day in the Catholic calendar.

In our People’s Daily Missal, there is an introduction to the feast of Corpus Christi from the Holy Father which could help explain why renewal in Ireland starts with the Eucharist.

“The fact that the Sacrament of the Altar acquired the name ‘Eucharist’ – ‘thanksgiving’ – expresses precisely this: that changing the substance of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is the fruit of the gift that Christ made of himself, the gift of a Love stronger than death, divine Love which raised him from the dead. This is why the Eucharist is the food of eternal life, the Bread of Life.”

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Of related interest:

	Is Jesus Really Present in the Eucharist? – Using key sources from scripture and tradition, Bishop Michael Evans explains how Jesus is present today when we celebrate the Mass. A highly readable and accessible text.
	Sacrifice in the Liturgy – Bishop Peter Elliot helps us to understand the Christian sacrifice given to us at the Last Supper by reflecting on the shape of the liturgy, its actions and symbols, particularly the altar and sacred space set apart for the Eucharistic sacrifice.
	Participating in the Mass - A step-by-step guide to the celebration of the Mass, to enable the Liturgy to be celebrated with reverence, dignity and beauty.

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