In which I attempt to liveblog Benedict’s homily at the Corpus Christi Mass now being offered outside St. John Lateran in Rome (via the translator) on EWTN, who seems to be paraphrasing. I say this because the Pope goes on for sentences and sentences, and then the translator pops out one line. But here goes:

On the vigil of His Passion, the Lord took bread, blessed it, and broke it and said, "This is My Body." Then he took the cup and blessed it and said, "This is My Blood of the New Covenant which is poured out for Many."

And what we do hear today not only looks back on that, but looks forward to the future of the coming of the Kingdom of God. Jesus as a sign of his presence, took bread and wine. He is a person through who this sign comes close to us. Each of these signs represents a particular aspect of his person.

During the procession and during Adoration, we look at the Eucharistic Host. It’s a piece of bread..but it is the first place which the Lord destined his closeness to us. And when the Church through the priest during the Mass presents the bread, it is called "the fruit of the earth and the work of human hands." It is something that we have made, and it is a fruit of the earth, and this reminds us that the fact that earth bears fruit is not anything we have done but comes from God.

So the eucharistic bread comes from earth and it comes from heaven – it presupposes the synergy of things heavenly and earthly. It requires God’s graceful intervention and also the intervention of the sun and the rain.

And so as we look upon this poor man’s bread, this poor man’s bread appears more and more to us as a synthesis of creation itself. And the mystery of man’s existence, the meaning of creation and all of history comes to us with new strength.

And so beyond the mere synthesis of creation, this eucharistic bread points to the divinization of creation. The most profound mystery of this bread is communicated by the event of Palm Sunday when the Lord said "I tell you if a grain does not fall to the ground and die it will not bear fruit.." (etc`) And this, the mystery of the Passion, is concentrated to be ground and made into loaves and cooked and then eaten. Only through death can we have life.

Int he Meditteranean cultures that grew up before Christ and even had a profound intution of this fact that we can only live truly by passing through death, they articulated hints to express this. But Christ is not a myth, he died for us on the Cross and so opened the door to life.

That which was expected in the myths is completed – it has truly happened in Christ. Through his suffering and his death. We have true and faithful hope. Christ’s way is the way that he walks with us and the way that we should walk with him are ways of hope. We need the greatness of our Lord’s gift to us through the Eucharist, but we also need his Passion. As we look on the Eucharistic Host in adoration, we are filled with wonder at the way in which he transforms this Host into his very self.

And the force of the Eucharist is also unifying. In a book of prayers from the 1st century, (I assume he – the translator – means the Didache, which I imagine the Pope mentioned by name) we hear of the grain scattered on the hills becomes one, so the Church becomes one through the Eucharistic sacrifice.

The wine, on the other hand, expresses how exquisite creation is.

The wine speaks of passion as well. The grape too must mature under the sun and the rain and must be picked and properly prepared to become a truly delicious wine.

Int he procession we follow this sing and we follow Christ himself, and we pray guide us along the way of our lives. Show the right way to the church and to her pastors. Look upon those who are hungry, physically and spiritually. Give the bread for the body and the spirit. Purify and sanctify us all. It is only through participating in your passion, by saying "yes" to the Cross can our lives change and come to its true completion. Bring us together from the ends of the earth. Unite this lacerated humanity by your strenghth, Amen.

Interesting..the Credo is a responsorial version of the Apostle’s Creed.