Msgr. Beaulieu – Lauda Sion

Lauda Sion—Sequence for Corpus Christi

Known in English as the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Lat. Sanctissimi Corporis et Sanguinis Domini Iesu Christi), this feast honors Jesus Christ, really, truly, and substantially present under the appearances of bread and wine. This Presence happens through the change that the Church calls transubstantiation (“change of substance”) when, at the Consecration of the Mass, the priest says the words which Christ Himself pronounced over bread and wine, “This is My Body,” “This is the chalice of My Blood,” “Do this in remembrance of Me.”

Also known by the brief Latin title Corpus Christi, just before the Gospel, though optional, there is an evocative ancient hymn, referred to as the “Sequence”. It is one of the few sequences that remain, but it used to be that many feasts had a sequence – a hymn – that went with it. Now we only have four: Easter, Pentecost, the Corpus Christi sequence, and the Stabat Mater. There had been a sequence for the Requiem Mass or Dies Irae. In current liturgical practice, the Dies irae, slightly edited, remains in use ad libitum as a hymn in the Liturgy of the Hours on All Souls’ Day and during the last week before Advent, for which it is divided into three parts for the Office of Readings, Lauds and Vespers, with the insertion of a doxology after each part.

The sequence for Corpus Christi is called Lauda Sion or Praise, O Zion and was written in the thirteenth century by St. Thomas Aquinas. In it, Aquinas includes the key elements about authentic belief in the Eucharist: Believe that the Eucharist is Jesus that He is living and life-giving bread, just as you hear in the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John. The Eucharist is not a sign or a symbol; no, it is God Himself. Even if you receive a small fragment of the Eucharist, you receive the fullness of God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. That’s why you must always approach the Eucharist with full respect and reverence. That’s why you must not be in a state of mortal sin when you receive Communion. That’s why the Eucharist should not be received by those who do not believe that Christ is really, truly, actually, and fully present in the Eucharist. That’s why you can adore Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Two Citations from the Longer Version of Lauda Sion

In the second stanza of the sequence, you find this: Quantum potes, tantum aude, quia maior omni laude nec laudare suffices or, loosely translated in English, “Dare to do all you can, because all the praise you give won’t equal all the praise Jesus deserves.” This first thought concerns St. Thomas’ encouragement for us to go “all out” in praising the Eucharistic Lord on this feast and beyond. This is the essence of Corpus Christi – that the Church be extravagant in her response to Jesus’ extravagant self-gift. Like Mary of Bethany who “wasted” 300 days wages worth of genuine aromatic spikenard anointing Jesus’ feet, we are called to lavishly give of ourselves to the Lord in gratitude for this great gift. So, however much you can (Lat. quantum potes), so much dare to do (Lat. tantum aude). This phrase encourages individuals to exert their full capacity and to courageously take on tasks, even when faced with challenges. It’s a call to action, emphasizing the importance of striving for greatness and not being limited by self-doubt or fear. The phrase is often used in this Catholic, religious context, to inspire devotion to the Eucharist and to encourage a deeper relationship with God.

Aquinas also added another declaration in the sequence that is often lost in the translation “Thousands are, as one, receivers, One, as thousands of believers” (Lat. Sumit unus, sumunt mille: quantum isti, tantum ille). It means that in eating the consecrated bread and drinking the sacred wine, then, those who do become participants in the Body and Blood of Christ: those who do become the Body of Christ. When receiving the Eucharist, those receiving become One. That’s why it’s called “Communion”— not only does the Eucharist bring those who receive into communion with Christ, but it also brings them into communion with each other, the Body of Christ. The phrase emphasizes participation rather than just reception. It suggests that when believers receive Communion, they are not simply taking something into themselves, but they are actively participating in a sacred mystery that unites the receiver with Christ and with one another. This phrase emphasizes that those who receive the Eucharist receives it fully, and those who receive it afterwards also receive it fully, without diminishing the original.