Ave Verum Corpus

Meditation for Wednesday, August 10: In you is the unity of heaven and earth.

I have always been fascinated with transubstantiation, the belief in Roman Catholicism that the Eucharist (communion wine and wafer) is the real physical presence of Christ. In taking communion, believers are literally taking God inside, transforming themselves into places where Heaven unites with Earth.

The first time I witnessed communion, I was four years old, attending mass with my cousins in my hometown's only Catholic church. The church sits on the rise of the highest hill in the downtown area, offering a beautiful view of the sky and mountains around. Fittingly, the call letters of the nearby AM radio station, WHKP, stand for the phrase, "Where the Heavens Kiss the Peaks."

Watching my cousins drink from the cup and take the wafers into their mouths deeply attracted me to the mystery. Not being Catholic, though, I didn't get to taste God in my mouth that morning.

Perhaps it is ironic that one of my favorite hymns is Ave Verum Corpus, composed in the 14th century to be sung during Catholic mass as the priest elevates the host (body of Christ) for consecration. The title means, "Hail, true Body."

I see universal importance in the meaning of the Eucharist as an injunction to be fully present in every moment as best we can. Catholics believe that God is Fully Present in the Eucharist, which is an incredibly powerful thing. If God can do it, can we?

For Buddhist monks who walk meditatively in gardens, paying heed to every physical sensation, thought, motion and breath, being fully present is its own reward. There is also the expectation that it will lead one to having greater compassion for others.

Being present with ourselves as we run is about cultivating the kind of awareness that connects mind with body. Doing so can only make us more whole, more real. In that way, we can become the great unity of all things.

Hail, true body!