Thursday, May 30 is the Feast of Corpus Christ. Although we celebrate the institution of the Holy Eucharist on Holy Thursday, that is also the day on which the Sacred Triduum begins, and so our thoughts are directed primarily toward Our Lord’s Passion, which commences that evening. Therefore, the Church, in her wisdom, provided for us a day that is devoted entirely to giving honor and praise to Our Lord Jesus Christ as He is present in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. Let us, therefore, prepare ourselves for this great feast day by making a greater effort to banish distractions from our minds, and renew our fervor towards Our Lord each time we approach Him in Holy Communion.

On June 2, the Sunday following the Feast of Corpus Christi, the Holy Father has requested an international Holy Hour to be done in every parish of every diocese. This Holy Hour will occur at 8:00am Phoenix time, and so we will have it here at Mater Misericordiae Mission the hour before the 9:00am Mass. We will begin with Exposition at 8:00 and have Benediction at about 8:50. We will also celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi on this Sunday and so will have the Procession with the Blessed Sacrament for Corpus Christi that day after the 11:00am High Mass.

Fr. Faber’s Commentary on the Feast of Corpus Christi

“Jesus veiled, in His own great mystery of love, offered by our priests, dwelling on our altars, feeding our souls,—this is the sacred and venerable truth which we are now about to con­sider. The wisdom of the Cherubim cannot fathom the depths of this adorable Sacrament, neither can the burning love of the Seraphim adequately praise the inventions of compassion which are contained therein. Nevertheless it is our duty as well as our privilege to look into this mystery. It is our daily Sacrifice, and our perpetual Food, and our constant adoration: and the more we know of it the greater will be our love of that most dear Lord whose veiled Presence we possess therein.” Read More…

On May 19, Pentecost Sunday, we had First Holy Communion and the Sacrament of Confirmation, administered by Bishop Olmsted, for those who had been prepared to receive them.

The Church’s teaching on Confirmation

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
1287 This fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah’s, but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people. On several occasions Christ promised this outpouring of the Spirit, a promise which he fulfilled first on Easter Sunday and then more strikingly at Pentecost. Filled with the Holy Spirit the apostles began to proclaim “the mighty works of God,” and Peter declared this outpouring of the Spirit to be the sign of the messianic age. Those who believed in the apostolic preaching and were baptized received the gift of the Holy Spirit in their turn.
1288 “From that time on the apostles, in fulfillment of Christ’s will, imparted to the newly baptized by the laying on of hands the gift of the Spirit that completes the grace of Baptism. For this reason in the Letter to the Hebrews the doctrine concerning Baptism and the laying on of hands is listed among the first elements of Christian instruction. The imposition of hands is rightly recognized by the Catholic tradition as the origin of the sacrament of Confirmation, which in a certain way perpetuates the grace of Pentecost in the Church.”

From the Catechism of the Council of Trent:
Since, then, by the grace of Baptism we are begotten unto newness of life, whereas by that of Confirmation we grow to full maturity, having put away the things of a child, we can sufficiently understand that the same difference that exists in the natural life between birth and growth exists also between Baptism, which regenerates, and Confirmation, by virtue of which growth and perfect spiritual strength are imparted to the faithful. Besides, as there should be a new and distinct kind of Sacrament when the soul has to encounter any new difficulty, it may easily be perceived that as we require the grace of Baptism to form the mind unto faith, so is it also of the utmost advantage that the souls of the faithful be strengthened by a different grace, to the end that they be deterred by no danger, or fear of pains, tortures or death, from the confession of the true faith. This, then, being accomplished by the sacred chrism of Confirmation, it is hence clearly inferred, that the nature of this Sacrament is different from Baptism. Hence Pope Melchiades accurately evolves the difference between them, writing as follows: In Baptism man is enlisted into the service, in Confirmation he is equipped for battle; at the baptismal font the Holy Ghost imparts fullness to accomplish innocence, but in Confirmation he ministers perfection to grace; in Baptism we are regenerated unto life, after Baptism we are fortified for the combat; in Baptism we are cleansed, after Baptism we are strengthened; regeneration of itself saves those who receive Baptism in time of peace, Confirmation arms and makes ready for conflicts.