When life begins for any of us those first gifts are the ones we need. We need the presence of those who love us. We need the daily nourishment of food so that w emay grow stronger. And we need the joy and the interest and the stimulus of others, wider family and friends to introduce us to the world. When the Lord began to form His own family, His community of disciples, His first gift to them was His very presence. They lived with Him night and day. Each day they grew in their understanding of Him and of who He was. His presence inspired them and gave them joy and hope for life. He fed them with every word He said and the people flocked to hear what He would say. This word was truly nourishing to their lives. A new company was born into the world, the followers of Christ, and it was the word of Jesus and the presence of Jesus that nourished and formed this family. His presence among us would now take the form of a sacred and sacrificial meal, a sacramental gift to bind His Church. Present in these sacred signs, in His word and in bread and wine, the Lord would preserve and nourish His Church throughout the ages. His followers, now called His friends, indeed His brothers and sisters, would become the living presence of the Lord in the world.
By receiving the Body and Blood of Christ into ourselves we can become part of that living Lord in this world. The first manifestation of this is our human presence to others. To be present to others is a simple and powerful act of self-giving. To be present to others in an attentive and kindly manner is to allow the grace of the Lord to be there at work in the world. The second manifestation of Christ is in our speaking. Whenever our words are kind and thoughtful, patient and understanding, then the word of God is alive and active through us. People’s lives are nourished by the words they hear from us. The third gift of Christ to the world comes through the sharing of love and affection, kindness and consolation. The company of the Lord, His friends, live by this spirit. And so the feast of Corpus Christi is the feast of life’s fullness. The presence of the Lord among us, the gift of Himself in the holy Sacrament, and the joy of being part of His company, the Church, is what we celebrate today: gathered together, fed by His word and sent out into the world.