June 14, 2020: The Body and Blood of Christ
The paraphrase-antiphon is derived from 1 Cor 11:24-25:
After he had given thanks, he broke it and said,
“This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
Here there is a reminiscence of lines from this Sunday’s Gospel:
“Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you do not have life within you.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life,
and I will raise him on the last day.” (John 6:53-54)
Verses from Psalm 23 are superimposed on the first half of the antiphon, so that the repeated “Do this and remember me” at the end of every two lines of the psalm becomes a kind of mantra, enfleshing our obedience to the Lord’s command. The repetition invites those receiving communion to offer up themselves to God and to give themselves to their neighbors.
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