"It truly takes a village to do the good work that continues to take place at Holy Name of Mary," Religious Education Director Jamie Ojala said. "Three years ago, our Eucharistic Revival began..."
Approximately 100 worshippers walked more than 1.25 miles on Sunday afternoon to proclaim the body and blood of Christ. The Feast of Corpus Christi is a liturgical celebration traditionally held the Thursday after Trinity Sunday. Thursday is believed to be the day of the week that Jesus shared the Last Supper with His disciples.
"As defined by the "Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church," promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992, "Transubstantiation" is "the change of the whole substance of bread into the substance of the Body of Christ and of the whole substance of wine into the substance of the Blood of Christ."
During Sunday morning homily, Fr. Al Mott of Holy Name of Mary invited the congregation to examine further, saying, "Let's just take one or two passages from today's Sacred Scriptures from the reading of the gospel to see how changing a couple of words can really lead us astray. And I quote: 'Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in Him" (John 6:56). This is a very straightforward quote. We've heard it many times. We know it. It's a part of who we are. Now, imagine if Jesus had said this instead: 'Whoever eats my bread and drinks my wine remains in me and I in him.'"
Many of Christ's followers left upon hearing such radical and "graphic" instruction: "Because of this, many of His disciples went away and accompanied Him no more" — John 6:66.
"Jesus is saying that it is His body and His blood," Mott reiterated. "He's emphasizing it again. He's not backing away from what they were saying was 'too much.' He doubled down. If Jesus was only talking about bread and wine, He would have backed off."
Mott then read the following verse: "This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever" — John 6:58.
Mott asked the congregation what the statement would mean if one or two words had been left out, providing the following example: "The bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats bread will live forever."
Removing the words, "this" and "is" allowed listeners to hear and understand a dramatically different verse.
"It undermines our belief in the true presence," Mott continued. "Simple little tweaks allow that to creep in. But our Lord Jesus Christ wants us to know that it is Him; it is Himself: Body, blood, soul, and divinity. If we don't have a belief in the true presence, we have lost the source and summit of the faith, which the second person of the Most Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ, gave to us His very self."
Mott made reference to the bread and wine at the back of the church to describe its blessed transformation into the "Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ."
"When it is offered on the altar, when it is consecrated, it becomes Jesus," Mott said. "There's a significant difference between there (back of the church) and here (altar). It changes how we act; how we live our lives. It is truly him giving himself to us... to feed on. He gives us his strength; His power; His very love in our lives."
So, Mott carried the blessed Eucharist under a canopy held up by volunteer bearers, accompanied by Fr. Romeo of St. Joseph Catholic Church, Deacon Larry Pazzkowski, alter servers, Knights of Columbus riders Knights on Bikes, Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem to Eucharistic Procession Knight Frank Breen and Dame Michelle Breen, Sault Ste. Marie Helping Hands, and musician Paul Ignatowski (Soo Theatre). Some singers and those unable to walk rode in a VFW trailer. City of Sault Ste. Marie Police Officer Jake Driedric chaperoned worshippers.
Knights on Bikes International President Bob "Ace" Bagley rode through the Upper Peninsula with other knights to attend after stewarding eight silver roses to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Crosse, Wisconsin, where they participated in three masses to remember the miracle of the roses. The Silver Rose Pilgrimage transports silver roses across the US and Canada to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Monterrey, Mexico.
"Many people seem to forget what the Church is all about," Bagley said, hopping off his black Harley Davidson. "The church is about Christ. Knights on Bikes is probably one of the most prayerful groups you'll come across. We are willing to protect the Church at all cost. Every one of us understands why we are here and what Christ did for us. A lot of us, we come from all different walks of life. We have guys who were in motorcycle clubs and either came to the church to converted or returned to the church. They know what it means to be loved by Christ, and we're here to serve him in any way possible. We honor our Holy Father."
Worshippers sought to spread the word of God through the procession.
"We as Catholics are reminded that we are called to go out and bring Jesus to others," said Religious Education Director Jamie Ojala, after the closing Benediction prayer. "We can’t thank enough everyone who was a part of our Corpus Christi procession making it another success."
