DEUTERONOMY 8:2-3, 14B-16A | 1 CORINTHIANS 10:16-17 | JOHN 6:51-58
“As regards the Eucharist, give thanks in this manner. First for the cup. We thank you, our Father, for the holy vine of David, your servant, which you have made known to us through Jesus, your servant. Glory be to you forever. And for the broken bread. We thank you, our Father, for the life and knowledge which you have made known to us through Jesus, your servant. Glory be to you forever. As this bread that is broken was scattered upon the mountains, and gathered together, and became one, so let your Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into your kingdom: for yours is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ forever.”
This quote is from a first-second century document, “The Didache.” It’s a handbook written by an anonymous Christian Community before the composition of the four gospels but after Paul wrote his letters to the Christian communities. It gives instructions for living the Christian life and directions for baptizing and celebrating the Eucharist. This passage I’ve quoted gives the words of blessing for the bread and wine. It’s certainly different from the ritual we celebrate today. It consists of three prayers of thanksgiving: thanks for the cup, thanks for the broken bread, and finally a prayer of thanks for all who share the bread.
The prayer recognizes Jesus as the holy vine of David, the messianic king, inaugurating the kingdom through the life and knowledge he brought from the Father. The bread, broken and shared, celebrates the community’s participation in Christ’s life of selfgiving.
The early vision of the eucharistic gathering that the passage from the Didache provides, can, I believe, help enrich our present experience of the Sunday gathering. It stresses the unity of those gathered. As the blessing reminds us, wheat was gathered and made into one loaf. So, we pray that the community will unite so profoundly that it will become the one body of Christ. The breaking and sharing of the bread symbolizes Christ’s breaking and sharing of himself and invites our participation in his unconditional love.
We may forget, sometimes, that the Eucharist speaks prophetically. When we pray that we become one body – the body of Christ – we should be aware that we are being challenged to live the unity that we celebrate. In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian he admonished the community for dividing into factions. He asked them, “Can Christ be divided?”
It’s more important than ever for Christians to heed the prophetic call for unity. The world we live in is suffering so profoundly because of its disharmony and disunity. The Eucharist we celebrate compels all true followers of Christ to plant the seeds of unity in a disunited world by the way they live and interact. This is no easy task. That’s why Jesus warned us, “You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
As we celebrate the Feast of the Body of Christ today, let’s lift up the Didache’s prayer consecrating the bread and the community. Let’s commit to Christ’s call break and share the bread of unity. “As this bread that is broken was scattered upon the mountains, and gathered together, and became one, so let your Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into your kingdom.”
