The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, 2012
Fr. Anthony Brankin
Gospel: Mark 14:12-16, 22-26 “He took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them.”
(Full text of sermon) Last week I saw the movie “For Greater Glory.” This was a movie about the Catholic people in Mexico in the 1920’s rising up against their Masonic, socialistic government. This government basically outlawed the Catholic religion; it arrested priests, nuns and faithful Catholics—just for being Catholic.
Now the uprising has been called the Cristero rebellion, the rebellion—so to speak—of the Christ people. And I must say that I was touched by this movie deeply—more deeply than I imagined I would be touched. Surely the movie was well-made. Of course as a movie perhaps this or that element could have made it a better movie—I don’t know. But I do know that many times as I watched it, I felt my throat choke up and I caught tears in my eyes. I thought to myself, this struggle of the Mexican Catholic people was a very serious moment in their life—but it was a serious moment in the life of the world and in my life as well.
Can’t go back to Game Boy
I thought that after you watch this film about faithful Catholics in Mexico and what they had endured, that things just cannot be the same for me or for anyone. I thought that after seeing this movie about these martyrs and their blood-drenched altars—sacrificed as these poor people were to the gods of progress and atheism and Materialism—I thought that once you see this movie—you cannot go back to where you were. You cannot go back to “Dancing with the Stars.” You can not go back to “Game Boy”! You cannot go back to life as you knew it. It is all changed. It is all different. It is serious. This religion thing is about life and death. You know now more clearly than ever what it is all about.
Sure, we can say, “This happened 90 years ago in Mexico to the people who lived then. It does not involve me—it does not concern me.” But it does—no matter the fact that no one remembers these things. No matter the fact that 90,000 people died in this huge struggle between God and anti-God and no one remembers. No matter that believers of every stripe were hunted down like dogs and hung from telegraph poles or tortured or shot just for being Catholic and wanting just to worship in peace and tranquility.
Down the memory hole
And no one but Jesus remembers them. They have been put down the memory hole.
Well, this movie brought them back out of the memory-hole—to tell us how real faith lived in our bones means that we may be forced to die for it. They gave the last ounce of their blood to Christ the king—out of love and gratitude for the Blood He shed on the Cross for them Now the movie—problematically enough—made a big deal out of this Catholic rebellion being a struggle for freedom. In a certain sense, it was—but only tangentially. It was Cardinal Newman who said that no one dies for an idea. You die for a Person—and only a person that you love.
These Cristeros did not die for a set of propositions—and catechism answers—they did not die for a sheet of paper with principles and points. They did not die for religious freedom. They died for a Person whom they loved more deeply than anything—Jesus of course.
When the little thirteen year old Cristero boy—Jose Luis Sanchez—who was beatified only a few years ago— died—the last words on his lips were ‘Long live Christ the King!” Not “Long live religious freedom!” but “Long live Christ the King!” Jose Luis Sanchez died for the One whom he loved.
Little boy died for me
And to die for our faith means that we are with Christ on the cross and offering our lives as a sacrifice for the sake of our families and friends. And in being true to our God and to our religion—unto death—we are being true to family as well. In that way, Jose Luis Sanchez—like Jesus—died for us.
And I think that is why I am still moved, a week later, thinking about it. That little boy died for me.
Of course, the American newspapers did not see it this way. One very famous reviewer—Roger Ebert—said he thought that it was wrong for a religious faith to be so strong in a little boy’s heart that he would die for it.
I couldn’t believe that he could write that. He didn’t blame the atheists—the secularists, the Masons and the socialists, the government—the very ones who tortured and then killed this little boy. No. He blamed Jesus and the Church. I guess the martyrdom of Jose Luis Sanchez didn’t count for Roger Ebert because it was the death of a little boy who besides being Mexican was Catholic. And that never counts. But the atheists who killed the little guy— they get a pass!
How incredible that this movie reviewer would fail to understand the least part of love and loyalty and faith and devotion. How tragic that his mind has been made so small and his heart dried up so thoroughly, and his world so impoverished by his atheism and secularism that he would not know why a young Catholic man could achieve such heights of heroism and self-sacrifice. He cannot piece together how that little boy’s bravery and courage and heroism and strength, shames those of us who would rather live safely and comfortably—but at the cost of our honor.
Love God “too much”
I am sure that Mr. Ebert agreed with the Mexican government—that the Faith of these Mexican Catholic people was too much—that they loved God too much—they loved their families too much—they loved their country too much. Maybe he would have been more pleased if the Mexican children of the Cristiada had turned in their parents to the authorities and went back to their games.
Oh, Brave New World that has such people in it—where belief in God and in a world unseen can no longer move men to perform or even understand great deeds and ultimate sacrifice. Oh brave New world where we learn to kill those we love rather than die for them.
That is why this movie was about us as well. It was about choices that in the near future we may have to make—choices for God or against God—choices to be loyal to the Church or loyal to the regime. Choices to go along with the government and avoid any problems—or stay true to Jesus and risk everything. Choices to love and to give up our lives for the sake of love—or to save our lives in this world but lose them in the next.
Sacrifice even our lives
When we celebrate the Body and Blood of Christ we celebrate the beautiful, ineffable doctrine of Transubstantiation— that bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus—whom we adore—whom we love and whom we consume for our life and its nourishment. We celebrate that Holy Communion is not an “it” but a “who”. But we can never forget that Holy Communion implies that Jesus who loved us enough to give Himself for us and to us, expects that we will sacrifice ourselves— our pride—our comfort—maybe even— our lives. Holy Communion implies that in some mysterious way we are His Body and Blood and we are on the Cross with Him as He is on the Cross with us.
The Body and Blood of Christ is not something out there—that gives us good ideas and holy thoughts. The Body and Blood of Christ is here—in our hearts—in our bodies—preparing us to be broken and shed for the sake of love just as he was. Our worship of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is what keeps us on the cross even when we are tempted to get down from there.
What kept the Cristeros faithful
When we see Jesus in the little white host we know that that is His pledge to be with us always—and therefore we can pledge to stay with Him. That little white Host—His very Body and Blood—is what kept the Cristeros faithful. And it will keep us faithful as well.
Long live Christ the King.