A magnificent sequence in the Mass of Corpus Christi, written by Saint Thomas Aquinas, this dogmatic poetry praises the new and true Zion, the Church. Benedict XVI said of this Mass: "These are texts that stir the waves of the heart, as the intellect, penetrating with wonder into the mystery, recognizes in the Eucharist the living and true presence of Jesus, of his Sacrifice of love which reconciles us with the Father and gives us salvation."
Praise, Zion, your Savior, praise your leader and shepherd, with hymns and songs.
As much as you can, dare to sing to him, for he surpasses all praise, and you are insufficient to praise him.
A special subject of praise is offered to us today: it is the living and life-giving bread.
The bread that at the Last Supper, Jesus truly gave to the company of the twelve brothers.
Let the praise be full and resounding; let it be joyful and beautiful, the jubilation of the soul.
For today is the solemnity that recalls the first institution of this Last Supper.
At this table of the new King, the new Passover of the new law puts an end to the ancient Passover.
The old rite is driven out by the new, the shadow by the truth; the light dispels the night.
What Christ did at the Last Supper, he commanded to be done in remembrance of him.
Instructed by His holy commands, we consecrate the bread and wine in the host of salvation.
It is a dogma given to Christians that the bread becomes flesh and the wine becomes meaning.
What you neither understand nor see, living faith attests to against the course of things.
Beneath diverse appearances, mere signs and not realities, sublime realities are hidden.
The flesh is food, the blood drink; yet Christ remains whole in both forms.
By whomever receives Him, He is not broken, shattered, or divided, but received entirely.
One receives Him, a thousand receive Him: each as much as the others; taken as food, He is not destroyed.
The good take Him, the wicked take Him, but for a different fate: life or death!
Death for the wicked, life for the good: see how different the outcome is from the same act.
If, finally, the sacrament is broken, do not be troubled, but remember that beneath each particle lies as much as the whole.
No division of reality occurs: the rupture lies solely in the sign, and it diminishes neither the state nor the grandeur of the signified reality.
Behold the bread of angels become the food of travelers: it is truly the bread of children, which must not be thrown to the dog.
It is signified beforehand by figures: the immolation of Isaac, the lamb set apart for Passover, the manna given to our ancestors.
Good Shepherd, true bread, Jesus, have mercy on us: nourish us, protect us, let us see the true good in the land of the living.
You who know and can do all things, who nourish us mortals here below: make us your guests there above, co-heirs and companions of the holy citizens of heaven.
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