Why is the “Precious Blood” even offered, since we all know that to receive the Host is to receive Christ fully just as to receive from the Cup is to receive Christ fully?   Why do we call this Blood “precious.” In Latin it is actually “most precious”—pretiosissimus. To say that it is the most precious is to say that it is of the highest value, the greatest worth and the most honor.  The preciousness of reception in both kinds (bread and wine) is grounded in Jesus’ Last Supper.  Jesus says to his apostles: “Take and eat; this is my body.” But He does not stop there. “Then He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you’” (Mt 26:27).  For Jesus, the presence of both Body and Blood was crucial to the liturgy He celebrated and initiated. In celebrating the Last Supper, Jesus acted with intention, prioritizing what is essential to the liturgy: bread, wine, eating, and drinking.

 

We need the sustaining spiritual nourishment offered by bread and wine. St. Augustine, knowing that Jesus “has redeemed me with his blood,” thought about his own role as a priest in relation to the sacrament. “I am mindful of my ransom. I eat it, I drink it. I dispense it to others, and as a pauper I long to be filled with it among those who are fed and feasted.”

 

As the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the General Instruction of the Roman Missal teach, “the sign of communion is more complete when given under both kinds, since in that form the sign of the Eucharistic meal appears more clearly.”

 

Consider if this is the right time to return to the Cup, to take and drink.

 

In Christ,

 

Fr. Peter