What happens if the priest does not say "This is my body"?

[potato]

I recently attended Mass as part of a school reunion. At the time of the consecration, the priest said: “… took bread and gave it to his disciples saying: ‘do this in memory of me’; then he took the cup and said ‘This is the cup of my blood of the new covenant which will be shed for you.’” I am certain he did not say “This is my body” and I am certain that he did say “This is my blood.” I was not in doubt about the omission, just in doubt about what if anything I should do. I have no reason to believe he intentionally left out the words “This is my body,” and in fact in his sermon he clearly expressed the Church’s faith in the Real Presence of our Lord in the Eucharist. Was the bread turned into the body of Christ? And should I have spoken up when he started the words of consecration for the wine?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

If the priest omitted the words “This is my body,” then the consecration did not occur. This is particularly serious because the adoration given the host after the consecration is predicated on the fact that transubstantiation has occurred and that Jesus is sacramentally present. If he is not present, then adoration given an unconsecrated host is idolatry (albeit unintentional if no one realizes what happened).

I can only recommend telling the priest what occurred. At the time, you could have gone up to the altar at the very next appropriate moment (e.g., when the EMHCs approach the altar to help distribute Communion) and quietly informed the priest that he had inadvertently omitted “This is my body.” Even now, you could approach the priest and tell him what happened, in the hopes that he will be more careful in the future. In both cases, only do this if you are absolutely certain that the priest did not say the words of consecration. If you could be mistaken, then err on the side of giving the priest the benefit of the doubt.