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Pope Francis celebrated Mass in his cathedral, St. John Lateran, for the feast of Corpus Christi on June 2, 2024. After Mass, the Eucharist was processed to St. Mary Major. On the steps of that basilica, the Pope gave solemn benediction.
The Holy Father did not participate in the walk between the two cathedrals, but gave the blessing at the end.
In his homily at St. John Lateran, the Pope reflected on three aspects of the Mystery: thanksgiving, remembrance, and presence.
The full text is below. (This version was published before the official Vatican translation was released, which is now available here).
Pope Francis' homily
“He took bread and blessed it” (Mk 14:22). In this way, Saint Mark’s Gospel begins the
account of the institution of the Eucharist. Starting, then, from this gesture of Jesus blessing bread, we can reflect on three aspects of the mystery we are celebrating: thanksgiving, remembrance, and presence.
First, thanksgiving. Indeed, the word “Eucharist” means “thanks”: “giving thanks” to God for his gifts. Thus, the sign of bread is important, for it is the food of daily life, and with it we bring to the altar all that we are and all that we have: our lives, work, successes, and failures too. This is symbolized in some cultures by the beautiful custom of picking up and kissing bread if it falls to the ground, in order to remind us that it is too precious to be thrown away, even after it has fallen.
The Eucharist, then, teaches us always to bless, welcome, and cherish God’s gifts as an act of thanksgiving; not only in celebration, but also in daily life. How are we to do this? An example would be not squandering the possessions and talents the Lord has given us. Likewise, we should forgive and support those who make mistakes and fall because of weakness or lapses, acknowledging that everything is a gift and nothing should be lost, that no one should be left behind, and that everyone deserves a chance to get back on their feet. This allows us to greet each other with gratitude each morning, saying “thank you” for being here, for the gift we are to each other, especially within our families, among parents, children and grandparents, at work, in school, on the street, among friends and colleagues.
Moreover, we ought to perform our work with love, precision, and care, recognizing it as a gift and mission, however humble it may be, and recalling that every good deed is sacred and unique in God’s eyes. Finally, each evening, we should share with each other the loving actions we have witnessed and performed throughout the day, celebrating and remembering these gifts, especially when gathered around the table, so that they do not go unnoticed and can contribute to the common good.
Do you see how many ways there are to give thanks? While we could add even more, these are important “Eucharistic” attitudes since they teach us to appreciate the value of what we are doing and offering during Mass. In a moment, we will bring bread to the altar for Consecration, and with it we offer our lives. This is the offering valued by the Father (cf. Heb 10:6-7), who accepts and transforms it into the Body and Blood of his Son. God does not ask for grand gestures; he is pleased with the little we have to offer, if we do so with the joy and humility of those who give thanks.
Second, “to bless bread” means to remember. What do we remember? For ancient Israel, this meant recalling the liberation from slavery in Egypt and the beginning of the exodus to the Promised Land. For us, it means remembering Christ’s Passover, his Passion and Resurrection, by which he freed us from sin and death. It is to return to the moment when he broke the bread, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me” (Lk 22:19), and to the moment when he knelt down and washed the Apostles’ feet, saying, “I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done” (Jn 13:15).
In all of this, Jesus, the Son of God, freely kneeling before us as “one who serves” (Lk 22:27), and giving himself to us as bread, has not only set us free but also showed us how to live as free men and women (cf. Gal 5:1). There are some who say that true freedom means thinking only about ourselves, enjoying life doing whatever we want without regard for others. This is not freedom but slavery.
We see this well in situations where self-centeredness leads to poverty, loneliness, addictions, exploitation and wars. In all these cases, we see clearly how selfishness does not bring freedom but rather enslavement. Yet freedom is not found in the security vaults of those who hoard wealth for themselves, nor on the couches of those who lazily indulge in disengagement and individualism. Freedom is found in the Upper Room where, motivated solely by love, we bend down to serve others, offering our lives as “saved” people who want to bring salvation, and as “liberated” people who want to bring freedom. This too draws us into the remembrance of Easter through the broken bread of the Eucharist.
Freedom is found in the Upper Room where, motivated solely by love, we bend down to serve others, offering our lives as “saved” people who want to bring salvation, and as “liberated” people who want to bring freedom.
Finally, the Eucharistic bread is the real presence of Christ. This speaks to us of a God who is not distant and jealous, but close and in solidarity with humanity; a God who does not abandon us but always seeks, waits for, and accompanies us, even to the point of placing himself, helpless, into our hands, subjecting himself to our acceptance or rejection.
His real presence also invites us to be close to our brothers and sisters wherever love calls us. We are to be close to those who are alone, far from home or in need, fearlessly saying, “I am present, here I am! I offer you my help, my time, whatever I can.” There is a beautiful expression that describes a good person as “a piece of bread,” meaning big-hearted individuals who are available, generous, selfless, and even willing to sacrifice themselves, “allowing themselves to be consumed.”
This is why God gives himself to us as bread: to teach us, in turn, to be “pieces of bread” for one another. Our world desperately needs this bread, with its fragrance and aroma, which knows about gratitude, freedom, and closeness! Every day we see too many streets that were once filled with the smell of freshly baked bread, but are now reduced to rubble by war, selfishness and indifference!
We urgently need to bring back to our world the good, fresh aroma of the bread of love, to continue tirelessly to hope and rebuild what hatred destroys. Let us be the first ones to take this step, giving our lives and transforming them into “the ground wheat of God … in order to become the pure bread of Christ,” as a holy Bishop and Martyr of the first centuries wrote to the Church of Rome (SAINT IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH, Letter to the Romans).
This is also the meaning of the gesture we will soon make with the Eucharistic Procession. Beginning from the altar, we will carry the Consecrated Host among the homes of our city. We are not doing this to show off, or to flaunt our faith, but to invite everyone to participate, in the Bread of the Eucharist, in the new life that Jesus has given us.
We invite everyone to walk with us, following him with grateful and generous hearts, so that the joy and freedom of the children of God may grow in us and in every person we meet (cf. Rom 8:19-21).
