Corpus Christi
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series III
Corpus Christi is a festival that few, if any, Protestants celebrate. One reason is that it celebrates the doctrine of the eucharist, rather than the salvific event recorded in the Gospels. The only other doctrinal feast that is included in the church year is the Holy Trinity, which was nearly eliminated from the new lectionary because it, too, celebrates a doctrine rather than a redeeming action by God. One doctrinal festival seems to be quite enough, especially when it covers all the work of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; another doctrinal occasion is unnecessary. A second reason is that this Sunday seems to be excess liturgical baggage. Inasmuch as Holy Thursday deals with the institution of the eucharist, Corpus Christi seems to be a redundant festival in the Roman Catholic Church. The lessons, however, concentrate on God's redeeming work, and, coming as they do within the context of the very begin-ning of the Pentecost cycle/season, ground these events in the relationship that believers have in the body of Christ with their Lord and with each other in the holy communion, while giving an eschatological purview - "a foretaste of the feast to come" - to the eucharist.
The Psalm of the Day
Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18 - This is the second time this psalm has been selected as the Psalm of the Day in Cycle B. Appropriately, it is the psalm of choice for the Second Sunday in Lent, on the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, and the Psalm of the Day for Holy Thursday in Cycle C. Different verses are used for each of these, of course, with the exception of the Holy Thursday usage which contains exactly the same verses as this Sunday's psalmody. The "cup of salvation" theme in verse 12 makes the psalm fully compatible with the first reading (Exodus 24:3-8), which speaks of Moses' sprinkling the blood of the sacrifices on the people. The eucharist completes that action for the people of God today. Those who drink the cup participate in - and proclaim - the saving death of Jesus Christ "until he comes again."
The Psalm Prayer
The collect in the Lutheran Book of Worship implies that this psalm speaks - for Christians - within the eucharistic context.
God of power and mercy, through the Passion and resurrection ofyour Son you have freed us from the bonds of death and the anguish of separation from you. Be with us on our pilgrimage, and help us offer you a sacrifice of praise, fulfill our vows, and glorify you in the presence of all your people; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The readings:
Exodus 24:3-8
After Moses came down from his meeting with God on Mount Sinai (where God had told him of the covenant he was making with his people and gave him the commandments which they were to keep as their part of the covenant), he called the people together, told them what had happened, set up an altar, and proceeded to sacrifice oxen as burnt offerings to give thanks to God. He took the blood of the sacrificial animals and sprinkled half of it on the altar, sprinkling the rest of it upon the people, thereby expressing their participation in the sacrifice and their commitment to God's covenant. The typology of the eucharist is present in this event, which shows the two dimensions of the eucharist - Christ's offering of himself to God and the participation of the people in that sacrifice by eating and drinking the bread and the wine. For Christians, the eucharist is undeniably connected to the cross of Christ and the one-time sacrifice that Jesus made to God for all people and for all time.
Hebrews 9:11-15
The selection of Hebrews as the second reading for Corpus Christi is most appropriate in that it precedes the sequence of eight readings from Hebrews in the last portion of Pentecost, Cycle B. This particular pericope is not included in that group of lessons, although Hebrews 9:24-28 is the reading for the Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost (the Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary time). This reading is more compatible with the other readings for Corpus Christi than it is with the lections for the late-Pentecost occasion, primarily because the three readings for festivals (as well as Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter) are meant to complement each other. In Epiphany and Pentecost, the second readings "float free" of the first lesson and the Gospel for the Day. This "free-floating" reading emphasizes the once-and-for-all quality of Jesus' sacrifice - "he entered once for all into the Holy Place" - in which he took the place of goats and calves and poured out his own blood to gain redemption for all persons. Receiving that blood in the cup means that sins are forgiven and people are "purified" - recreated - so that they might serve the living God.
Mark 14:12-16, 22-26
The Lutheran Book of Worship lectionary assigns all of this text (verses 12-26) to Holy Thursday, Cycle B. Commentary on this Gospel can be found in the studies for Holy Thursday. Suffice it to say, it is in this context that Mark demonstrates that the eucharist really is the Christian passover, and his work reflects the eucharistic practices of the church to which he writes. Furthermore, the emphasis is on the cup, of which Jesus said when he gave it to them to drink, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many." See Holy Thursday for additional comments.
A Sermon on the Gospel and First and Second Lessons, Exodus 24:3-8; Hebrews 9:11-15; Mark 14:12-16, 22-26 - "Jesus' Feast."
(Note: There is a sermon suggestion in the materials for Holy Thursday, Cycle B which, with some revision and development, would be appropriate for Corpus Christi. However, it seems better to offer another sermon that would incorporate the themes of the three readings for this day.)
In the award-winning Danish movie Babette's Feast, which takes place in that portion of Denmark known as Jutland, a young woman arrives with a letter of introduction at the home of two sisters whose father - "the Minister" - has recently died. She is a refugee from the terrible events that occurred in Paris in the latter part of the nineteenth century. She comes to work for the sisters, who are too poor to pay her, and agrees to serve them for nothing - and does - for twelve years. She has only one contact in Paris, a person who enters her name in the annual lottery. She wins the lottery (10,000 francs) just before the sisters, Martina (after Martin Luther) and Philippa (after Phillip Melancthon), and the remainder of the little congregation (ten, in number) plan to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Minister's birth. Babette asks to be allowed to prepare a special French dinner for the occasion and, after considerable discussion, she is permitted to do so. She sent for food and supplies - exotic food to people who lived on ale-bread - and made ready for the feast. It was just that - a beautiful table of linens, dinnerware, and crystal, four or five vintage wines and champagne, turtle soup, escargot and caviar, and quail served in dough baked in the shape of a nest. The feast was unusual for the congregation. Fruit, rare cheeses, sumptuous desserts, and freshly ground coffee - with another glass of wine in the living room - topped off the meal. It was like nothing that they had ever heard of - except for one person, the general, who was present with his mother.
"The general" told the group that the wines and the meal were as fine as could be obtained at the best restaurant in Paris. During the meal, the old people had been cantankerous, finding all sorts of fault with each other. They had been skeptical about the strange food and drink, but gradually ate with relish and drank with pleasure. Their old wounds had been healed around that table. After the meal was finished and the guests had departed, the two sisters thanked Babette, and asked her when she was going to leave them. She told them that she couldn't leave because she no longer had any money; she had spent it all on that feast. She told them that she was the chef at the famous restaurant the general spoke of. She continued, "A meal there cost 10,000 francs." Exactly what she had won in the lottery she spent on the feast - everything she had, even herself.
1. Jesus threw a feast the night before he died to save people from their sins. Then and there - and on the cross - he gave his body and blood (much as Moses had sprinkled on the altar and the people with sacrificial blood at Mount Sinai) for people to eat and to drink for the forgiveness of their sins and to cover them with the new covenant he had made on their behalf with God.
2. Just like Babette, Jesus could only prepare the table once, because it took his death and resurrection to make the sacrifice and to establish the feast for all people and all time. He could die only once, but that was a sufficient sacrifice to bring salvation to all people. Now, when his table is set with bread and wine that feast is celebrated at his command, "in remembrance of him."
3. The celebration in the repetition of the feast he instituted will go on all over the world every day until the end of time. His grace is sufficient for all. It provides the opportunity for people to write a sequel to that first supper again and again and again with their worship and praise and their work as his disciples in the world. The Jews did the same thing by remembering Moses' sacrifice - the blood splattered on the altar and on them - every day "in the tent" (and later in the temple) as long as it stood in Jerusalem.
4. So Jesus is - and always will be - the High Priest for the whole human race. He is the host at his table, and his powerful presence that assures people that their sins are forgiven makes the church his body in the world. We have been prepared for a feast in heaven that will never end. At the table of the Lord, we have received "a foretaste of the feast to come," and true believers can look for that day with confidence and joy.
5. As one old man, who was either senile or very hard of hearing, uttered again and again in Babette's Feast - "Hallelujah!"
The Psalm of the Day
Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18 - This is the second time this psalm has been selected as the Psalm of the Day in Cycle B. Appropriately, it is the psalm of choice for the Second Sunday in Lent, on the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, and the Psalm of the Day for Holy Thursday in Cycle C. Different verses are used for each of these, of course, with the exception of the Holy Thursday usage which contains exactly the same verses as this Sunday's psalmody. The "cup of salvation" theme in verse 12 makes the psalm fully compatible with the first reading (Exodus 24:3-8), which speaks of Moses' sprinkling the blood of the sacrifices on the people. The eucharist completes that action for the people of God today. Those who drink the cup participate in - and proclaim - the saving death of Jesus Christ "until he comes again."
The Psalm Prayer
The collect in the Lutheran Book of Worship implies that this psalm speaks - for Christians - within the eucharistic context.
God of power and mercy, through the Passion and resurrection ofyour Son you have freed us from the bonds of death and the anguish of separation from you. Be with us on our pilgrimage, and help us offer you a sacrifice of praise, fulfill our vows, and glorify you in the presence of all your people; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The readings:
Exodus 24:3-8
After Moses came down from his meeting with God on Mount Sinai (where God had told him of the covenant he was making with his people and gave him the commandments which they were to keep as their part of the covenant), he called the people together, told them what had happened, set up an altar, and proceeded to sacrifice oxen as burnt offerings to give thanks to God. He took the blood of the sacrificial animals and sprinkled half of it on the altar, sprinkling the rest of it upon the people, thereby expressing their participation in the sacrifice and their commitment to God's covenant. The typology of the eucharist is present in this event, which shows the two dimensions of the eucharist - Christ's offering of himself to God and the participation of the people in that sacrifice by eating and drinking the bread and the wine. For Christians, the eucharist is undeniably connected to the cross of Christ and the one-time sacrifice that Jesus made to God for all people and for all time.
Hebrews 9:11-15
The selection of Hebrews as the second reading for Corpus Christi is most appropriate in that it precedes the sequence of eight readings from Hebrews in the last portion of Pentecost, Cycle B. This particular pericope is not included in that group of lessons, although Hebrews 9:24-28 is the reading for the Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost (the Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary time). This reading is more compatible with the other readings for Corpus Christi than it is with the lections for the late-Pentecost occasion, primarily because the three readings for festivals (as well as Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter) are meant to complement each other. In Epiphany and Pentecost, the second readings "float free" of the first lesson and the Gospel for the Day. This "free-floating" reading emphasizes the once-and-for-all quality of Jesus' sacrifice - "he entered once for all into the Holy Place" - in which he took the place of goats and calves and poured out his own blood to gain redemption for all persons. Receiving that blood in the cup means that sins are forgiven and people are "purified" - recreated - so that they might serve the living God.
Mark 14:12-16, 22-26
The Lutheran Book of Worship lectionary assigns all of this text (verses 12-26) to Holy Thursday, Cycle B. Commentary on this Gospel can be found in the studies for Holy Thursday. Suffice it to say, it is in this context that Mark demonstrates that the eucharist really is the Christian passover, and his work reflects the eucharistic practices of the church to which he writes. Furthermore, the emphasis is on the cup, of which Jesus said when he gave it to them to drink, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many." See Holy Thursday for additional comments.
A Sermon on the Gospel and First and Second Lessons, Exodus 24:3-8; Hebrews 9:11-15; Mark 14:12-16, 22-26 - "Jesus' Feast."
(Note: There is a sermon suggestion in the materials for Holy Thursday, Cycle B which, with some revision and development, would be appropriate for Corpus Christi. However, it seems better to offer another sermon that would incorporate the themes of the three readings for this day.)
In the award-winning Danish movie Babette's Feast, which takes place in that portion of Denmark known as Jutland, a young woman arrives with a letter of introduction at the home of two sisters whose father - "the Minister" - has recently died. She is a refugee from the terrible events that occurred in Paris in the latter part of the nineteenth century. She comes to work for the sisters, who are too poor to pay her, and agrees to serve them for nothing - and does - for twelve years. She has only one contact in Paris, a person who enters her name in the annual lottery. She wins the lottery (10,000 francs) just before the sisters, Martina (after Martin Luther) and Philippa (after Phillip Melancthon), and the remainder of the little congregation (ten, in number) plan to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Minister's birth. Babette asks to be allowed to prepare a special French dinner for the occasion and, after considerable discussion, she is permitted to do so. She sent for food and supplies - exotic food to people who lived on ale-bread - and made ready for the feast. It was just that - a beautiful table of linens, dinnerware, and crystal, four or five vintage wines and champagne, turtle soup, escargot and caviar, and quail served in dough baked in the shape of a nest. The feast was unusual for the congregation. Fruit, rare cheeses, sumptuous desserts, and freshly ground coffee - with another glass of wine in the living room - topped off the meal. It was like nothing that they had ever heard of - except for one person, the general, who was present with his mother.
"The general" told the group that the wines and the meal were as fine as could be obtained at the best restaurant in Paris. During the meal, the old people had been cantankerous, finding all sorts of fault with each other. They had been skeptical about the strange food and drink, but gradually ate with relish and drank with pleasure. Their old wounds had been healed around that table. After the meal was finished and the guests had departed, the two sisters thanked Babette, and asked her when she was going to leave them. She told them that she couldn't leave because she no longer had any money; she had spent it all on that feast. She told them that she was the chef at the famous restaurant the general spoke of. She continued, "A meal there cost 10,000 francs." Exactly what she had won in the lottery she spent on the feast - everything she had, even herself.
1. Jesus threw a feast the night before he died to save people from their sins. Then and there - and on the cross - he gave his body and blood (much as Moses had sprinkled on the altar and the people with sacrificial blood at Mount Sinai) for people to eat and to drink for the forgiveness of their sins and to cover them with the new covenant he had made on their behalf with God.
2. Just like Babette, Jesus could only prepare the table once, because it took his death and resurrection to make the sacrifice and to establish the feast for all people and all time. He could die only once, but that was a sufficient sacrifice to bring salvation to all people. Now, when his table is set with bread and wine that feast is celebrated at his command, "in remembrance of him."
3. The celebration in the repetition of the feast he instituted will go on all over the world every day until the end of time. His grace is sufficient for all. It provides the opportunity for people to write a sequel to that first supper again and again and again with their worship and praise and their work as his disciples in the world. The Jews did the same thing by remembering Moses' sacrifice - the blood splattered on the altar and on them - every day "in the tent" (and later in the temple) as long as it stood in Jerusalem.
4. So Jesus is - and always will be - the High Priest for the whole human race. He is the host at his table, and his powerful presence that assures people that their sins are forgiven makes the church his body in the world. We have been prepared for a feast in heaven that will never end. At the table of the Lord, we have received "a foretaste of the feast to come," and true believers can look for that day with confidence and joy.
5. As one old man, who was either senile or very hard of hearing, uttered again and again in Babette's Feast - "Hallelujah!"
