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| Jean Bourdichon, Angels Holding the Host for Adoration From Heures de Frédéric d'Aragon French (Tours), c. 1501-1504 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Latin 10532, fol. 302 |
"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."
John 6:51-58 (Gospel for the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ)
The feast of Corpus Christi or Corpus Domini or The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ is a special feast day of the Church. It occurs on either the Thursday after Trinity Sunday (in many countries) or on the Sunday after Trinity Sunday (in the United States). It focuses our attention on the mystery of the Eucharist, in which the bread and wine that we offer are transformed into the true Body and Blood of Christ.
It was officially recognized by the Church in 1264 by Pope Urban IV, who asked St. Thomas Aquinas to compose the liturgical prayers for the feast. Thomas responded with some of the most beautiful prayers and hymns in the history of the Church. Artists also developed a complex and fascinating repertoire of images which celebrate the same mystery. In past essays I have described many of the ways in which artists have responded. Here is a series of links which you can use to access this material.
It was officially recognized by the Church in 1264 by Pope Urban IV, who asked St. Thomas Aquinas to compose the liturgical prayers for the feast. Thomas responded with some of the most beautiful prayers and hymns in the history of the Church. Artists also developed a complex and fascinating repertoire of images which celebrate the same mystery. In past essays I have described many of the ways in which artists have responded. Here is a series of links which you can use to access this material.
Lists of Posts Related to the Feast of Corpus Christi
Posts Reviewing the 2013 Exhibition Illuminating Faith: The Eucharist in Medieval Life and Art at the Morgan Library, New York
Posts Examining the Related Iconography of the Manna in the Desert, an Old Testament Prefiguration of the Eucharist, and the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish, a New Testament Prefiguration
Prefiguring Salvation –Manna in the Desert and the Bread from Heaven, Part I
Prefiguring Salvation -- Manna in the Desert and the Bread from Heaven, Part II
Prefiguring Salvation -- Manna in the Desert and the Bread from Heaven, Part III
Illustrating Miracles – Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish
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