One bread, one body

One bread, one body. John B. Foley (1939- ). First published in Foley’s Wood Hath Hope (North American Liturgy Resources, 1978, 1997). It is based on 1 Corinthians 10: 16-17. It has a simple ABAB form for the refrain, and a verse that is set to three notes only: yet, in the mouths of a believing assembly, this is transformed to affirm the power of the Eucharist. In addition to the reference from 1 Corinthians, there are fragments from the Didache* (stanza 3 depends on the 9:4 of the Didache) and from Galatians 3: 28 (stanza 1 echoes ‘There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free’). It builds from the words of Institution to embrace the gifts and works united in the one...