The Eucharist is not an invention of the Church: it is a part of God’s plan of salvation from the very beginning: it is prefigured in the Old Testament, seen today in the food offerings of Melchizedek, priest king of Jerusalem associated with Abraham, choose bread and wine as the offerings. It is also revealed by the prophetic action of Jesus, in feeding the multitude, before he feeds the Church with the gift that is transmitted through the centuries. The Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ, is our communication with the Father, in the Spirit: it is the real presence in the Church’s here and now of the eternal God; it is Covenant, Memorial and Promise, Meal and Sacrifice, the heartbeat of the Family of Believers.
Today’s Scripture
Genesis 14: 18 – 20.
Response: Psalm 109
The Lord’s revelation to my Master;
“Sit on my right:
I will put your foes beneath your feet.”
The Lord will send from Zion
your sceptre of power:
rule in the midst of all your foes.
A prince from the day of your birth
on the holy mountains;
from the womb before the daybreak I begot you.
The Lord has sworn an oath he will not change.
“You are a priest for ever,
a priest like Melchizedek of old.”
(Sung Antiphon: You are a priest for ever,
a priest like Melchizedek of old.)
1 Corinthians 11: 23 – 26.
Acclamation for the Gospel:
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
I am the living bread which has come down from heaven,
says the Lord.
Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Luke 9: 11 – 17.
