Corpus Christi is one of the great feasts of the Church. Since it is too big for just one day, it once had a Privileged Octave of the 2nd Order. This meant that unless there was a 1st class feast, this feast day Mass would be offered each day and a lesser feast commemorated. Should a 1st class feast occur, then Corpus Christi would be commemorated. Imagine a whole week to focus solely on Our Lord’s gift of Himself in the Most Blessed Sacrament!
“Corpus Christi” literally means “Body of Christ.” There is a separate traditional feast of the Most Precious Blood of Christ on July 1 which focuses on the Our Lord’s Passion and Death in which He shed every drop of His Precious Blood for us.
When Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque and asked for the institution of the feast of the Sacred Heart, He explicitly stated that it be on the Friday immediately after the Octave of Corpus Christi. This gives us a whole week to meditate on the Real Presence and increase Eucharistic devotion, flowing into the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus the next day: the Real Presence of Our Lord in our churches burning with love for us. He could have ascended into heaven and left us alone. Instead He gave us the Most Blessed Sacrament to show His immense love for us. He is waiting for us in every parish church and chapel!
Another interesting fact is that St Thomas Aquinas wrote the Mass and Office for the Feast of Corpus Christi! Our Benediction hymns O Salutaris Hostia and Tantum Ergo come from longer hymns written by him for this feast: Verbum Supernum Prodiens for Lauds and Pange Lingua for Vespers. He also wrote Panis Angelicus (from Sacris Solemniis chant for the procession) and O Sacrum Convivium (Antiphon for the Magnificat at Vespers). The Angelic Doctor put the fruit of his meditations into these great Eucharistic hymns!
Ideas of how to celebrate the Octave of Corpus Christi:
Make a visit to Our Lord in a church each day
Pray a Holy Hour each day in church
Read The Liturgical Year #10 by Dom Gueranger for
each day in the Octave
Attend a public Holy Hour
Spend a Holy Hour at an Adoration chapel
Organize a simple procession around your property
Ask your pastor to have a procession at church
Sing Eucharistic hymns
Learn a new Eucharistic hymn
Meditate on the hymns O Salutaris Hostia and Tantum
Ergo in English
Sing or pray the Lauda Sion Sequence
Meditate on the Sequence
Read/pray/meditate on the Divine Office Hours for Corpus
Christi
Learn one of the hymns that St Thomas Aquinas wrote for this
feast
Pray a Novena to the Sacred Heart in preparation for the
upcoming feast on June 12
Efficacious
Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
I. O my Jesus, Thou hast said: 'Truly
I say to thee, ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it
shall be opened to you. ' Behold I knock, I seek and ask for the grace that. .
. (the Visitation Sisters are open to the idea of the Benedictines of
Mary, Queen of Apostles buying their property.)
Our
Father. . . Hail Mary . . . Glory Be to the Father. . .
Sacred
Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee.
II. O my Jesus, Thou hast said: 'Truly
I say to thee, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to
thee. ' Behold, in Thy name, I ask the Father for the grace that . . . (the
Bishop is agreeable to the change and will provide the Sisters with priestly
TLM coverage.there)
Our
Father. . . Hail Mary . . . Glory Be to the Father. . .
Sacred
Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee.
III. O my Jesus, Thou hast said:
'Truly I say to thee, heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not
pass away. ' Encouraged by Thy infallible words I now ask for the grace that. .
.( all that is needed will be supplied for this move, i.e. funds, Sisters,
helpers, etc.)
Our
Father. . . Hail Mary . . . Glory Be to the Father. . .
Sacred
Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee.
O
Sacred Heart of Jesus,
for whom it is impossible not to have compassion on the afflicted, have pity on
us miserable sinners and grant us the grace which we ask of Thee, through the
Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, Thy tender Mother and ours.
Say the Hail, Holy Queen and add: St. Joseph, foster father
of Jesus, pray for us.
-- St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
Padre
Pio recited this novena every day for all those who requested his prayers.
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