Here’s a little history about this day. It was originally celebrated on the Thursday 10 days after Pentecost and referred to by a Latin name “Corpus Christi”. In the 13th century, a Belgian nun named Juliana had a recurring dream of a brilliant full moon coming down to earth. The moon however had a black spot on it. Christ interpreted the dream for her. The moon represented the calendar year of the church with all of its wonderful festivals, but the black spot showed that there was something missing. That something missing was an occasion to remember the institution by Christ at the Lord’s Supper, the institution of the Eucharist. As fortune would have it, she had a friend in the Bishop of Liege. He believed her vision and he subsequently became Pope Urban IV. As a result, the feast of Corpus Christi was first celebrated in 1264 with hymns and prayers written by Thomas Aquinas. Such an awesome gift deserves its own feast!
In 2018, Bishop Parkes chose this feast to disseminate Courageously Living the Gospel, the long-awaited Vision for the Diocese of St. Petersburg. Bishop Parkes has said: “I will always speak of the vision or our vision, not my vision. I may be the messenger, but the vision represents what the people of our diocese believe is best for the church.”
Bishop Parkes continued: “This mutually-shared vision is an opportunity to renew our faith as we go forth to boldly proclaim the good News of Jesus Christ.” He pointed out that the Diocese of St. Petersburg includes all the people who reside in the five counties that geographically make up the diocese, not just those who identify themselves as Catholic. The entire Tampa Bay area this is our “mission territory.”
The nine goals in the vision are bold initiatives that challenge our parish communities to think outside the box for opportunities of evangelization. We are to look not only inward but outward. We are also called to allow the Holy Spirit to speak to the youth and keep them connected to their church. Bishop Parkes urges all of us to “think big when dreaming about what the future could look like.” “We want a vision”, he says “that is bold and goals that are high impact and even a stretch for us to achieve.”
I believe our challenge (here at Holy Name) is to remember that we are part of the diocese. Sometimes I think that because we are an autonomous Benedictine community we forget that we are at the same time an integral entity of the diocese … neither an island in its midst nor on its fringes.
Some of us of a certain generation can remember huge Corpus Christi processions which brought the body of Christ into the streets around our parishes. The body of Christ is still in our streets because we are there. Today, everyday Jesus asks each of us “have you reserved a guest room in your heart for Me where I may rest, where I may eat a meal with you? Our Corporate Commitment continues to challenge us to “respond with the compassion of Christ to the hungers of the people of God.”
We challenge ourselves to support initiatives in the diocesan vision. Are we providing an inviting environment to the greater community? Do we encourage an increased understanding of what it means to be “Catholic”? Of course, it goes without saying, that we pray for God’s blessing on our Bishop Gregory Parkes and the diocesan efforts to bring to reality the diocesan vision: Courageously Living the Gospel.
~Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB
