Composed by St. Thomas Aquinas at the request of Pope Urban IV in 1264, the liturgical office for the Feast of Corpus Christi is widely regarded through the centuries as one of the most beautiful treasures of the Church. On his visit to the Institute's apostolate at St. Margaret Mary in Oakland, CA, Monsignor Gilles Wach, Founder and Prior General of the Institute, celebrated the External Solemnity of Corpus Christi on Sunday, June 11. In his homily (translated by Canon Avis), Monsignor Wach emphasized the work of St. Thomas Aquinas, a beloved saint and Doctor of the Church, who is also one of the principle patron saints of the Institute.

The timelessness of the sacred liturgy and the prayers of the Church made a strong impression on all who assisted at this Mass, and perhaps indelibly on the minds on three young girls who received Our Lord's Body for the very first time. Garbed in pristine white dresses, the First Communicants approached the communion rail. As the families and the congregation waited, they knelt, and received Our Lord's sacred Body on their tongues for the first time. It was a moment suspended in beauty—and a few tears of joy.

Following Holy Mass, hundreds of faithful processed behind the Blessed Sacrament, and with Pange lingua on their lips, reverently adored the Blessed Sacrament through the neighborhood streets of Oakland and at the outdoor altar in the garden. As in other apostolates which welcomed Monsignor Wach's pastoral visit, the faithful of St. Margaret Mary likewise prepared a sumptuous reception with a three-fold purpose: to honor the Prior General, and to celebrate Canon Avis' Fifth Ordination Anniversary and the First Communion of the children.