This morning’s Gospel reading is John 6:51–58:

Jesus said to the Jewish crowds:

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.”

The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, 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. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.”

I hope that readers today will forgive a little change of pace in our Sunday reflections. Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, also known as the Feast of Corpus Christi. This event celebrates the Real Presence in the Eucharist, a doctrine central to the Catholic faith and others as well — Orthodox, Lutheran, and Anglican as well, although with some differences.

Of late, however, this doctrine has become overlooked. A Pew study four years ago showed that less than a third of all Catholics believed in transubstantiation, the central event in every Mass in which the Holy Spirit works through the priest to transform the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ. Nearly seven in ten Catholics (69%) considered it only symbolic. An astounding 45% believe that “symbolic” is the actual Catholic teaching, which when added to the 5% who aren’t sure what the Church teaches, makes a majority of Catholics who are uncatechized on the meaning and nature of the Eucharist. And even 22% who know it as doctrine don’t believe it, possibly because they don’t grasp how central to the Catholic faith it is.

As an anecdotal example of this issue, I met a seminarian shortly before his ordination, who had been a middle-school teacher before reverting back to the Catholic faith of his family and finding a call for the priesthood. He told a very funny story about that journey, in which he had begun Catholic bible study. His girlfriend at the time read ahead about Catholicism and came across the doctrine of the Real Presence. “Do you know,” she asked him, “that Catholics believe that communion is the real blood and body of Jesus?”

“Noooo they don’t,” he scoffed. He had never run across that doctrine. (His girlfriend was very supportive of his call, by the way, and that’s a good reminder that many priests start off in the world before being called.)

And one other anecdote, if you will allow me: When I went to cover the Vatican conclave in 2013, I became friends with a smart and engaging German reporter who sat at the adjacent desk. We discussed many points of Catholicism over those two weeks and became friends. However, she was also shocked when I told her that I really did believe in the Real Presence. She was sure that was an archaic belief that Catholics only nominally endorsed.

The bishops are clearly worried about that same trend. Over the last couple of years but especially of late, there has been a particular emphasis on the Eucharist and its real nature in parishes and dioceses around the world, including in the US. They want a revival of catechesis and commitment to the Real Presence and the clear meaning of today’s Gospel reading. Bishops and priests are looking for new ways to engage the faithful and re-emphasize this devotion to the Eucharist.

In our diocese, we chose to revive the tradition of the Eucharistic Procession. These have a long history in Christendom, going back a thousand years. As Simply Catholic notes in its brief overview, these become particularly powerful when the belief in the Real Presence is challenged or questioned. These processions rally the faithful to the doctrine, demonstrate the unity of the Church in our communities, and act as an invitation to others to encounter Christ in both the scripture and the sacrament.

Yesterday morning, we went to Mass in one Catholic parish and then processed over a mile to another for Eucharistic adoration. I took part in this — the first time I’ve ever done so — as one of the choir members from several parishes that participated in the event. The local newspaper did a very good job of reporting on it, and even provided a video record of the event:

The time sequences are somewhat jumbled up. It’s not linear, and it doesn’t include any images from the end of the procession. However, that’s not really an issue here. It captures the spirit of the procession very nicely, and the text report is well done indeed.

I learned a few things about processing in summer and about our community. For one thing, I learned that singing while stationary and singing while walking are two very different things. It was also well over 90 degrees outside when this procession took place — a dry heat, but still a factor. And yet no one I saw was complaining or even had a sour look on their face. Choir members may have been concentrating on their sheet music, but everyone else seemed to share my sense of joy in rallying behind the Eucharist and making their faith known to the community. The people we did see as spectators seemed to be supportive and interested in the event.

When we reached the destination church, which was slightly larger than the originating church, I noticed something else as well. It appeared that everyone had journeyed, one way or the other, to completion. The church was filled to standing-room-only for the Eucharistic adoration, and just as enthusiastically engaging as before.

One other point became clear, too: everyone wanted to do this again next year. This first attempt at a Eucharistic procession had the normal kind of logistical hiccups one might expect from an event on this scale. None of that turned out to be discouraging in the least. The chatter outside the event was joyful and sunny, with lots of talk about what to do better the next time.

This brings us back to our readings today on the Feast of Corpus Christi. It is necessary and clarifying to stand up and walk with your beliefs. It may shock people, even those who call themselves disciples, as we learn from the Gospel passage immediately following today’s reading:

60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit[e] and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”

66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

The Eucharistic procession gave us all a chance to follow Him rather than turn away from a hard teaching. Hopefully, that will revive the true spirit of the doctrine in the hearts of others so that many more will join us. It is indeed a hard path, and we will all stumble at times, but the Holy Spirit will lift us and remind us that the journey will be complete when we come home to Christ in the end. That is our true revival.

“Sunday Reflection” is a regular feature, looking at the specific readings used in today’s Mass in Catholic parishes around the world. The reflection represents only my own point of view, intended to help prepare myself for the Lord’s day and perhaps spark a meaningful discussion. Previous Sunday Reflections from the main page can be found here.