Before Vatican II the Roman Catholic mass was generally done in Latin. Roman Catholics believe that the bread (wafer) and wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus Christ when the priest blesses them. When the bread and wine are in place, the preast speaks these words over them: “Habeas Corpus Christi”.

“Habeas” is a latin word that many of us know as part of the legal concept “habeas corpus” which means “produce the body”, that is, Americans have the right not to be held in jail for long without being charged. If we are held too long (e.g. for questioning) then a lawyer can demand that the police produce our body, i.e., let us go.

Most know that “Corpus Christi” is a small town in Texas. “Corpus” is the latin root of our word “corpse” or “body”; “Christi” means Christ”. If we combine the phrase “habeas corpus” with “Corpus Christi” we get to the meaning of “habeas corpus Christi” without knowing any Latin: “produce the body of Christ”.

This moment in a Roman Catholic mass was considered quite mysterious or magical hundreds of years ago when parishioners sometimes didn’t even read. Their constant mispronunciation of the phrase eventually evolved into our “hocus pocus” which is still used to describe something magical or mystical.