Manna--What is it? - June 5, 2026

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

A few months ago, I was making my daily communion rounds at one of our assisted living facilities. As I entered Harbor House to visit one of our longtime parishioners, Margaret, I noticed a therapy dog making its rounds. The beautiful Husky came to Margaret’s wheelchair while I knelt beside her with the communion pyx. Eventually, the dog moved to my side, looked intently at Holy Communion, and then lowered itself onto all four legs—almost like an act of worship before Jesus in the host.

This weekend we celebrate the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, the Body of Christ. In the Old Testament, the Israelites wandered the desert for forty years and were near starvation. God rained down manna from heaven to feed them. It looked like bread and tasted like bread, but it was not made by human hands, so they called it “manna,” meaning, “What is it?”

Since the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, Christians have debated that same question. Some believe communion is only a symbol or a memorial. Catholics and Orthodox Christians, however, profess that Holy Communion truly becomes the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

A 20th-century Catholic novelist once attended a tea where Protestant friends insisted the Eucharist was merely symbolic. She famously replied, “Well, if it’s just a symbol, then to hell with it.” Her point was simple: if the Eucharist is not truly Jesus, then Catholics would be guilty of idolatry. But if it is truly Him, then nothing on earth is more sacred.

Even a therapy dog seemed to recognize something holy that day.

In His Mercy,

Fr. Eric Clark, Pastor