Eucharist: History and Celebration · Eucharist: History and Celebration You will keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, and then, with the whole community of Israel assembled,

UNIT 3, LESSON 7

Connection to the Catechism of the Catholic Church

ӹ CCC 1324

ӹ CCC 1333-1336

ӹ CCC 1373-1376

Vocabulary ӹ Source and Summit

ӹ Lamb of God

ӹ Passover

Learning Goals ӹ The Eucharist is the “source and summit of the

Christian life.”

ӹ Jesus is the Passover Lamb of God whose sacrifice saves us from sin and death.

ӹ Jesus clearly taught that we must eat His Body and drink His Blood in order to have eternal life.

ӹ The Eucharist is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

ӹ Transubstantiation is the teaching that the bread and wine at Mass cease to be in substance bread and wine and transform into the true Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, while retaining the accidental forms of bread and wine.

ӹ It takes faith to truly recognize Jesus.

Prayer for the LessonLead your students in praying the following prayer each day of the lesson:

Dear Lord Jesus, You gave us your very Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Eucharist. Help us to always receive you worthily and to live as you taught us. Fill us with your love and shower us with your mercy and grace. Amen

Eucharist: History and Celebration

You will keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, and then, with the whole community of Israel assembled, it will be slaughtered during the evening twilight. They will take some of its blood and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They will consume its meat that same night, eating it roasted with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

EXODUS 12:6-8

Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.

JOHN 6:53

BIBLICAL TOUCHSTONES

417

Lesson Plan

Materials ӹ Eucharist Pre-Assessment

ӹ Adoration of the Lamb

ӹ What Is the Eucharist?

ӹ How Do We Receive the Body and Blood of Christ?

ӹ The Eucharist Prefigured

ӹ Transubstantiation

DAY ONEWarm-UpA. Have students turn to Eucharist Pre-

Assessment (page 225) and complete the left column. They will return to this worksheet on the last day of the next lesson to reflect on how their knowledge and understanding have grown.

B. Project Catechism of the Catholic Church no. 1324, and have a student stand and read it aloud:

The Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life.”

C. If needed, discuss the words source and summit, ensuring that students understand them.

D. Ask a student to rephrase the sentence but inverting the order: in other words, with a sentence that begins with “The Christian life…” The Christian life flows from the Eucharist, and the Eucharist is its highest point.

E. Explain to students that the Catechism puts it like this: “The other sacraments, and indeed all … ministries and works … are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself” (CCC 1324). In other words, the whole of the Christian life begins with the Eucharist and is directed toward the Eucharist. It is the “source and summit” of our Faith.

Eucharist Pre-Assessment

Directions: In the left-hand column mark each statement true or false. Mark them again in the right-hand column at the end of our study of the Eucharist to see if you were right.

Before beginning

your study

At the end of

your study

True or False? Statement True or False?

_______________ 1. Jesus instituted the Sacrament of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.

_______________

_______________ 2. Jesus’ teaching on the Bread of Life can be found in the Letter to the Corinthians.

_______________

_______________ 3. You must receive the Eucharist at least once before you turn 18, and at least once more thereafter.

_______________

_______________ 4. The Eucharist is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.

_______________

_______________ 5. In addition to receiving the Eucharist at Holy Mass, we can be with Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration.

_______________

_______________ 6. The Eucharist is the memorial of Christ’s Passover.

_______________

_______________ 7. The Eucharist unites us more closely to Jesus. _______________

_______________ 8. The Church offers the Eucharist to those who would like to receive it, but it is not truly necessary to the Christian life.

_______________

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© SOPHIA INSTITUTE FOR TEACHERS418

LESSON PLAN

ActivityA. Ask if anyone can explain in simple terms what the Eucharist is. It is Jesus’ Body and Blood under

the appearance of bread and wine.

B. Emphasize that Jesus commands us to eat His Body and drink His Blood. In the Gospel of John He tells us in no uncertain terms: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you” (6:53). Why would He tell us to do something that sounds so strange? Allow reasoned answers for now.

C. Explain that you will now look at some of the reasons why it made perfect sense for Jesus to tell us to do these things.

D. Read aloud Exodus 12:3-28 while students follow along.

E. Read it a second time, and this time have them listen for words that they think could apply to Jesus. For example, “without blemish” or “unleavened bread” (if students are familiar with the host).

Formative Assessment A. Have students turn to Adoration of the Lamb (page

227) and discuss the conversation questions in pairs before calling on a few volunteers to share their responses.

B. Ask the class why it is important that the lamb on the altar is standing up, clearly alive and strong. What does this teach us about Jesus and the Eucharist? Jesus is the Resurrection — He is new life. He is both Priest and Victim of the Sacrifice of the Mass. He was raised from the dead, and promises that we will be too, if we eat His flesh and drink His blood.

DAY TWOWarm-UpA. Begin by examining Adoration of the Lamb once more. Then write on the board from Revelation

22:1:

Then the angel showed me the river of life-giving water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.

B. Ask students what connections they can make between this verse and the painting? Note especially the eight-sided baptismal font with the river flowing toward the viewer.

Adoration of the Lamb, by Michiel Coxie (c. 1557-1559)

Directions: Take some time to quietly view and refl ect on the art. Let yourself be inspired in any way that happens naturally. Then think about the questions below, and discuss them with your classmates.

Discussion Questions

1. What do you see happening in this painting?

2. What is on the altar? Whom or what does it symbolize? What is catching its blood?

3. What do you see above the altar? Whom or what does it symbolize?

4. Jesus’ cousin John the Baptist said about Jesus, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Why did John call Jesus a Lamb?

5. Recall the story of the Exodus, when Moses led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. What did God tell the Israelites to do on the night that the Angel of Death passed through Egypt?

6. Jesus instituted a New Passover. What would be the sacrifi ce for this New Covenant?

7. The angels behind the altar are holding a cross with a crown of leaves, a spear, a scourge and a sponge, a column and a rod. What might be the signifi cance of these things?

8. What did the Israelites do with the Passover lamb? (Hint: See Exodus 12:8.)

Adoration of the Lamb

227

Bode-Museum, Berlin.

Adoration of the LambBY MICHIEL COXIE (C. 1557-1559)

226

UNIT 3, LESSON 7 419

LESSON PLAN

ActivityHave students read What Is the Eucharist? (page 228) and answer the focus and reflection questions. Or, read and discuss the activity together as a class.

Formative AssessmentA. Go over the answers to What Is the Eucharist?.

B. Read aloud the information on How Do We Receive the Body and Blood of Christ? (page 230). Have students read this information again at home with their parents and discuss the questions as a family.

DAY THREEWarm-UpA. Have students complete The Eucharist

Prefigured (page 233) in pairs. You may have each pair work on one pair of verses, or have all students complete all four.

B. Invite students to share any interesting insights that came from their discussions at home.

C. Ask if anyone had questions about the doctrine of Transubstantiation. Assure students that it takes faith to believe this mystery. Retell the story of “doubting” St. Thomas, whom Jesus told, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed” (John 20:29).

D. Emphasize that our reason can also help us get closer to understanding this mystery. Project or draw a simple picture of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on the board. Ask your students the following questions:

ӹ What is this?

ӹ What is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich made of?

4. What is a pilgrimage? Why does the Catechism refer to our life on earth as a pilgrimage?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. How does the Eucharist reveal God’s self-giving love?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

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What Is the Eucharist?

Directions: Read the information, then answer the questions that follow.

The Eucharist is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. It is not just a symbol or a

sign but His real Body and Blood. The change of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus is called Transubstantiation. The entire substance of the bread and wine changes, although they appear the same as they did before the change. Validly ordained priests have the power to invoke the Holy Spirit and pronounce the words of consecration when they act in the person of Christ through the power of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. “By the consecration the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is brought about. Under the consecrated species of bread and wine Christ himself, living and glorious, is present in a true, real, and substantial manner: his Body and his Blood, with his soul and his divinity” (CCC 1413).

The bread and wine are not symbols of Jesus’ Body. The Baltimore Catechism explains one of the ways we know this: “Christ could not have used clearer, more explicit words than

‘This is My body.’ He did not say, ‘This is a sign of My body’ or ‘This represents My body,’ but, ‘This is My body.’ Catholics take Christ at His word because He is the omnipotent God. On His word they know that the Holy Eucharist is the body and blood of Christ.”

What Are Its Fruits?When we receive Holy Communion, we grow closer to Christ. The Eucharist helps us avoid sin and strengthens our charity. It helps us to see the face of Jesus in the poor.

The Catechism explains, “Participation in the Holy Sacrifi ce identifi es us with [Jesus’] Heart, sustains our strength along the pilgrimage of this life, makes us long for eternal life, and unites us even now to the Church in heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and all the saints” (CCC 1419).

We will learn much more about the effects of the Eucharist, as well as how we should receive it, in the coming days.

1. What is the Eucharist? _________________________________________________________________________

2. How do we know it is the Body and Blood of Jesus?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. The Eucharist helps us to see the face of Jesus in the poor. Why would that be important?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

228

Conversation Questions1. What is the Eucharist? What are some ways we know it is not just a symbol?

2. Did anything in this reading surprise you?

3. Did anything in this reading give you ideas for how you can approach Jesus more reverently each time you go to Mass?

4. Did this reading spark any ideas for things you can do to grow closer to Christ?


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doesn’t mean fi rst-year medical students are bad people; it just means they don’t belong in an operating room unsupervised. They don’t understand yet how to use the tools of a surgeon. In the same way, not believing and practicing the Catholic Faith does not make someone a bad person, but it means that he or she should not receive the Eucharist. Anyone who isn’t fully initiated into the life of the Church cannot receive the gifts the Eucharist offers.

When we receive the Eucharist, the priest says, “The Body of Christ,” and we respond, “Amen,” which means “so be it,” or “I agree.” For this reason, it would be a lie for non-Catholics and others who do not believe the Eucharist is the Lord to receive the Eucharist.

The Catechism and canon law provide for very limited circumstances in which, in case of “grave necessity,” such as the danger of death, Sacraments may be administered to those who ask, “provided that they manifest Catholic faith … and are properly disposed” (CIC 844 § 4).

Catholics in a state of mortal sin also may not receive the Eucharist. When we receive the Eucharist — the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ — into our souls, our souls should be ready to give Him a good, pure home. Our souls should be in the state of grace to receive Him worthily. If we are in the state of mortal sin and receive the Eucharist, we commit sacrilege, treating a sacred object unworthily, as if we don’t care. Sacrilege violates the fi rst commandment. Confession restores grace to the soul and purifi es the soul for the Eucharist.

Why should we receive Communion often?Just as we need to eat and drink several times a day to maintain our physical strength, so we also need to receive the Eucharist to feed the soul. The very Body of Christ, the Eucharist, strengthens and nourishes the Body of Christ — the Church — whose members are gathered in the Eucharistic celebration. When we eat food, our bodies receive the nourishment they need to maintain strength. When we eat the Eucharist, our souls receive the nourishment they need to maintain strength.

Frequent reception of the Eucharist, explains the Catechism, increases charity in our daily life, and that charity allows us to root ourselves in Christ (CCC 1394). Frequent reception of the Eucharist helps us to reach our spiritual goals and to avoid those things that lead us to sin.

Catholics are required to receive Communion at least once a year, but the Church warmly invites us to receive it much more often: every week, even every day! We should not think of the Eucharist as just a “requirement” in any case. St. Jean Vianney said, “If we really understood the Mass, we would die of joy.” The next time you go to Mass, recall the words of this saint and try to focus your mind on the awesome gift Jesus is offering you. You will fi nd that the more you do this, the more you will look forward to the time you give to Jesus each week and allow Him to love you in the Eucharist.

231

How Do We Receive the Body and Blood of Christ?

Directions: Read and discuss the information below with your parents, and discuss the questions that follow as a family.

How do we receive the Body of Christ?You can receive the Eucharist on your tongue (the ordinary way), a traditional sign of our humility before God and an acknowledgment that it is Christ who feeds us. You may also receive Communion in your hands (the optional way). If you do so, you should make sure your hands are clean and empty, placing your left hand fl at over your right, and that you put the host in your mouth right away rather than waiting until you return to your pew.

We should receive — never take — the Eucharist in a way that demonstrates the respect and awe we have for God. Some of the other ways we do this include:

ӹ fasting for at least one hour before receiving Communion, except for water and medicine.

ӹ dressing appropriately for Mass as a sign of respect.

ӹ genufl ecting toward the Real Presence of Jesus in the tabernacle before we enter a pew.

ӹ focusing our minds and hearts on the mystery we are about to encounter.

ӹ receiving reverently.

ӹ kneeling in prayer when we return to our pew after receiving until the sacred

vessels have been purifi ed; for example, you could pray the Anima Christi, a prayer from the 14th century:

Soul of Christ, sanctify me.

Body of Christ, save me.

Blood of Christ, inebriate me.

Water from the side of Christ, wash me.

Passion of Christ, strengthen me.

O good Jesus, hear me.

Within Thy wounds hide me.

Suffer me not to be separated from Thee.

From the malicious enemy defend me.

In the hour of my death call me.

And bid me come unto Thee

That I may praise Thee with Thy saints

and with Thy angels

Forever and ever.

Amen.

Who can receive Communion?Non-Catholics and Catholics who are in a state of mortal sin may not receive Communion. This may cause some to feel excluded. So why does the Church insist on this rule? There are several good reasons.

Our culture emphasizes inclusion, which can be a good thing. But there are times when there are good reasons to exclude certain people. A fi rst-year medical student should be excluded from operating on patients. This

230

Verse Pair 3Then [Moses] took the blood and splashed it on the people, saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you according to all these words.” –EXODUS 24:8

He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.” -MARK 14:24

How does each verse help us understand the other in new ways?

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_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Verse Pair 4A day of the LORD is coming. …[L]iving water will fl ow out from Jerusalem. –ZECHARIAH 14:1 , 8 (NIV )

[O]ne soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water fl owed out. -JOHN 19:34


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

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234

Verse Pair 1Then the LORD said to Moses: “I am going to rain down bread from heaven for you.”–EXODUS 16:4

I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my fl esh for the life of the world. –JOHN 6:48–51


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Verse Pair 2My cup overfl ows. Indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life. –PSALM 23:5B-6

This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you. –LUKE 22:20B


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Eucharist Prefi gured

Directions: St. Augustine said, “The New Testament lies hidden in the Old, and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.” Read each pair of Scripture passages and write a one-paragraph refl ection on how this St. Augustine quote applies: How does each verse help us understand the other in new ways?

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LESSON PLAN

ӹ Who or what made the sandwich?

ӹ What is the sandwich for?

E. Explain to your students that St. Thomas Aquinas (a brilliant theologian who lived in the 11th century and believed that what we know by faith and what we know by the power of human reason are compatible and complementary) and many ancient Greek philosophers such as Aristotle, believed that you could fully explain something, even if they could not penetrate the mystery, by answering four basic questions about that thing.

F. Write the following four questions on the board:

ӹ What is it?

ӹ What is it made of?

ӹ Who or what made it or caused it to happen?

ӹ What is it for?

G. Explain that these four questions are known as the “four causes” and that if you can answer each question successfully and satisfactorily then you have fully explained the thing you’re trying to explain.

H. Now go through the same exercise with the following items (and add your own based on student interest):

1. A table

2. A chair

3. The Statue of Liberty

Activity and Assessment Have students turn to Transubstantiation (page 235). Read the essay and discuss the focus questions together as a class. Help students to understand that in the Eucharist the bread and wine are no longer in substance bread and wine, but actually become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, while retaining the accidental forms of bread and wine, such as the look, taste, and smell of bread and wine.

Refl ection Question

Why is the Eucharist not just a symbol or an idea?

______________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________

5. What is an accidental form? Give an example.

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6. What happens if you change an accidental form of something?

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7. What are the two root words of the word “Transubstantiation”?

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8. What does the word “Transubstantiation” mean?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

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9. How does the word “Transubstantiation” help explain what happens in the Eucharist?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

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something what it is. Color, for example, only makes a chair red, or blue, or green. It does not make a chair a chair, or something else instead. You can even change the accidents of a thing, and it will still be that thing. You can paint a red chair blue, or replace a wooden chair’s legs with plastic, and it still remains a chair.

What does any of this have to do with the Eucharist? On one hand, it is enough just to know that by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus’ Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity become truly present under the appearances of bread and wine. On the other hand, we can describe what happens at Mass during the consecration using the ideas we just learned: substantial forms and accidents.

At Mass, the change of bread and wine into the Real Presence of Jesus is called “Trans ubstantiation.” If you look closely at the word Transubstantiation, it is made of two parts: the prefi x trans, which means change,

and the root word substance. In other words, Transubstantiation is a “change of substance.”

In the Eucharist, the substantial forms of the bread and wine are transformed into the substantial form of Christ’s Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. That means, the essential characteristics of bread and wine are changed into the essential characteristics of the Body and Blood of Jesus. The now consecrated hosts, however, keep the accidents of bread and wine. In other words, the look, smell, taste, size, shape, and so forth of bread and wine remain. This is why at Mass the bread still looks and tastes like bread. But, hidden beneath those non-essential characteristics of bread and wine is Jesus’ Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity.

The Eucharist is 100% Jesus Christ, in substance. It is not just a symbol or an idea. We truly receive Jesus when we receive the Eucharist, just as He told us that He would give us His Flesh to eat and His Blood to drink as true food for the nourishment of our souls.

1. What are the words the priest says at Mass at the Eucharist called?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. What happens to the bread and wine when the priest speaks these words?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

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3. What is a substantial form? Describe the substantial form of a chair.

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4. What happens if you change the substantial form of something?

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236

Transubstantiation

Directions: Read the essay and complete the focus and refl ection questions.

At Mass, when the priest says the words of consecration, “This is my body which will

be given up for you … this is the cup of my blood …,” the bread and wine literally become the Body and Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ. This is a diffi cult teaching to understand. The Eucharist still looks like bread and wine and when we receive it, it still tastes like bread and wine. But it is truly no longer bread and wine. It has become Jesus’ Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. How does this happen?

We can think about what is necessary for something to be what it is and not something else. For example, what makes a chair a chair rather than a table? A chair has certain necessary characteristics that make it a chair. It does not possess the characteristics to be a table. These necessary characteristics are called “substantial forms.” The substantial form of a chair is its “chair-ness.” In other words, the substantial form of a chair is what is necessary for a chair to be a chair and not a table, or a banana, or something else entirely. Normally, you cannot change the substantial form of something without changing that thing into something else completely. If you change the substantial form of a chair, it would no longer be a chair. You could take it apart and use the wood and nails to make something else. Then it would become a table, or a stool, or something else entirely.

We can also think about characteristics of something that do NOT make it what it is. For example, what a chair is made of does

not make it a chair. A chair can be made of wood, or metal, or plastic, or many other types of material. A chair is also not a chair because of its color. A chair could be colored red, or blue, or green. What a chair is made of or what color it is doesn’t make a chair what it is. These sorts of characteristics are called “accidents.” The word “accident” simply means that even though the characteristic is a part of something, it does not make that

Holy Mass: Heaven, Earth, Purgatory.

235




Before beginning

your study

At the end of

your study



_______________


_______________


_______________


_______________


_______________


_______________



_______________

225

Answer Key1. True

2. False

3. False

4. True

5. True

6. True

7. True

8. False


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226



Directions: Take some time to quietly view and refl ect on the art. Let yourself be inspired in any way that happens naturally. Then think about the questions below, and discuss them with your classmates.







6. Jesus instituted a New Passover. What would be the sacrifi ce for this New Covenant?

7. The angels behind the altar are holding a cross with a crown of leaves, a spear, a scourge and a sponge, a column and a rod. What might be the signifi cance of these things?



227

Answer Key1. The scene appears

to show various groups of people worshipping a lamb.

2. A lamb/Jesus Christ/A chalice.

3. A dove/the Holy Spirit.

4. One reason could be that lambs are gentle, pure, innocent, and meek. Another reason is that Jesus would become the new Paschal lamb and save us from sin by His sacrificial Death on the Cross.

5. On the night that the Angel of Death passed through Egypt and killed the firstborn of every family, the Israelites were told by God to sacrifice a lamb according to specific instructions as a sign for God to “pass over” their homes and spare their firstborn.

6. Now, instead of a lamb for the sacrifice, Jesus Himself would be the once-and-for-all sacrifice, the Lamb of God that would spare all God’s people from the slavery of sin.

7. They all connect to Christ’s Passion.

8. They were to eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.









The Catechism explains, “Participation in the Holy Sacrifi ce identifi es us with [Jesus’] Heart, sustains our strength along the pilgrimage of this life, makes us long for eternal life, and unites us even now to the Church in heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and all the saints” (CCC 1419).




___________________________________________________________________________________________________


___________________________________________________________________________________________________

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228

Answer Key1. The Body, Blood,

Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

2. Because He told us in very clear terms.

3. Jesus has told us that the way we treat the poor is the way we treat Him. We are commanded to love God above all and to love our neighbor as ourselves.



___________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________


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229

Answer Key4. A journey to a

new home, or any journey to a religious site for a religion purpose. We are pilgrims in this life because our true home is Heaven.

5. The Sacrament of the Eucharist shows God’s life-giving love because each Holy Mass is a re-presentation of Christ’s sacrifice. He offered Himself for all of humanity.




How do we receive the Body of Christ?You can receive the Eucharist on your tongue (the ordinary way), a traditional sign of our humility before God and an acknowledgment that it is Christ who feeds us. You may also receive Communion in your hands (the optional way). If you do so, you should make sure your hands are clean and empty, placing your left hand fl at over your right, and that you put the host in your mouth right away rather than waiting until you return to your pew.




ӹ genufl ecting toward the Real Presence of Jesus in the tabernacle before we enter a pew.




vessels have been purifi ed; for example, you could pray the Anima Christi, a prayer from the 14th century:













and with Thy angels

Forever and ever.

Amen.


Our culture emphasizes inclusion, which can be a good thing. But there are times when there are good reasons to exclude certain people. A fi rst-year medical student should be excluded from operating on patients. This

230


doesn’t mean fi rst-year medical students are bad people; it just means they don’t belong in an operating room unsupervised. They don’t understand yet how to use the tools of a surgeon. In the same way, not believing and practicing the Catholic Faith does not make someone a bad person, but it means that he or she should not receive the Eucharist. Anyone who isn’t fully initiated into the life of the Church cannot receive the gifts the Eucharist offers.



Catholics in a state of mortal sin also may not receive the Eucharist. When we receive the Eucharist — the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ — into our souls, our souls should be ready to give Him a good, pure home. Our souls should be in the state of grace to receive Him worthily. If we are in the state of mortal sin and receive the Eucharist, we commit sacrilege, treating a sacred object unworthily, as if we don’t care. Sacrilege violates the fi rst commandment. Confession restores grace to the soul and purifi es the soul for the Eucharist.



Catholics are required to receive Communion at least once a year, but the Church warmly invites us to receive it much more often: every week, even every day! We should not think of the Eucharist as just a “requirement” in any case. St. Jean Vianney said, “If we really understood the Mass, we would die of joy.” The next time you go to Mass, recall the words of this saint and try to focus your mind on the awesome gift Jesus is offering you. You will fi nd that the more you do this, the more you will look forward to the time you give to Jesus each week and allow Him to love you in the Eucharist.

231







232

Students should discuss these questions with their parents.


Verse Pair 1Then the LORD said to Moses: “I am going to rain down bread from heaven for you.”–EXODUS 16:4

I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my fl esh for the life of the world. –JOHN 6:48–51


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Verse Pair 2My cup overfl ows. Indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life. –PSALM 23:5B-6



_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Eucharist Prefi gured

Directions: St. Augustine said, “The New Testament lies hidden in the Old, and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.” Read each pair of Scripture passages and write a one-paragraph refl ection on how this St. Augustine quote applies: How does each verse help us understand the other in new ways?

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Answer KeyVerse Pair 1 Accept reasoned answers illuminating the meaning of the word bread. The Israelites ate manna, a bread that sustained them temporarily. Jesus offers us His Body for eternal life.

Verse Pair 2 Accept reasoned answers illuminating the meaning of the word cup. The “cup” can be understood as life in Christ, in all His goodness and mercy.





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Verse Pair 4A day of the LORD is coming. …[L]iving water will fl ow out from Jerusalem. –ZECHARIAH 14:1 , 8 (NIV )

[O]ne soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water fl owed out. -JOHN 19:34


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Answer KeyVerse Pair 3 Accept reasoned answers illuminating the meaning of the words blood and covenant. Students should recognize that Jesus’ Blood takes the place of the blood of the lamb in the New Covenant. This is one reason we call Him the Lamb of God.

Verse Pair 4 Accept reasoned answers illuminating the meaning of the word water. We will never thirst if we seek the living waters of Jesus Christ.


Transubstantiation

Directions: Read the essay and complete the focus and refl ection questions.


be given up for you … this is the cup of my blood …,” the bread and wine literally become the Body and Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ. This is a diffi cult teaching to understand. The Eucharist still looks like bread and wine and when we receive it, it still tastes like bread and wine. But it is truly no longer bread and wine. It has become Jesus’ Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. How does this happen?





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At Mass, the change of bread and wine into the Real Presence of Jesus is called “Trans ubstantiation.” If you look closely at the word Transubstantiation, it is made of two parts: the prefi x trans, which means change,





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Answer Key1. The words of

consecration.

2. The bread and wine literally become the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

3. The necessary qualities for something to be what it is. The “chair-ness” of a chair.

4. It changes into something else completely.


Refl ection Question


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Answer Key5. Qualities of

something that, although they might be a part of that thing, do not make that thing what it is. The color of a chair, or the material it is made of.

6. The thing remains what it is. Painting a blue chair red does not change the chair into something else.

7. Transformation and substance.

8. A transformation of substance.

9. In the Eucharist, the substantial forms of the bread and wine are transformed into the substantial form of Christ’s Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. The bread and wine are literally no longer bread and wine. They do, however, keep the accidental forms of bread and wine.

Reflection Question: Because we truly receive Jesus when we receive the Eucharist, just as He told us that He would give us His flesh to eat and His Blood to drink as true food for the nourishment of our souls.




Before beginning

your study

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Unit 3, Lesson 7 225

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Unit 3, Lesson 7226


Directions: Take some time to quietly view and reflect on the art. Let yourself be inspired in any way that happens naturally. Then think about the questions below, and discuss them with your classmates.







6. Jesus instituted a New Passover. What would be the sacrifice for this New Covenant?

7. The angels behind the altar are holding a cross with a crown of leaves, a spear, a scourge and a sponge, a column and a rod. What might be the significance of these things?











The Catechism explains, “Participation in the Holy Sacrifice identifies us with [Jesus’] Heart, sustains our strength along the pilgrimage of this life, makes us long for eternal life, and unites us even now to the Church in heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and all the saints” (CCC 1419).




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How do we receive the Body of Christ?You can receive the Eucharist on your tongue (the ordinary way), a traditional sign of our humility before God and an acknowledgment that it is Christ who feeds us. You may also receive Communion in your hands (the optional way). If you do so, you should make sure your hands are clean and empty, placing your left hand flat over your right, and that you put the host in your mouth right away rather than waiting until you return to your pew.




ӹ genuflecting toward the Real Presence of Jesus in the tabernacle before we enter a pew.




vessels have been purified; for example, you could pray the Anima Christi, a prayer from the 14th century:













and with Thy angels

Forever and ever.

Amen.


Our culture emphasizes inclusion, which can be a good thing. But there are times when there are good reasons to exclude certain people. A first-year medical student should be excluded from operating on patients. This

Unit 3, Lesson 7230

doesn’t mean first-year medical students are bad people; it just means they don’t belong in an operating room unsupervised. They don’t understand yet how to use the tools of a surgeon. In the same way, not believing and practicing the Catholic Faith does not make someone a bad person, but it means that he or she should not receive the Eucharist. Anyone who isn’t fully initiated into the life of the Church cannot receive the gifts the Eucharist offers.



Catholics in a state of mortal sin also may not receive the Eucharist. When we receive the Eucharist — the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ — into our souls, our souls should be ready to give Him a good, pure home. Our souls should be in the state of grace to receive Him worthily. If we are in the state of mortal sin and receive the Eucharist, we commit sacrilege, treating a sacred object unworthily, as if we don’t care. Sacrilege violates the first commandment. Confession restores grace to the soul and purifies the soul for the Eucharist.



Catholics are required to receive Communion at least once a year, but the Church warmly invites us to receive it much more often: every week, even every day! We should not think of the Eucharist as just a “requirement” in any case. St. Jean Vianney said, “If we really understood the Mass, we would die of joy.” The next time you go to Mass, recall the words of this saint and try to focus your mind on the awesome gift Jesus is offering you. You will find that the more you do this, the more you will look forward to the time you give to Jesus each week and allow Him to love you in the Eucharist.







Unit 3, Lesson 7232

Verse Pair 1Then the LORD said to Moses: “I am going to rain down bread from heaven for you.” –EXODUS 16:4

I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. –JOHN 6:48–51


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Verse Pair 2My cup overflows. Indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life. –PSALM 23:5B-6



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The Eucharist Prefigured

Directions: St. Augustine said, “The New Testament lies hidden in the Old, and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.” Read each pair of Scripture passages and write a one-paragraph reflection on how this St. Augustine quote applies: How does each verse help us understand the other in new ways?





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Verse Pair 4A day of the LORD is coming. …[L]iving water will flow out from Jerusalem. –ZECHARIAH 14:1 , 8 (NIV )

[O]ne soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out. -JOHN 19:34


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Unit 3, Lesson 7234

Transubstantiation

Directions: Read the essay and complete the focus and reflection questions.


be given up for you … this is the cup of my blood …,” the bread and wine literally become the Body and Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ. This is a difficult teaching to understand. The Eucharist still looks like bread and wine and when we receive it, it still tastes like bread and wine. But it is truly no longer bread and wine. It has become Jesus’ Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. How does this happen?








At Mass, the change of bread and wine into the Real Presence of Jesus is called “Transubstantiation.” If you look closely at the word Transubstantiation, it is made of two parts: the prefix trans, which means change,





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Documents

Eucharist: History and Celebration · Eucharist: History and Celebration You will keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, and then, with the whole community of Israel assembled,