Along with my most memorable, exciting and enriching memories of church was the Feast of Corpus Christi. At home my parents started to take us to Sunday Mass at a very early age. That was an experience in itself because, in a way, it was a time of discovery. I was intrigued first by the statues of many things, then there were the candles, the funny clothes the priest wore and the little boys all dressed alike who seemed to be running around the altar and the priest. Of course I didn't have a clue what was happening because it was all in Latin and the pastor we had was from Belgium, so it was difficult enough to understand him. I look back and chuckle at the comedy of errors in my memory.

     The Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, as Corpus Christi is now known, added to the many mysteries already in my memory with the processions in church and then out in the streets. The priest would carry the monstrance with the consecrated host and four men would carry a cover over him, and he was lucky because sometimes we had very hot days and he had a shade. But I remember the deep reverence on the people for the Blessed Sacrament as they joined the procession or stood on the sidelines.

     I am now 86 years old and I am still learning more and more about the meaning of the holy sacrifice of the Mass. I was ordained on June 4, 1949 and served at Immaculate Conception parish in Las Vegas, NM until May 25, 1950, when I was assigned to my first parish. The first big event at St. Joseph Church, Anton Chico, NM was the Feast of Corpus Christi. I was amazed at all the preparation: the people built two different altars and decorated them beautifully. After Mass we had a procession and stopped at each altar for benediction. As I looked around I saw so many people. It seemed to me that everyone in the village of Anton Chico and surrounding villages had come to the mother church for the event. It was a great celebration and on the part of the people, a tremendous act of faith.

     My amazement did not cease there. The parish, though small in numbers, was comprised of twelve different villages and eight chapels where I celebrated Mass. Needless to say, I could not say Mass at each chapel every Sunday, so I had set days for Mass at each chapel. It didn't really matter what day of the week I visited a chapel; all the people seemed to turn out for the Mass with few exceptions. Whenever I had Mass for them, that was their Sunday Mass. I never heard anyone say anything about an obligation, because for them, that is all the people, it was a special day and a privilege. At first the people were spectators since it was still all in Latin, but with the coming of the liturgical renewal in the Second Vatican Council, all of that changed. I remember the happy response of the people as I started to say Mass in Spanish or in English. The people were always good listeners so I had to carefully prepare my homily and integrate the scripture readings with the life that we were living out in the country. This was not difficult to do since the parish setting was in ranching, farming, community and the bible is filled with references to sheep, goats, vineyards, etc. For me, reflecting on these realities made the scriptures come to life and if I observed the interest shown by the people, my priestly ministry was energized with every Mass I celebrated.

     I was a bit dismayed reading the last issue of US Catholic. A reader made reference to a priest who took pride in his 17-minute Masses. I remember driving up to 50 miles to a village for Mass, visiting with the people, hearing confessions, then having Mass. I hardly ever got home before lunchtime, but in spite of snow and rain and mud, I enjoyed every one of those experiences. As I think back now, so many of those trips would make a great short story. So different now in my 11th year of retirement, I say Mass in my home with a congregation of 2 or 3 people and it is still the same Mass.

     Now as I frequently read the Documents of the Second Vatican Council, I can relate my many experiences to the wonderful words of the council fathers about the importance and the beauty of the holy sacrifice of the Mass. Happy Corpus Christi.