Hi, Marie —

I actually have never considered this angle before so thanks for the question.

I'm sure your pastor is pointing out that in Communion we receive Our Lord as He is in
His Resurrected state, transcending the ordinary form of our earthly bodies. If we used the reference to Jesus it may lead to a misunderstanding that his flesh is now, as it had been on earth, which is why in the Early Church Christians were sometimes accused of being cannibals.

However we do not eat flesh of a corpse but of a Risen Savior, quite extraordinary, and therefore the designation Christ points us to this transcendent reality.

Hope that helps.

Peace,

Bob Kirby

Hi, Marie —

We say the Body of Christ at Holy Communion time instead of The Body of Jesus because the Church tells us to say this and how the Mass is celebrated is a matter of faith and morals.

Hope this helps,

Mike