Responsorial Psalm Ps 116:12-13, 15-16, 17-18

R. (13) I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R. I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
R. I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
R. I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Reading 2 Heb 9:11-15

Brothers and sisters:
When Christ came as high priest
of the good things that have come to be,
passing through the greater and more perfect tabernacle
not made by hands, that is, not belonging to this creation,
he entered once for all into the sanctuary,
not with the blood of goats and calves
but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.
For if the blood of goats and bulls
and the sprinkling of a heifer's ashes
can sanctify those who are defiled
so that their flesh is cleansed,
how much more will the blood of Christ,
who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God,
cleanse our consciences from dead works
to worship the living God.

For this reason he is mediator of a new covenant:
since a death has taken place for deliverance
from transgressions under the first covenant,
those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.

Sequence

Lauda Sion

Laud, O Zion, your salvation,
Laud with hymns of exultation,
Christ, your king and shepherd true:

Bring him all the praise you know,
He is more than you bestow.
Never can you reach his due.

Special theme for glad thanksgiving
Is the quick’ning and the living
Bread today before you set:

From his hands of old partaken,
As we know, by faith unshaken,
Where the Twelve at supper met.

Full and clear ring out your chanting,
Joy nor sweetest grace be wanting,
From your heart let praises burst:

For today the feast is holden,
When the institution olden
Of that supper was rehearsed.

Here the new law’s new oblation,
By the new king’s revelation,
Ends the form of ancient rite:

Now the new the old effaces,
Truth away the shadow chases,
Light dispels the gloom of night.

What he did at supper seated,
Christ ordained to be repeated,
His memorial ne’er to cease:

And his rule for guidance taking,
Bread and wine we hallow, making
Thus our sacrifice of peace.

This the truth each Christian learns,
Bread into his flesh he turns,
To his precious blood the wine:

Sight has fail’d, nor thought conceives,
But a dauntless faith believes,
Resting on a pow’r divine.

Here beneath these signs are hidden
Priceless things to sense forbidden;
Signs, not things are all we see:

Blood is poured and flesh is broken,
Yet in either wondrous token
Christ entire we know to be.

Whoso of this food partakes,
Does not rend the Lord nor breaks;
Christ is whole to all that taste:

Thousands are, as one, receivers,
One, as thousands of believers,
Eats of him who cannot waste.

Bad and good the feast are sharing,
Of what divers dooms preparing,
Endless death, or endless life.

Life to these, to those damnation,
See how like participation
Is with unlike issues rife.

When the sacrament is broken,
Doubt not, but believe ‘tis spoken,
That each sever’d outward token
doth the very whole contain.

Nought the precious gift divides,
Breaking but the sign betides
Jesus still the same abides,
still unbroken does remain.

The shorter form of the sequence begins here.

Lo! the angel’s food is given
To the pilgrim who has striven;
see the children’s bread from heaven,
which on dogs may not be spent.

Truth the ancient types fulfilling,
Isaac bound, a victim willing,
Paschal lamb, its lifeblood spilling,
manna to the fathers sent.

Very bread, good shepherd, tend us,
Jesu, of your love befriend us,
You refresh us, you defend us,
Your eternal goodness send us
In the land of life to see.

You who all things can and know,
Who on earth such food bestow,
Grant us with your saints, though lowest,
Where the heav’nly feast you show,
Fellow heirs and guests to be. Amen. Alleluia.

Alleluia Jn 6:51

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven,
says the Lord;
whoever eats this bread will live forever.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

From: Exodus 24:3-8

A sacred meal and sprinkling with blood

[3] Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordi-
nances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, “All the words
which the LORD has spoken we will do.â€ [4] And Moses wrote all the words of
the LORD. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the
mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. [5] And he
sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed
peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. [6] And Moses took half of the blood and
put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. [7] Then he took
the book of the covenant, and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said,
“All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.â€ [8] And
Moses took the blood and threw it upon the people, and said, “Behold the blood
of the covenant which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these
words.â€

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

24:1-8. It was common practice for those peoples to ratify pacts by means of a
rite or a meal. This section recounts a meal or rite whereby the Covenant was
sealed. This event is very important for salvation history: it prefigures the sacri-
fice of Jesus Christ, which brought in the New Covenant.

The usual interpretation is that there were two stages in this ratification — first in-
volving Moses and the elders, that is, authorities (vv. 1-2, 9-11) and then the entire
people (vv. 3-8). Other commentators think that there was only one ceremony,
relayed by two different traditions. In both cases the final editor has tried to make
it clear that both the leaders and the people themselves took part in and formally
accepted the divine Covenant and all it laid down.

24:1-11. Nabab and Abihu are priests of Aaronâ€™s line (cf. 6:33; 28:1; Lev 10:1-2);
the elders represent the people on important matters. The ceremony takes place
on the top of the mountain, which all the leaders ascended â€“ Moses; the priests,
holders of religious authority; and the elders, that is, the civil and legal authori-
ties (cf. 18:21-26).

Only Moses has direct access to God (v. 2), but all are able to see God without
dying: what they see far outstrips in brilliance and luxury the great palaces and
temples of the East (cf. the vision of Isaiah in Is 6:10). In fact, they all share the
same table with God (v. 11): the description is reminiscent of a royal banquet, in
which the guests are treated on a par with the host: thus, the king of Babylonia
will show his benevolence to King Jehoiachin by having him as his dinner guest
(cf. 2 Kings 25:27-30). But it is, above all, a ritual banquet in which sharing the
same table shows the intimate relationship that exists between God and the
leaders of the people, and shows too that both parties are mutually responsible
for the covenant now being sealed.

24:3-8. The ceremony takes place on the ‘slope of the mountain; Moses alone is
the intermediary; but the protagonists are God and his people. The ceremony has
two parts — the reading and accepting of the clauses of the Covenant (vv. 3-4),
that is, the Words (Decalogue) and the laws (the so-called Code of the Covenant);
then comes the offering which seals the pact.

The acceptance of the clauses is done with all due solemnity, using the ritual
formula: “all the words which the Lord has spoken we will doâ€ . The people, who
have already made this commitment (19:8), now repeat it after listening to Mosesâ€™
address (v. 3) and just before being sprinkled with the blood of the offering. The
binding force of the pact is thereby assured.

The offering has some very ancient features — the altar specially built for the
occasion (v. 4; cf. 20:25); the twelve pillars, probably set around the altar; the
young men, not priests, making the offerings; and particularly the sprinkling with
blood which is at the very core of the rite.

The dividing of the blood in two (one half for the altar which represents God, and
the other for the people) means that both commit themselves to the requirements
of the Covenant. There is evidence that nomadic peoples used to seal their pacts
with the blood of sacrificed animals. But there are no traces in the Bible of blood
being used in that way. This rite probably has deeper significance: given that
blood, which stands for life (cf. Gen 4), belongs to God alone, it must only be
poured on the altar or used to anoint people who are consecrated to God, such
as priests (cf. Ex 29:19-22). When Moses sprinkled the blood of the offering on
to the entire people, he was consecrating it, making it divine property and “a
kingdom of priestsâ€ (cf. 19:3-6). The Covenant therefore is not only a commit-
ment to obey its precepts but, particularly, the right to belong to the holy nation,
which is Godâ€™s possession. At the Last Supper, when instituting the Eucharist,
Jesus uses the very same terms, “blood of the Covenantâ€ , thereby indicating the
nature of the new people of God who, having been redeemed, is fully “the holy
people of Godâ€ (cf. Mt 26:27 and par.; 1 Cor 11:23-25).

The Second Vatican Council has this to say about the connexion between the
New and Old Covenants, pointing out that the Church is the true people of God:
“God chose the Israelite race to be his own people and established a covenant
with it. He gradually instructed this people — in its history manifesting both him-
self and the decree of his will — and made it holy unto himself. All these things,
however, happened as a preparation and figure of that new and perfect covenant
which was to be ratified in Christ, and of the fuller revelation which was to be
given through the Word of God made flesh. [â€¦] Christ instituted this new cove-
nant, namely the new covenant in his blood (cf. 1 Cor 11:25); he called a race
made up of Jews and Gentiles which would he one, not according to the flesh,
but in the Spirit, and this race would he the new People of Godâ€ (”Lumen gen-
tium”, 4 and 9).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Hebrews 9:11-15

Christ Sealed the New Covenant with His Blood Once and for All

[11] But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come,
then through the greater and more perfect tents (not made with hands, that is, not
of this creation) [12] he entered once for all into the Holy Place, taking not the
blood of goats and calves but his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.
[13] For if the sprinkling of defiled persons with the blood of goats and bulls and
with the ashes of a heifer sanctifies for the purification of the flesh, [14] how much
more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself with-
out blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living
God.

15] Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called
may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred which
redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenants.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

11-14. The sacrifices of the Old Law could only promise ephemeral benefits,
whereas Christ’s redemptive sacrifice obtained for man, once and for all, “the
good things to come”, that is, the heavenly and eternal benefits proper to the
messianic age—sanctifying grace and entry to heaven. Like the high priest on the
Day of Atonement, Christ entered once for all into the Holy of Holies, through the
curtain. This sanctuary which he entered is the heavenly one; that is why it is
“greater and more perfect” and not made by men (cf. 8:2). Christ passed through
the heavens into the very presence of the Father (cf. 7:26) and is seated in hea-
ven at his right hand (cf. 8:1).

Many Fathers, Doctors of the Church and modern scholars see the expression
“through the greater and more perfect tent” as referring to the sacred humanity of
our Lord, virginally conceived in the womb of Mary, that is, “not made with hands”.
The tent or tabernacle would be our Lord’s body, in which the Godhead dwells.
The text then says that it is “not of this creation”, because Jesus as man was
conceived without the action of a man and without original sin: he did not follow
“the law of nature which holds sway in the created world” (Theodoret, “Interpreta-
tio Ep. ad Hebraeos, ad loc.”). In this case the inspired text would be saying that
Christ redeemed us by means of his human nature (cf. v. 12). However, the words
“through the greater and more perfect tent” can also be understood as referring to
heaven, in the sense of a greater and more perfect sanctuary. In any event, whe-
ther by passing through the heavens or through his most sacred body, Christ
achieved Redemption by offering his own blood. This does not have a temporary
value—like the blood of animals shed each year when the priest entered the Holy
of Holies: Jesus secured eternal Redemption. In the Old Law the Jews were
cleansed by the blood of sacrificed animals from legal impurities which prevented
them from taking part in the liturgy; but Christ’s blood does so much more, for it
cleanses man of his sins. “Do you want to know how effective the blood of Christ
is? Let us go back to the symbols which foretold it and remind ourselves of the
ancient accounts of (the Jews in) Egypt. Moses told them to kill a year-old lamb
and put its blood on the two doorposts and the lintel of each house [...]. Would
you like an additional way to appreciate the power of Christ’s blood? See where
it flowed from, what its source is. It began to flow from the very Cross and its
source was the Lord’s side. For, as the Gospel says, when our Lord was already
dead, one of the soldiers went up to him with a lance and pierced his side and at
once there came out water and blood—water, the symbol of Baptism; blood, the
symbol of the Eucharist. The soldier pierced his side, he opened a breach in the
wall of the holy temple, and there I discover the hidden treasure and I rejoice at
the treasure I have found” (Chrysostom, “Baptismal Catechesis”, III, 13-19).

And so the Church includes in the prayers it recommends to be said after Mass,
one which reads: “I beseech thee, most sweet Lord Jesus, may your passion be
the virtue which strengthens, protects and defends me; your wounds, food and
drink to nourish, inebriate and delight me; your death, everlasting life for me; your
cross, my eternal glory” (”Roman Missal of St Pius V”, recommended prayer of
thanksgiving after Mass).

12. “Thus securing an eternal redemption”: the Greek text uses “having found”,
here translated as “securing”. St John Chrysostom points out that the verb “to
find” in this context has a shade of meaning that implies finding something unex-
pected: the reference is to finding, “as it were, something very unknown and very
unexpected” (”Hom. on Heb, ad loc.”). However, taking into account the whole
context and the possible Hebraic background of the expression, the verb “to find”
is synonymous with “to search keenly, to reach, to attain”: in other words, Christ
eagerly sought to redeem man and he did so by his sacrifice. The verse refers to
an “eternal” redemption, in contrast to the provisional nature of Mosaic sacrifices.

13. These words refer to a ceremony of purification described in the Old Testa-
ment (cf. Num 19). To cleanse a person from certain transgressions of the Law,
the Israelites could avail of certain expiatory ablutions. There were done with wa-
ter mixed with the ashes of a heifer, which the high priest had sacrificed in front
of the tabernacle and then burned in its entirety. Into the fire cedar-wood, hyssop
and scarlet wool (9:19) had also to be thrown. Thus lustral water was only useful
for legal purification or “purification of the flesh”, as distinct from purification of
the spirit.

14. The Messiah acts “through the eternal Spirit”, which may be taken as a refe-
rence to the Holy Spirit, as St Thomas, for example, interprets it: “Christ shed
his blood, because the Holy Spirit did so; that is to say, it was by the Spirit’s in-
fluence and prompting, that is, out of love of God and love of neighbor, that he
did what he did. For it is the Spirit who purifies” (”Commentary on Heb, ad loc.”).

Bl. John Paul II referred to this text to show the presence of the Holy Spirit in
the redemptive sacrifice of the Incarnate Word: “In the sacrifice of the Son of
Man the Holy Spirit is present and active just as he acted in Jesus’ conception,
in his coming into the world, in his hidden life and in his public ministry. Accor-
ding to the Letter to the Hebrews, on the way to his ‘departure’ through Gethse-
mani and Golgotha, the same “Jesus Christ” in his own humanity “opened him-
self totally” to this “action of the Spirit-Paraclete”, who from suffering enables
eternal salvific love to spring forth” (”Dominum et Vivificantem”, 40).

The Son of God desired that the Holy Spirit should turn his death into a perfect
sacrifice. Only Christ “in his humanity was worthy to become this sacrifice, for
“he alone” was ‘without blemish’ (Heb 9:14). But he offered it ‘through the eternal
Spirit’, which means that the Holy Spirit acted in a special way in this absolute
self-giving of the Son of Man, in order to transform this suffering into redemptive
love” (”ibid.”).

It is also possible that “the eternal Spirit” is a more general reference to the God-
head present in Christ; in which case it would be the same as saying that Christ,
being God and man, offered himself as an unblemished victim and therefore this
offering was infinitely efficacious. Thus, as Pius XII says, Christ “labored uncea-
singly by prayer and self-sacrifice for the salvation of souls until, hanging on the
Cross, he offered himself as a victim unblemished in God’s sight, that he might
purify our consciences and set them free from lifeless observances to serve the
living God. All men were thus rescued from the path of ruin and perdition and set
once more on the way to God, to whom they were now to give due glory by co-
operating personally in their sanctification, making their own the holiness that
springs from the blood of the unspotted Lamb” (”Mediator Dei”, 1).

Christ’s sacrifice purifies us completely, thereby rendering us fit to worship the li-
ving God. As St Alphonsus puts it, “Jesus Christ offered himself to God pure and
without the trace of a fault; otherwise he would not have been a worthy mediator,
would not have been capable of reconciling God and sinful man, nor would his
blood have had the power to purify and cleanse our conscience from ‘dead works’,
that is, from sins which are given that name because (our) works are in no way
meritorious or else are worthy of eternal punishment. ‘So that you might serve
the living God”’ (”Reflections on the Passion”, 9, 2).

15-22. The covenant is shown to be new because it has been ratified by the
death and by the shedding of the blood of the testator or mediator. “Man, having
fallen into sin, was in debt to divine justice and was the enemy of God. The Son
of God came into the world and clothed himself in human flesh; being both God
and man he became the mediator between man and God, the representative of
both sides, so as to restore peace between them and obtain divine grace for man,
giving himself as an offering to pay man’s debt with his blood and his death. This
reconciliation was prefigured in the Old Testament in all the sacrifices that were
offered in that period and in all the symbols which God ordained—the tabernacle,
the altar, the veil, the lampstand, the thurible and the ark where the rod of Aaron
and the tables of the Law were kept. All these were a sign and type of the Pro-
mised redemption; and it was because that redemption would come about
through the blood of Christ that God specified the blood of animals—a symbol of
the blood of the divine Lamb—and laid it down that all the symbolic objects men-
tioned above should be sprinkled with blood: ‘Hence even the first Covenant was
not ratified without blood”’ (”ibid.”, 9, 2).

For a third time Christ is stated to be the mediator of a New Covenant. Hebrews
7:22 and 8:6 say that he is the mediator of a better covenant because it can give
eternal life. Here, as in 12:24, it is explained that Christ is the mediator of a New
Covenant, ratified by blood which gives an eternal inheritance. The emphasis is
on the sacrificial aspect: Christ is the mediator insofar as he is the atoning victim
and at the same time the offerer of the sacrifice: in his sacrifice he is both priest
and victim. “Christ is priest indeed; but he is priest for us, not for himself. It is in
the name of the whole human race that he offers prayer and acts of human reli-
gious homage to his Eternal Father. He is likewise victim; but victim for us, since
he substitutes himself for guilty mankind. Now the Apostle’s exhortation, ‘Yours
is to be the same mind as Christ Jesus showed ‘ (Phil 2:5), requires all Chris-
tians, so far as human power allows, to reproduce in themselves the sentiments
that Christ had when he was offering himself in sacrifice—sentiments of humility,
of adoration, praise, and thanksgiving to the divine Majesty. It requires them also
to become victims, as it were; cultivating a spirit of self-denial according to the
precepts of the Gospel, willingly doing works of penance, detesting and expia-
ting their sins” (”Mediator Dei”, 22).

Christ’s sacrifice is not only effective to forgive our sins; it is a manifestation of
our Redeemer’s love for us and it sets an example which we should follow. “And
if God forgives us our sins it is so that we might use the time that remains to us
in his service and love. And the Apostle concludes, saying, ‘Therefore he is the
mediator of a new covenant.’ Our Redeemer, captivated by his boundless love for
us, chose to rescue us, at the cost of his blood, from eternal death; and he suc-
ceeded in doing so, for if we serve him faithfully until we die we shall obtain from
the Lord forgiveness and eternal life. Such were the terms of the testament, me-
diation or compact between Jesus Christ and God” (”Reflections on the Passion”,
9, 2).

15-17. As the RSV note points out the Greek word can be translated as either
“covenant” or “will”. The context and the parallel with the covenant of Sinai sug-
gest the idea of covenant or pact, since the covenant with the chosen people
was an unilateral pact, that is, a concession granted by God; however, it too can
also be taken in a broad sense as a “will”. Both the word “mediator” and the word
“testator” (the one who makes the will) applied here to Christ serve to emphasize
that his death needed to involve the shedding of blood. His is a death whereby we
are called to “receive the promised eternal inheritance”: “The work of our Redemp-
tion has been accomplished. We are now children of God, because Jesus has
died for us and his death has ransomed us. “Empti enim estis pretio magno!” (1
Cor 6:20), you and I have been bought at a great price.

“We must bring into our life, to make them our own, the life and death of Chri
We must die through mortification and penance, so that Christ may live in us
through Love. And then follow in the footsteps of Christ, with a zeal to co-redeem
all mankind” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way of the Cross”, XIV).

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Mark 14:12-16; 22-26

Preparations for the Last Supper

[12] And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover
lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to
eat the passover?” [13] And he sent two of his disciples, and said to them, “Go
into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him, [14] and
wherever he enters, say to the householder, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my
guest room, where I am to eat the passover with my disciples?’ [15] And he will
show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.” [16]
And the disciples set out and went to the city, and found it as he had told them;
and they prepared the passover.

The institution of the Eucharist

[22] And as they were eating, he took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave
it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” [23] And he took a cup, and when
he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. [24] And he said
to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. [25]
Truly, I say to you, I shall not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day
when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

[26] And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

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Commentary:

12-16. At first sight our Lordâ€™s behaviour described here seems quite out of char-
acter. However, if we think about it, it is quite consistent: probably Jesus wanted
to avoid Judas knowing in advance the exact place where the Supper will be held,
to prevent him notifying the Sanhedrin. And so Godâ€™s plans for that memorable
night of Holy Thursday were fulfilled: Judas was unable to advise the Sanhedrin
where they could find Jesus until after the celebration of the passover meal (dur-
ing which Judas left the Cenacle): cf. Jn 13:30.

St Mark describes in more detail than the other evangelists the place where the
meal took place: he says it was a large, well-appointed room — a dignified place.
There is an ancient Christian tradition that the house of the Cenacle was owned
by Mary the mother of St Mark, to whom, it seems, the Garden of Olives also
belonged.

22. The word “thisâ€ does not refer to the act of breaking the bread but to the
“thingâ€ which Jesus gives his disciples, that is, something which looked like
bread and which was no longer bread but the body of Christ. “This is my body.
That is to say, what I am giving you now and what you are taking is my body.
For the bread is not only a symbol of the body of Christ; it becomes his very bo-
dy, as the Lord has said: the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is
my flesh. Therefore, the Lord conserves the appearances of bread and wine but
changes the bread and wine into the reality of his flesh and his bloodâ€ (Theophy-
lact, “Enarratio in Evangelium Marci”, in loc.). Therefore, any interpretation in
the direction of symbolism or metaphor does not fit the meaning of the text. The
same applies to the “This is my bloodâ€ (v. 24). On the realism of these expres-
sions, see the first part of the note on Mt 26:26-29.

24. The words of consecration of the chalice clearly show that the Eucharist is a
sacrifice: the blood of Christ is poured out, sealing the new and definitive Cove-
nant of God with men. This Covenant remains sealed forever by the sacrifice of
Christ on the cross, in which Jesus is both Priest and Victim. The Church has
defined this truth in these words: “If anyone says that in the Mass a true and
proper sacrifice is not offered to God, or that to be offered is nothing else but that
Christ is given us to eat, let him be anathemaâ€ (Council of Trent, “De S. Missae
sacrificio”, chap. 1, can. 1).

These words pronounced over the chalice must have been very revealing for the
apostles, because they show that the sacrifices of the Old Covenant were in fact
a preparation for and anticipation of Christâ€™s sacrifice. The apostles were able to
grasp that the Covenant of Sinai and the various sacrifices of the temple were
merely an imperfect pre-figurement of the definitive sacrifice and definitive Cove-
nant, which would take place on the cross and which they were anticipating in
this Supper.

A clear explanation of the sacrificial character of the Eucharist can be found in
the inspired text in chapters 8 and 9 of the Letter to the Hebrews. Similarly, the
best preparation for understanding the real presence and the Eucharist as food
for the soul is a reading of chapter 6 of the Gospel of St John.

At the Last Supper, then, Christ already offered himself voluntarily to his Father
as a victim to be sacrificed. The Supper and the Mass constitute with the cross
one and the same unique and perfect sacrifice, for in all these cases the victim
offered is the same — Christ; and the priest is the same — Christ. The only differ-
ence is that the Supper, which takes place prior to the cross, anticipates the
Lordâ€™s death in an unbloody way and offers a victim soon to be immolated; where-
as the Mass offers, also in an unbloody manner, the victim already immolated on
the cross, a victim who exists forever in heaven.

25. After instituting the Holy Eucharist, our Lord extends the Last Supper in inti-
mate conversation with his disciples, speaking to them once more about his im-
minent death (cf. Jn, chaps. 13-17). His farewell saddens the apostles, but he
promises that the day will come when he will meet with them again, when the
Kingdom of God will have come in all its fullness: he is referring to the beatific
life in heaven, so often compared to a banquet. Then there will be no need of
earthly food or drink; instead there will be a new wine (cf. Is 25:6). Definitively,
after the resurrection, the apostles and all the saints will be able to share the de-
light of being with Jesus.

The fact that St Mark brings in these words after the institution of the Eucharist
indicates in some way that the Eucharist is an anticipation here on earth of pos-
session of God in eternal blessedness, where God will be everything to everyone
(cf. 1 Cor 15:28). “At the Last Supper,â€ Vatican II teaches, “on the night he was
betrayed, our Saviour instituted the eucharistic sacrifice of his body and blood.
This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout the ages
until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved Spouse, the Church,
a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a
bond of charity, a paschal banquet in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled
with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to usâ€ (”Sacrosanctum Concilium”,
47).

26. “When they had sung a hymnâ€ : it was a custom at the passover meal to re-
cite prayers, called “Hallelâ€ , which included Psalms 113 to 118; the last part was
recited at the end of the meal.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: White.

First reading	Exodus 24:3-8 ©

This is the blood of the Covenant that the Lord has made with you

Moses went and told the people all the commands of the Lord and all the ordinances. In answer, all the people said with one voice, ‘We will observe all the commands that the Lord has decreed.’ Moses put all the commands of the Lord into writing, and early next morning he built an altar at the foot of the mountain, with twelve standing-stones for the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he directed certain young Israelites to offer holocausts and to immolate bullocks to the Lord as communion sacrifices. Half of the blood Moses took up and put into basins, the other half he cast on the altar. And taking the Book of the Covenant he read it to the listening people, and they said, ‘We will observe all that the Lord has decreed; we will obey.’ Then Moses took the blood and cast it towards the people. This’ he said ‘is the blood of the Covenant that the Lord has made with you, containing all these rules.’

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 115(116):12-13,15-18 ©

The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the Lord’s name.

How can I repay the Lord

for his goodness to me?

The cup of salvation I will raise;

I will call on the Lord’s name.

The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the Lord’s name.

O precious in the eyes of the Lord

is the death of his faithful.

Your servant, Lord, your servant am I;

you have loosened my bonds.

The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the Lord’s name.

A thanksgiving sacrifice I make;

I will call on the Lord’s name.

My vows to the Lord I will fulfil

before all his people.

The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the Lord’s name.

Second reading	Hebrews 9:11-15 ©

The blood of Christ can purify our inner self

Now Christ has come, as the high priest of all the blessings which were to come. He has passed through the greater, the more perfect tent, which is better than the one made by men’s hands because it is not of this created order; and he has entered the sanctuary once and for all, taking with him not the blood of goats and bull calves, but his own blood, having won an eternal redemption for us. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer are sprinkled on those who have incurred defilement and they restore the holiness of their outward lives; how much more effectively the blood of Christ, who offered himself as the perfect sacrifice to God through the eternal Spirit, can purify our inner self from dead actions so that we do our service to the living God.

He brings a new covenant, as the mediator, only so that the people who were called to an eternal inheritance may actually receive what was promised: his death took place to cancel the sins that infringed the earlier covenant.

Sequence

The Sequence may be said or sung in full, or using the shorter form indicated by the asterisked verses.

Sing forth, O Zion, sweetly sing

The praises of thy Shepherd-King,

In hymns and canticles divine;

Dare all thou canst, thou hast no song

Worthy his praises to prolong,

So far surpassing powers like thine.

Today no theme of common praise

Forms the sweet burden of thy lays –

The living, life-dispensing food –

That food which at the sacred board

Unto the brethren twelve our Lord

His parting legacy bestowed.

Then be the anthem clear and strong,

Thy fullest note, thy sweetest song,

The very music of the breast:

For now shines forth the day sublime

That brings remembrance of the time

When Jesus first his table blessed.

Within our new King’s banquet-hall

They meet to keep the festival

That closed the ancient paschal rite:

The old is by the new replaced;

The substance hath the shadow chased;

And rising day dispels the night.

Christ willed what he himself had done

Should be renewed while time should run,

In memory of his parting hour:

Thus, tutored in his school divine,

We consecrate the bread and wine;

And lo – a Host of saving power.

This faith to Christian men is given –

Bread is made flesh by words from heaven:

Into his blood the wine is turned:

What though it baffles nature’s powers

Of sense and sight? This faith of ours

Proves more than nature e’er discerned.

Concealed beneath the two-fold sign,

Meet symbols of the gifts divine,

There lie the mysteries adored:

The living body is our food;

Our drink the ever-precious blood;

In each, one undivided Lord.

Not he that eateth it divides

The sacred food, which whole abides

Unbroken still, nor knows decay;

Be one, or be a thousand fed,

They eat alike that living bread

Which, still received, ne’er wastes away.

The good, the guilty share therein,

With sure increase of grace or sin,

The ghostly life, or ghostly death:

Death to the guilty; to the good

Immortal life. See how one food

Man’s joy or woe accomplisheth.

We break the Sacrament, but bold

And firm thy faith shall keep its hold,

Deem not the whole doth more enfold

Than in the fractured part resides

Deem not that Christ doth broken lie,

’Tis but the sign that meets the eye,

The hidden deep reality

In all its fullness still abides.

– – – – – –

*Behold the bread of angels, sent

For pilgrims in their banishment,

The bread for God’s true children meant,

That may not unto dogs be given:

Oft in the olden types foreshowed;

In Isaac on the altar bowed,

And in the ancient paschal food,

And in the manna sent from heaven.

*Come then, good shepherd, bread divine,

Still show to us thy mercy sign;

Oh, feed us still, still keep us thine;

So may we see thy glories shine

In fields of immortality;

*O thou, the wisest, mightiest, best,

Our present food, our future rest,

Come, make us each thy chosen guest,

Co-heirs of thine, and comrades blest

With saints whose dwelling is with thee.

Amen. Alleluia.

Gospel Acclamation	Jn6:51

Alleluia, alleluia!

I am the living bread which has come down from heaven,

says the Lord.

Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.

Alleluia!

Gospel
Mark 14:12-16,22-26 ©

This is my body; this is my blood

On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was sacrificed, his disciples said to Jesus, ‘Where do you want us to go and make the preparations for you to eat the passover?’ So he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the city and you will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him, and say to the owner of the house which he enters, “The Master says: Where is my dining room in which I can eat the passover with my disciples?” He will show you a large upper room furnished with couches, all prepared. Make the preparations for us there.’ The disciples set out and went to the city and found everything as he had told them, and prepared the Passover.

And as they were eating he took some bread, and when he had said the blessing he broke it and gave it to them. ‘Take it,’ he said ‘this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and when he had returned thanks he gave it to them, and all drank from it, and he said to them, ‘This is my blood, the blood of the covenant, which is to be poured out for many. I tell you solemnly, I shall not drink any more wine until the day I drink the new wine in the kingdom of God.’

After psalms had been sung they left for the Mount of Olives.

Mark
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Mark 14
12.	Now on the first day of the unleavened bread, when they sacrificed the pasch, the disciples say to him: Whither wilt thou that we go, and prepare for thee to eat the pasch?	et primo die azymorum quando pascha immolabant dicunt ei discipuli quo vis eamus et paremus tibi ut manduces pascha	και τη πρωτη ημερα των αζυμων οτε το πασχα εθυον λεγουσιν αυτω οι μαθηται αυτου που θελεις απελθοντες ετοιμασωμεν ινα φαγης το πασχα
13.	And he sendeth two of his disciples, and saith to them: Go ye into the city; and there shall meet you a man carrying a pitcher of water, follow him;	et mittit duos ex discipulis suis et dicit eis ite in civitatem et occurret vobis homo laguenam aquae baiulans sequimini eum	και αποστελλει δυο των μαθητων αυτου και λεγει αυτοις υπαγετε εις την πολιν και απαντησει υμιν ανθρωπος κεραμιον υδατος βασταζων ακολουθησατε αυτω
14.	And whithersoever he shall go in, say to the master of the house, The master saith, Where is my refectory, where I may eat the pasch with my disciples?	et quocumque introierit dicite domino domus quia magister dicit ubi est refectio mea ubi pascha cum discipulis meis manducem	και οπου εαν εισελθη ειπατε τω οικοδεσποτη οτι ο διδασκαλος λεγει που εστιν το καταλυμα οπου το πασχα μετα των μαθητων μου φαγω
15.	And he will shew you a large dining room furnished; and there prepare ye for us.	et ipse vobis demonstrabit cenaculum grande stratum et illic parate nobis	και αυτος υμιν δειξει ανωγεον μεγα εστρωμενον ετοιμον εκει ετοιμασατε ημιν
16.	And his disciples went their way, and came into the city; and they found as he had told them, and they prepared the pasch.	et abierunt discipuli eius et venerunt in civitatem et invenerunt sicut dixerat illis et praeparaverunt pascha	και εξηλθον οι μαθηται αυτου και ηλθον εις την πολιν και ευρον καθως ειπεν αυτοις και ητοιμασαν το πασχα
[...]
22.	And whilst they were eating, Jesus took bread; and blessing, broke, and gave to them, and said: Take ye. This is my body.	et manducantibus illis accepit Iesus panem et benedicens fregit et dedit eis et ait sumite hoc est corpus meum	και εσθιοντων αυτων λαβων ο ιησους αρτον ευλογησας εκλασεν και εδωκεν αυτοις και ειπεν λαβετε φαγετε τουτο εστιν το σωμα μου
23.	And having taken the chalice, giving thanks, he gave it to them. And they all drank of it.	et accepto calice gratias agens dedit eis et biberunt ex illo omnes	και λαβων το ποτηριον ευχαριστησας εδωκεν αυτοις και επιον εξ αυτου παντες
24.	And he said to them: This is my blood of the new testament, which shall be shed for many.	et ait illis hic est sanguis meus novi testamenti qui pro multis effunditur	και ειπεν αυτοις τουτο εστιν το αιμα μου το της καινης διαθηκης το περι πολλων εκχυνομενον
25.	Amen I say to you, that I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day when I shall drink it new in the kingdom of God.	amen dico vobis quod iam non bibam de genimine vitis usque in diem illum cum illud bibam novum in regno Dei	αμην λεγω υμιν οτι ουκετι ου μη πιω εκ του γεννηματος της αμπελου εως της ημερας εκεινης οταν αυτο πινω καινον εν τη βασιλεια του θεου
26.	And when they had said an hymn, they went forth to the mount of Olives.	et hymno dicto exierunt in montem Olivarum	και υμνησαντες εξηλθον εις το ορος των ελαιων

12. And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the Passover, his disciples said to him Where will you that we go and prepare that you may eat the Passover?
13. And he sent forth two of his disciples, and said to them, Go you into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him.
14. And wherever he shall go in, say you to the good man of the house, The Master said; Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples?
15. And he will show you a large upper room furnished and prepared: there make ready for us.
16. And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said to them: and they made ready the Passover.

CHRYS. Whilst Judas was plotting how to betray Him, the rest of the disciples were taking care of the preparation of the Passover: wherefore it is said, And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the Passover, his disciples said to him, Where will you that we go and prepare where you may eat the Passover.

BEDE; He means by the first day of the Passover the fourteenth day of the first month, when they threw aside leaven, and were wont to sacrifice, that is, to kill the lamb at even. The Apostle explaining this says, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us. For although He was crucified on the next day, that is, on the fifteenth moon, yet on the night when the lamb was offered up, He committed to His disciples the mysteries of His Body and Blood, which they were to celebrate, and was seized upon and bound by the Jews; thus He consecrated the beginning of His sacrifice, that is, of His Passion.

PSEUDO-JEROME; But the unleavened bread which was eaten with bitterness, that is with bitter herbs, is our redemption, and the bitterness is the Passion of our Lord.

THEOPHYL. From the words of the disciples, Where will you that we go? it seems evident that Christ had no dwelling-place, and that the disciples had no houses of their own; for if so, they would have taken Him thither.

PSEUDO-JEROME; For they say, Where will you that we go? to show us that we should direct our steps according to the will of God. But the Lord points out with whom He would eat the Passover, and after l His custom He sends two disciples, which we have explained above; wherefore it goes on, And he sent forth two of his disciples, and he said to them, Go you into the city.

THEOPHYL. He sends two of His disciples, that is, Peter and John, as Luke says, to a man unknown to Him, implying by this that He might, if He had pleased, have avoided His Passion. For what could not He work in other men, who influenced the mind of a person unknown to Him, so that he received them? He also gives them a sign how they were to know the house, when He adds, And there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water.

AUG. Mark says a pitcher, Luke a two-handled vessel; one points out the kind of vessel, the other the mode of carrying it; both however mean the same truth.

BEDE; And it is a proof of the presence of His divinity, that in speaking with His disciples,

He knows what is to take place elsewhere; wherefore it follows, And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said to them; and they made ready the Passover.

CHRYS. Not our Passover, but in the meanwhile that of the Jews; but He did not only appoint ours, but Himself became our Passover. Why too did He eat it? Because He was made under the Law, to redeem them that were under the Law, and Himself give rest to the Law. And lest any one should say that He did away with it, because He could not fulfill its hard and difficult obedience, He first Himself fulfilled it, and then set it to rest.

PSEUDO-JEROME. And in a mystical sense the city is the Church, surrounded by the wall of faith, the man who meets them is the primitive people, the pitcher of water is the law of the letter.

BEDE; Or else, the water is the layer of grace, the pitcher points out the weakness of those who were to show that grace to the world.

THEOPHYL. He who is baptized carries the pitcher of water, and he who bears baptism upon him comes to his rest, if he lives according to his reason; and he obtains rest, as being in the house. Wherefore it is added, Follow him.

PSEUDO-JEROME; That is, him who leads to the lofty place, where is the refreshment prepared by Christ. The lord of the house is the Apostle Peter, to whom the Lord has entrusted His house; that there may be one faith under one Shepherd. The large upper-room is the wide-spread Church, in which the name of the Lord is spoken of, prepared by a variety of powers and tongues.

BEDE; Or else, the large upper-room is spiritually the Law, which comes forth from the narrowness of the letter, and in a lofty place, that is, in the lofty chamber of the soul, receives the Savior. But it is designedly that the names both of the bearer of the water, and of the lord of the house, are omitted, to imply that power is given to all who wish to celebrate the true Passover, that is, to be embued with the sacraments of Christ, and to receive Him in the dwelling-place of their mind.

THEOPHYL. Or else, the lord of the house is the intellect, which points out the large upper room, that is, the loftiness of intelligences, and which, though it be high, yet has nothing of vain glory, or of pride, but is prepared and made level by humility. But there, that is, in such a mind Christ's Passover is prepared by Peter and John, that is by action and contemplation.

22. And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.
23. And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.
24. And he said to them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.
25. Verily I say to you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.

BEDE; When the rites of the old Passover were finished, He passed to the new, in order, that is, to substitute the Sacrament of His own Body and Blood, for the flesh and blood of the lamb. Wherefore there follows: And as they did eat, Jesus took bread; that is, in order to show that He Himself is that person to whom the Lord swore, You are a Priest for ever after the order of Melchizedec. There follows: And blessed, and broke it.

THEOPHYL. That is, giving thanks, He broke it, which we also do, with the addition of some prayers.

BEDE; He Himself also breaks the bread, which He gives to His disciples, to show that the breaking of His Body was to take place, not against His will, nor without His intervention; He also blessed it, because He with the Father and the Holy Spirit filled His human nature, which He took upon Him in order to suffer, with the grace of Divine power. He blessed bread and brake it, because He deigned to subject to death His manhood, which He had taken upon Him, in such a way as to show that there was within it the power of Divine immortality, and to teach them that therefore He would the more quickly raise it from the dead. There follows: And gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.

THEOPHYL. That, namely, which I now give and which you take. But the bread is not a mere figure of the Body of Christ, but is changed into the very Body of Christ. For the Lord said, The bread which I give you is my flesh. But the flesh of Christ is veiled from our eyes on account of our weakness, for bread and wine are things to which we are accustomed, if however we saw flesh and blood we could not bear to take them. For this reason the Lord bending Himself to our weakness keeps the forms of bread and wine, but changes the bread and wine into the reality of His Body and Blood.

CHRYS. Even now also that Christ is close to us; He who prepared that table, Himself also consecrates it. For it is not man who makes the offerings to be the Body and Blood of Christ, but Christ who was crucified for us. The words are spoken by the mouth of the Priest, and are consecrated by the power and the grace of God. By this word which He spoke, This is my body, the offerings are consecrated; and as that word which says, Increase and multiply, and fill the earth, was sent forth but once, yet has its effect throughout all time, when nature does the work of generation; so also that voice was spoken once, yet gives confirmation to the sacrifice through all the tables of the Church even to this day, even to His advent.

PSEUDO-JEROME; But in a mystical sense, the Lord transfigures into bread His body, which is the present Church, which is received in faith, is blessed in its number, is broken in its sufferings, is given in its examples, is taken in its doctrines; and He forms His Blood in the chalice of water and wine mingled together, that by one we may be purged from our sins, by the other redeemed from their punishment. For by the blood of the lamb our houses are preserved from the smiting of the Angel, and our enemies perish in the waters of the Red sea, which are the sacraments of the Church of Christ. Wherefore it goes on: And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them. For we are saved by the grace of the Lord, not by our own deserts.

GREG. When His Passion was approaching, He is said to have taken bread and given thanks. He therefore gave thanks, who took upon Him the stripes of other men's wickedness; He who did nothing worthy of smiting, humbly gives a blessing in His Passion, to show us, what each should do when beaten for his own sins, since He Himself bore calmly the stripes due to the sin of others; furthermore to show us, what we who are the subjects of the Father should do under correction, when He who is His equal gave thanks under the lash.

BEDE; The wine of the Lord's cup is mixed with water, because we should remain in Christ and Christ in us. For on the testimony of John, the waters are the people, and it is not lawful for any one to offer either wine alone, or water alone, lest such an oblation should mean that the head may be severed from the members, and either that Christ could suffer without love for our redemption, and that we can be saved or be offered to the Father without His Passion. It goes on: And they all drank of it.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Happy intoxication, saving fullness, which the more we drink gives the greater sobriety of mind!

THEOPHYL. Some say that Judas did not partake in these mysteries, but that he went out before the Lord gave the Sacrament. Some again say that He gave him also of that Sacrament.

CHRYS. For Christ offered His blood to him who betrayed Him, that he might have remission of his' sins, if he had chosen to cease to be wicked.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Judas therefore drinks and is not satisfied, nor can he quench the thirst of the everlasting fire, because he unworthily partakes of the mysteries of Christ. There are some in the Church whom the sacrifice does not cleanse, but their foolish thought draws them on to sin, for they have plunged themselves in the stinking slough of cruelty.

CHRYS. Let there not be therefore a Judas at the table of the Lord; this sacrifice is spiritual food, for as bodily food, working on a belly filled with humors which are opposed to it, is hurtful, so this spiritual food if taken by one polluted with wickedness, rather brings him to perdition, not by its own nature, but through the fault of the recipient. Let therefore our mind be pure in all things, and our thought pure, for that sacrifice is pure. There follows: And he said to them, This is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many.

BEDE; This refers to the different circumstances of the Old Testament, which was consecrated by the blood of calves and of goats; and the lawgiver said in sprinkling it, This is the blood of the Testament which God has enjoined to you. It goes on: Which is shed for many.

PSEUDO-JEROME; For it does not cleanse all. It goes on: Verily I say to you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.

THEOPHYL. As if He had said, I will not drink wine until the resurrection; for He calls His resurrection the kingdom, as He then reigned over death. But after His resurrection He ate and drank with His disciples, showing that it was He Himself who had suffered. But He drank it new, that is, in a new and strange manner, for He had not a body subject to suffering, and requiring food, but immortal and incorruptible. We may also understand it in this way. The vine is the Lord Himself, by the offspring of the vine is meant mysteries, and the secret understanding, which He Himself begets, who teaches man knowledge. But in the kingdom of God, that is, in the world to come, He will drink with His disciples mysteries and knowledge, teaching us new things, and revealing what He now hides.

BEDE; Or else, Isaiah testifies that the synagogue is called the vine or the vineyard of the Lord, saying, The vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel. The Lord therefore when about to go to His Passion, says, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, as if He had said openly, I will no longer delight in the carnal rites of the synagogue, in which also these rites of the Paschal Lamb have held the chief place. For the time of my resurrection shall come, that day shall come, when in the kingdom of heaven, that is, raised on high with the glory of immortal life, I will be filled with a new joy, together with you, for the salvation of the same people born again of the fountain of spiritual grace.

PSEUDO-JEROME; But we must consider that here the Lord changes the sacrifice without changing the time; so that we never celebrate the Caena Domini before the fourteenth moon. He who celebrates the resurrection on the fourteenth moon, will celebrate the Caena Domini on the eleventh moon, which was never done in either Old or New Testament.

26. And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.

THEOPHYL. As they returned thanks, before they drank, so they return thanks after drinking; wherefore it is said, And when they had sung a hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives, to teach us to return thanks both before and after our food.

PSEUDO-JEROME; For by a hymn he means the praise of the Lord, as is said in the Psalms, The poor shall eat and be satisfied; they that seek after the Lord shall praise him. And again, All such as be fat upon earth have eaten and worshipped.

THEOPHYL. He also shows by this that He was glad to die for us, because when about to be betrayed, He deigned to praise God. He also teaches us when we fall into troubles for the sake of the salvation of many, not to be sad, but to give thanks to God, who through our distress works the salvation of many.

BEDE; That hymn in the Gospel of John may also be meant, which the Lord sang, returning thanks to the Father, in which also He prayed, raising His eyes to heaven, for Himself and His disciples, and those who were to believe, through their word.

THEOPHYL. Again, He went out into a mountain, that they might come to Him in a lonely place, and take Him without tumult. For if they had come to Him, whilst He was abiding in the city, the multitude of the people would have been in an uproar, and then His enemies, who took occasion against Him, should seem to have slain Him justly, because He stirred up the people.

BEDE; Beautifully also does the Lord lead out His disciples, when they had tasted His Sacraments, into the mount of Olives, to show typically that we ought through the reception of the Sacraments to rise up to higher gifts of virtue, and graces of the Holy Ghost, that we may be anointed in heart.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Jesus also is held captive on the mount of Olives, whence He ascended to heaven, that we may know, that we ascend into heaven from that place in which we watch and pray; there we are bound and do not tend back again to earth.

Catena Aurea Mark 14

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June 3, 2018

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

Reading 1 Ex 24:3-8

Responsorial Psalm Ps 116:12-13, 15-16, 17-18

Reading 2 Heb 9:11-15

Sequence

Alleluia Jn 6:51

Gospel Mk 14:12-16, 22-26

Readings at Mass