Today we celebrate our "source and summit" - the Eucharist. We take one Sunday to give special attention to something we do very often, many of us daily. I hope the Eucharist doesn't become "routine" or "regular" to you, but if you've slipped into that pattern today is a fantastic opportunity to break free.
I've already talked quite a bit about the Eucharist, and even wrote a whole post about today's Gospel, Luke's version of the Feeding of the 5000. So, for today, I want to focus specifically on the First Reading, a short three-verse blurb from Genesis - but an important and foreshadowing blurb at that.
"Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine,
and being a priest of God Most High, he blessed Abram with these words:
'Blessed be Abram by God Most High, the creator of Heaven and Earth;
And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your foes into your hand.'
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything."
-Genesis 14:18-20
For as short as this passage is, it's all we ever hear of Melchizedek, who is generally acknowledged as the first priest. We still get a lot of important details, though. Most people jump straight to the whole thing about "bread and wine" - which is understandable - but I'm going to take a step back.
Melchizedek is given two titles in this passage - "king of Salem" and "priest of God Most High" This is a kinda big deal. Usually, you were one or the other (or, for most people, neither). There's significance in the fact that Melchizedek was priest and king. Remember that.
Alright, so the fact that Melchizedek is a king is significant...but why Salem. Did it really matter what city he was in charge of? Is that gonna be on the test? It's important that we look at the Hebrew on this one: "salem" (which later became "shalom") meant peace. That made Melchizedek the first "Prince of Peace" Pretty cool, huh?
But there's more...Salem, "Peace", eventually changed it's name to "City of Peace" or "Jeru-Salem"
Jerusalem.
Now we get to the bread and wine. Why is this significant? Well, first of all, like the priest-king combination, it's weird and uncommon. Sacrifices were usually animals, except in one specific type of sacrifice: the todah, or "thank-offering" That's what Melchizedek offered. The "thank-offering." Remember that. It'll be important.
Along with this, Melchizedek calls for God's blessing upon Abram (who later became Abraham) and praises God for what he's done. So, it's a prayer of thanksgiving, supplication and adoration.
Melchizedek is one of the most prominent "Old Testament types" of Christ. Typing is the term for when something in the Old Testament predicts or foreshadows the New Testament (usually Christ). I've already written about how the Ark of the Covenant prefigured Mary, so if you want an example of what I mean you should check it out.
So, let's look at the ways Melchizedek prefigured Christ:
- Priest-King
- Prince of Peace
- Offered bread and wine
- Made his sacrifice in Jerusalem
Not only that, Melchizedek's sacrifice prefigures the Eucharist in many ways:
- Bread and Wine
- Includes a prayer of supplication, adoration and thanksgiving
- Primarily a todah thank offering (The Greek root word of Eucharist, eucharistia, means "thanksgiving")
So in Genesis we have the story of the Prince of Peace, the Priest-King, offering bread and wine in Jerusalem as a prayer of blessing and thanksgiving.
If I may, that's so cool. That whole thing was in three verses! Three verses provided one of our first foreshadowings of the Christ who wouldn't come for another 3000 years. God is good.
Pure-bread
While we're on the subject, let's take a moment to think about some of the significance of bread and wine. Yes, it becomes the True Body and Blood of Christ, but why do we start with bread and wine? Why not fish, or actual meat? Why not actual lamb? Why not water? Why can't we use whatever we want?
Because (you guessed it) there's symbolism behind it.
First, the practical side of things. Bread and wine are extremely common in pretty much every culture and time. Bread is so fundamental that we say "give us this day our daily bread" to refer to everything we need. Also, it was the elements of the todah sacrifice, and was part of the seder meal. Those are the "official" reasons, but I invite you to consider something else too:
How do you make bread?
By canon law, the bread used at Mass can only contain two ingredients: flour and water. Let's think about the process of that.
We start with grains of wheat. Small, individual pieces. Then, we crush it into flour. We mix it with water and knead it with dough. Then, we put it in the oven until it emerges as...y'know...bread.
Now, let's consider our path as Christians. We begin as small, individual "grains." In baptism, we lie "dead" in the Tomb of Christ, crushed by death, before we are redeemed by water. Then, the Holy Spirit (often represented by fire) comes upon us. We emerge as one bread. One Body. (And yes, the song is now playing in your head).
So when you receive the Eucharist today or any day, remember that it's not just bread. It is an eternal sacrifice that has been awaited for thousands of years, and celebrated for thousands since. It is the true Body and Blood of the same Christ who died on that Cross. It is his Body, the Church. It is the source and summit of everything we do, everything we are, everything we hope to be.
It is the Eucharist.
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