Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi or The Feast of Corpus Christi is a Christian festival held annually on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday, on June 8 this year. On this day, devout Christians gather together to honor the spiritual body of Jesus Christ. This day is also known as Corpus Domini, which literally translates to "the body and blood of Christ", while some also call it the Feast of Corpus Christi. Unlike other Christian festivals, Corpus Christi is uniquely celebrated in different cultures around the world. The most popular way to celebrate this day is by eating bread and wine - symbols of the body and blood of Christ.

The Feast of Corpus Christi is also known as the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, and the Church of England calls it Thanksgiving Day because of the Organization of Holy Communion. In some places, celebrations include elaborate processions, where Christians parade consecrated bread through the streets on streets decorated with wreaths. The Feast of Corpus Christi is a more joyful celebration after the solemnity of Mauritius Thursday.

History of Corpus Christi

The Feast of Corpus Christi or the Feast of Corpus Christi is also known as the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. This holiday belongs to the Roman Catholic Church to honor the body of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Corpus Christi is commemorated on the Thursday or Sunday after Trinity Sunday. It is a holiday in many countries.

The Feast of Corpus Christi is one of the few feasts that have been highly appreciated by parishioners in the past. It began in the 13th century with Juliana of Liège, a saint from present-day Belgium who yearned for a holiday outside of Lent in honor of the Eucharist. After receiving several visions of Christ - visions that began when she was 16 - Juliana worked with a young monk named John in Lausanne to celebrate the holiday. She has spent over 40 years achieving this goal. Together they set up an office so they could celebrate the party. They succeeded, and their diocesan bishop approved the texts in 1246.

Pope Urban IV declared Corpus Christi a holiday on August 11th, 1264. Corpus Christi spread to neighboring cities and towns, growing in popularity thanks to the efforts of Eva of Liège. Eva was an anchor worker who continued Juliana's work after her death. Ironically, Urban IV's successors disobeyed his decree, and they suspended the festival. In 1311, Pope Clement IV restored the feast at the Council of Vienna.

Holidays are more likely to be observed by the Catholic Church than by government agencies. However, sometimes it is also known as Holy Thursday and considered as a day of celebration. Each region of the world has its own way of celebrating Corpus Christi but the consumption of wine and bread is mandatory. Only in the 15th century did Corpus Christi become one of the main feasts of the church. In Catholic religions, the festival is celebrated with a street procession and beauty pageant, often held near the parish. The main priest leads the mass and the faithful gather in the church to pray and sing hymns.

The early Eucharistic festivals were fascinating affairs involving entire towns and cities. Kings and nobles in European Catholic monarchies took part in the celebration, along with court officials and military officers. The common people knelt outside their homes as these large processions passed. In modern times, Pope John Paul II has led annual parades on the holiday, moving from St Peter's Square in the Vatican and through the streets of Rome. The Feast of Corpus Christi remains one of the essential celebrations that emphasize the fundamental tenets of Christianity and Catholicism.

In contrast of popular belief, Corpus Christi is not only a Catholic festival but is also celebrated in several Anglican and Lutheran Churches. These churches have a very different way of celebrating than their Catholic churches. The Anglican and Lutheran Churches do not have street processions and celebrations are mostly limited to church events. Protestants do not usually celebrate this day. In most cultures, Communion is also an important part of the festival.

Some truths about Corpus Christi

• The Spaniards have a special name for it

In Seville, Spain, the festival is also known as 'Thursday that shines brighter than the sun.'

• The British keep it intimate

While Corpus Christi is celebrated enthusiastically in most countries, churches in the United Kingdom hold quiet celebrations on this day.

• The celebration is back

Exactly celebrates Corpus Christi with processions and street contests that date back several centuries to the Middle Ages!

• It's an easy vacation

There is no fixed date to celebrate Corpus Christi - it's a touching holiday celebrated in May or June.

• Also commemorate the Eucharist

The day not only honors the holy body of Christ but also properly commemorates the institution of the Eucharist.

How to celebrate Corpus Christi

In memory of the Last Supper on the day before Jesus was crucified, many Christians around the world receive Holy Communion on this day. In some countries, consecrated (or host) bread is paraded through the streets. The priests carried the bread in a dome, a type of vessel in which the consecrator was exposed. In Spain and Provence, processions can be very elaborate, featuring saints and biblical figures, following a path decorated with wreaths and flowers.

In Portugal, the ceremony is known as Dia de Corpo de Deus and has been one of the major religious ceremonies both on the mainland and in the Azores since medieval times. In the city of Ponta Delgada, in the Azores region, a petal-shaped carpet is almost three-quarters of a mile long. A procession of senior clergy and priests in red robes is followed by a group of first communicators (who will receive Communion for the first time), passing through this carpet. The climax of the ceremony came when the bishop lifted the silver statue and revealed the Host, "the body of Christ".

In Germany, Corpus Christi will have a lot of colorful processions where sacraments and other sacred symbols are exhibited throughout the villages. Small town streets are decorated with flowers and trees. Children dressed in white wear wreaths and are accompanied by women in regional clothing and local missionaries. People sometimes display pictures of Jesus Christ and put rugs on their doorsteps to honor this day. Some processions, for example in Bavaria, are held on lakes rather than on the streets, with flower-decorated boats carrying members of the procession and worshipers across the water.

In Switzerland, this festival is often celebrated with elaborate processions of clergy in their finest robes, people dressed in regional garb, and soldiers in historic uniforms. The priest leading the procession usually walks on a flowerbed. In some areas, it is customary to open church doors and decorate altars and aisles with wreaths and greenery.

In Mexico, religious processions are common on this day, as well as other festivals, a small shrine or altar is erected along the path of the procession, covered with altar cloths decorated with lace and decorated with candles, flowers and wreaths. In some parts of Mexico Corpus Christi is observed with symbolic battles between the Moors and Christians, especially in the Sierras of Puebla and Veracruz. Another sight that takes place on this day is the Danza de los Voladores, aka the Flying Pole Dance. The dance features five men, each representing the five elements of the indigenous world, on a tall pole. One of the men plays an instrument on top of the pole while the other four descend to the pole with a rope tied to one of their legs. The rope opens itself 13 times for each of the four leaflets, representing the 52 weeks of the year.