A video of the 10 a.m. theology talk from Sunday January 7 is available. You can access the class handout and subscribe to our theology playlist on YouTube.
When we receive communion we are offered not only the Body of Christ to eat but also the blood of Christ to drink. We might have become so accustomed to this practice that we do not realize how shocking it is.
We should balk at the idea of being offered a person’s blood to drink. Unless we become aware of the deep symbolism attached to blood in most religions and especially in Judaism. The blood in Scripture is synonymous with ‘life’. Thus, when we are offered the blood of Christ we should hear “The life of Christ”. Animal blood sacrifices were prescribed in the Old Testament but abolished in the New Testament. Why then does the reference to blood remain so pervasive in Christianity?
We shall discover that this apparent archaism taps into a symbolism deeply embedded in our human psyche and that keeping it alive is part of the strategy of the spiritualization of religion which is at the heart of Jesus’ message.
For more information about our theology program and to receive links for weekly Sunday Theology Talks, please contact Fr. Gioia.
