Lesson 23 - Holy Communion

(Lesson 23)

Holy Communion

“Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” Rev 19:9

Discussion Guide:

The actual reception of the Sacrament of the Eucharist is commonly referred to as Holy Communion. When we receive this sacrament, we are following the commandment of our Lord. It is the one sacrament that not only confers grace but also contains the source of grace, namely Jesus Christ. When believers receive this sacrament, they are united to Christ and to all Catholics around the world who share the same faith and the same hierarchy of leadership. We are encouraged to receive the Eucharist often. Jesus gives us the “Bread of Life” to strengthen us during our earthly pilgrimage. At Communion, when we say “Amen”, we acknowledge his real presence before us. We must make a gesture of reverence such as bowing or genuflecting before we receive. It is vital that we never disrespect the Eucharist. A fast of at least one hour is to precede the reception of the Blessed Sacrament. Holy Communion is known as Viaticum when given to a person near death. It is called “food for the journey”. When a person is in danger of death, the sacrament may be received quite often in a short period of time.

Since the Eucharist is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, we must be in a state of grace to receive it. That means that if we are conscious of mortal sin, we must receive the sacrament of Reconciliation before we approach Communion. A validly ordained Catholic priest must consecrate the host. Deacons and extraordinary ministers may distribute Communion if the circumstances warrant it. Only members of the Catholic faith can receive communion in the Catholic Church. Likewise, we may not receive communion at unauthorized churches. In the Latin rite, this sacrament is normally administered when a child reaches the age of reason and has received basic instruction in the faith. They do not have to be mature in their understanding of the faith. They have to know the difference between right and wrong and understand that Christ is really present in the sacrament.

Discussion Points:

· The word Eucharist means “thanksgiving”; from the Greek word eucharistein

· The sacrament was instituted by Jesus Christ at the last supper (Matt 26:26-29)

· Communion gives us sanctifying grace and binds us to the Catholic community

· The Mass is a sacrifice as well as a communion meal

· Reverence is shown because the Eucharist is really and substantially Jesus Christ

· Only wheat bread and grape wine can be used for the sacrament

· A validly ordained Catholic priest is needed to consecrate the host

· Deacons and extraordinary ministers may assist in distributing Communion

· We must be in a state of grace to receive Holy Communion

· Viaticum is the name given to communion for a person near death

48th INTERNATIONAL EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS (Oct. 2004)

“The Eucharist, Light and Life of the New Millennium”

10. Can we really meet Jesus in the Eucharist? Since the Last Supper (cf. Mt 26:17ss; Lk 22:15), the Church believes in the real presence of Christ’s body and blood with his soul and divinity under the appearances of bread and wine: “At the heart of the celebration are the bread and wine that, by the words of Christ and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, become Christ’s Body and Blood” (CCC 1333). Certainly Christ makes himself present in many ways in his Church, but above all, as the Church teaches, under the Eucharistic species of the bread and wine (cf. CCC 1373).

11. Recalling a chain of witnesses from Tradition, the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that “the mode of Christ’s presence under the Eucharistic species is unique. It raises the Eucharist above all the sacraments as ‘the perfection of the spiritual life and the end to which all the sacraments tend’ (CCC 1374). The Church has always understood the realism of Jesus’ words at the time of the institution of the Eucharist, because of which the Council of Trent summarized the Catholic faith in the Real Presence by declaring: “Because Christ our Redeemer said that it was truly his body that he was offering under the species of bread, it has always been the conviction of the Church of God, and this holy Council now declares again” (CCC 1376).

12. Jesus’ discourse at Capernaum after the multiplication of the loaves (cf. Jn 6:1-71), brings out the realism of his words, which reveal to us that he is the bread come down from heaven (v. 51). Because of this, we must eat his body and drink his blood (v. 53) in order to be able to enjoy the life that is offered to us by the bread of life (v. 48). So struck by the realism of Jesus’ words people began to argue: “how can he give us his flesh to eat?” (v. 52). And in the face of Christ’s insistence on the literal truth of his statements: “because my flesh is real food and my blood real drink” (v. 55), many of his disciples were scandalized to such a degree that they left him (v. 66). At the end of the discourse he even asked his disciples if they too wanted to depart. Peter’s words show Jesus that they believed in the truth of his words: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (v. 68). Sadly, many have not and do not believe in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharistic bread (v. 64). At the beginning of the Third Millennium the Church has to ask: Why is it difficult to discover the face of Jesus in the Eucharist? What has to be done in order that more people may appreciate and enjoy this Christ who handed himself over to us? What must be done so that people may adore him in silence before the tabernacle or solemnly acclaim him at the feast of Corpus Christi?

23. The Church has often spoken of the culture of life, presenting us with the incomparable value of the whole human person and how “the Gospel of God’s love for humanity, the Gospel of the dignity of the person and the Gospel of life are a single and indivisible Gospel”. The Eucharist, Bread of eternal life, leads us to proclaim again that the value of human life is sacred from its conception unto its natural term of death. In every encounter with the Eucharist, Jesus reminds us: “Respect, protect, love and serve life, every human life!”

Holy Communion

“Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” Rev 19:9

Opening Prayer:

Lord Jesus, You gave us the Eucharist as the memorial of Your suffering and death. Help us to grow in faith, hope and love through the reception of Holy Communion. Amen

Theme:

Holy Communion unites us to Jesus Christ and to the entire Catholic community. We must approach the sacrament with reverence and respect. Jesus Christ is substantially present under the appearance of bread and wine. We must be in a state of grace to receive Holy Communion.

Bible Readings:

John 6:33-34 For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven, and gives life to the world." They said to him, "Lord, give us this bread always." Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst.

1 Corinthians 10:17-17 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.

1 Corinthians 11:28-29 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.

Explanation of the Bible readings: St. John tells us that the disciples asked Jesus to always give them the Bread of Life. Jesus gives us himself in Holy Communion. This will continue until he comes again in glory. The second reading explains that we are all members of the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church. A community must share a common faith to remaining one body. Factions and divisions indicate a break or weakness in the body of Christ. We all need to accept the teachings of the Catholic faith in their entirety for the body to remain strong. The sacrament gives us the grace necessary to live out the Christian faith. St. Paul describes the proper disposition a believer must have before the reception of the Eucharist. Profaning the sacrament is a serious sin. We need to be in a state of grace before receiving Jesus in Holy Communion.

Luke 22:17 Take this and divide it among yourselves
Ephesians 4:5 One faith, One Baptism
Acts 2:44 They who believed had all things in common

Catechism of the Catholic Church:

1365 Because it is the memorial of Christ's Passover, the Eucharist is also a sacrifice. The sacrificial character of the Eucharist is manifested in the very words of institution: "This is my body which is given for you" and "This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood." In the Eucharist Christ gives us the very body which he gave up for us on the cross, the very blood which he "poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

"Take this and eat it, all of you": communion

1384 The Lord addresses an invitation to us, urging us to receive him in the sacrament of the Eucharist: "Truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you."

1385 To respond to this invitation we must prepare ourselves for so great and so holy a moment. St. Paul urges us to examine our conscience: "Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.” Anyone conscious of a grave sin must receive the sacrament of Reconciliation before coming to communion.

1386 Before so great a sacrament, the faithful can only echo humbly and with ardent faith the words of the Centurion:…“Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul will be healed."

1387 To prepare for worthy reception of this sacrament, the faithful should observe the fast required in their Church. Bodily demeanor (gestures, clothing) ought to convey the respect, solemnity, and joy of this moment when Christ becomes our guest.

1388 It is in keeping with the very meaning of the Eucharist that the faithful, if they have the required dispositions, receive communion when they participate in the Mass. As the Second Vatican Council says: "That more perfect form of participation in the Mass whereby the faithful, after the priest's communion, receive the Lord's Body from the same sacrifice, is warmly recommended."

1389 The Church obliges the faithful to take part in the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and feast days and, prepared by the sacrament of Reconciliation, to receive the Eucharist at least once a year, if possible during the Easter season. But the Church strongly encourages the faithful to receive the holy Eucharist on Sundays and feast days, or more often still, even daily.

1390 Since Christ is sacramentally present under each of the species, communion under the species of bread alone makes it possible to receive all the fruit of Eucharistic grace. For pastoral reasons this manner of receiving communion has been legitimately established as the most common form in the Latin rite. But "the sign of communion is more complete when given under both kinds, since in that form the sign of the Eucharistic meal appears more clearly." This is the usual form of receiving communion in the Eastern rites.

The fruits of Holy Communion

1391 Holy Communion augments our union with Christ. The principal fruit of receiving the Eucharist in Holy Communion is an intimate union with Christ Jesus. Indeed, the Lord said: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. "Life in Christ has its foundation in the Eucharistic banquet: "As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me."….

1392 What material food produces in our bodily life, Holy Communion wonderfully achieves in our spiritual life…. This growth in Christian life needs the nourishment of Eucharistic Communion, the bread for our pilgrimage until the moment of death, when it will be given to us as viaticum.

1393 Holy Communion separates us from sin. The body of Christ we receive in Holy Communion is "given up for us," and the blood we drink "shed for the many for the forgiveness of sins." For this reason the Eucharist cannot unite us to Christ without at the same time cleansing us from past sins and preserving us from future sins:

For as often as we eat this bread and drink the cup, we proclaim the death of the Lord. If we proclaim the Lord's death, we proclaim the forgiveness of sins. If, as often as his blood is poured out, it is poured for the forgiveness of sins, I should always receive it, so that it may always forgive my sins. Because I always sin, I should always have a remedy.

1394 As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity, which tends to be weakened in daily life; and this living charity wipes away venial sins. By giving himself to us Christ revives our love and enables us to break our disordered attachments to creatures and root ourselves in him:…

1395 By the same charity that it enkindles in us, the Eucharist preserves us from future mortal sins. The more we share the life of Christ and progress in his friendship, the more difficult it is to break away from him by mortal sin. The Eucharist is not ordered to the forgiveness of mortal sins - that is proper to the sacrament of Reconciliation. The Eucharist is properly the sacrament of those who are in full communion with the Church.

1396 The unity of the Mystical Body: the Eucharist makes the Church. Those who receive the Eucharist are united more closely to Christ. Through it Christ unites them to all the faithful in one body - the Church….

1397 The Eucharist commits us to the poor. To receive in truth the Body and Blood of Christ given up for us, we must recognize Christ in the poorest, his brethren:

1517 …As the sacrament of Christ's Passover the Eucharist should always be the last sacrament of the earthly journey, the "viaticum" for "passing over" to eternal life.

Faith words:

Mystical Body: Those who believe, practice, and live by the faith make up the Mystical Body of Christ, which is the Church

Viaticum: The form of Holy Communion given to a person who is close to death. It literally means "food for the journey" and If at all possible, Catholics are obligated to receive the viaticum before dying and to help procure it for others who are dying.

Reflection Questions:

What are some of the spiritual effects of Holy Communion?









What are some of the signs of reverence toward the Eucharist that you observe at Mass?









Why must you be in a state of grace to receive the Blessed Sacrament?