Eat This Bread, Drink This Cup

"Eat This Bread, Drink This Cup" is one of those deeply meditative chants from the Taizé community that feels perfectly at home in our Nigerian parishes. Drawing its lyrics directly from the Bread of Life discourse in the Gospel of John, the song is a gentle but profound invitation to the Eucharistic table. The refrain is simple enough for the entire congregation to pick up and sing from the heart, while the choir or a solo cantor can beautifully deliver the verses.

We often bring this piece out during the Communion procession. There is a special kind of reverence it creates in the church as the faithful walk up the aisle. Because the refrain repeats so naturally—"Come to me and never be hungry... trust in me and you will not thirst"—it allows everyone to pray the words without needing to bury their faces in a hymnbook. The four-part harmony in the refrain is warm and grounding, giving the choir a chance to blend smoothly and support the prayerful mood of the Mass.