The Custody of the Holy Land, the religious and the local church celebrated the solemnity of Corpus Christi (or “Corpus Domini”) at the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem on Wednesday 18 and Thursday 19 June.

This year, following the heightening of tension in the Holy Land, the celebration was  reduced and a limited number of religious were allowed to take part. 

Instituted in 1247, the Solemnity of Corpus Christi came into being with the intention of honoring the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, remembering the mystery that is contemplated on the evening of Holy Thursday. This celebration – together with the Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross – offers an occasion to enter the mystery of the Passion and the Death of Jesus even more intimately, placing the Eucharist at the center of contemplation. Situated in the liturgical time following Easter, the solemnity invites the faithful to dwell with greater depth on the mysteries of the Paschal Triduum, which in Holy Week are observed on three distinct days.

The solemn entrance and the night vigil

On Wednesday 18 May, the Patriarch was welcomed to the Basilica by the Franciscan friars and by Fra Stéphane Milovitch, president of the Holy Sepulcher.  Immediately after his arrival, the Cardinal presided the First Vespers of the solemnity, celebrated in front of the Edicule of the Holy Sepulcher, together with a limited number of religious.

After Vespers, there was the traditional procession guided by the Franciscan friars, which went through the holy places of the Basilica and concluded with the prayer of Compline. 

During the night, as per the liturgical rite, the Vigil Office was held, presided over by the Custos of the Holy Land, Fra Francesco Patton, and also celebrated in front of the Empty Tomb.

The Mass on the feast day 

On the day of the festivity, Thursday 19, the Patriarch once again made his entry into the Basilica for the recital of morning Lauds. The Solemn Mass was held straight afterwards, with the participation of a small group of faithful.

“We are living in a time of real hunger,”  said Cardinal Pizzaballa in his homily, “and together with that there is a hunger for justice, truth and dignity.”

Recalling the tragic situation in Gaza and in other parts of the world, the Patriarch invited the faithful to put their hope in Christ. “Being with Christ makes us capable of living our poverty, it makes us live as a possibility of sharing and communion, of trusting and giving.”

The Procession

At the end of the celebration of the Eucharist, there was the procession with the Most Blessed Sacrament, accompanied by chants and solemn hymns. The Patriarch, followed by the Franciscan friars, the seminarians of the Latin Patriarchate and the concelebrants, went around the Edicule three times, with the last time also including the Stone of Unction. He then entered the Edicule with the Most Blessed Sacrament, where the adoration took place. The procession came to an end with the blessing by the Patriarch in three distinct places of the Basilica; at the entrance to the Edicule, in front of the altar of St. Mary Magdalene and in the Franciscan Chapel of the Most Blessed Sacrament.