Lesson 6 - The Liturgy of the Eucharist

(Lesson 6)

The Mass (Part 2): The Liturgy of the Eucharist

"Take, eat; this is my body…this is my blood” Matt 26:26-28

Discussion Guide:

Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa OFM, the preacher to the household of Pope John Paul II, wrote on the relationship between the , "The Eucharist is a sacrifice and a banquet! It is only when it retains these two aspects of sacrifice and of banquet that the Eucharist fully expresses the nature of the Christian life, which not only involves sacrifice, mortification and renunciation, but also joy and happiness.

Lumen Gentium (Vatican II):

The ministerial priest, by the sacred power that he has, forms and rules the priestly people; in the person of Christ he effects the Eucharistic sacrifice and offers it to God in the name of all the people.

Council of Trent:

1) The Mass is a true and proper sacrifice which is offered to God.

2) The Sacrifice of the Mass is not merely an offering of praise and thanksgiving, or simply a memorial of the sacrifice on the Cross. It is a propitiatory sacrifice which is offered for the living and dead, for the remission of sins and punishment due to sin, as satisfaction for sin and for other necessities.

3) The Sacrifice of the Mass does not detract from the sacrifice which Christ offered on the Cross.

The Real Presence:

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 sacraments tend." In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist "the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained." "This presence is called 'real' - by which is not intended to exclude the other types of presence as if they could not be 'real' too, but because it is presence in the fullest sense: that is to say, it is a substantial presence by which Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly and entirely present." CCC 1374
Because the bread and wine are truly changed into the Body and Blood of Christ, any pieces that are not distributed at the Mass must be either consumed by the priest or stored in a special container called a tabernacle. (The wine must always be consumed.) Roman Catholics worship the Eucharistic species stored in the tabernacle. Especially notable is the practice of genuflection when entering into its presence. A special blessing, called Eucharistic Benediction may be given using the consecrated elements.

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments USCCB

Holy Communion

While the heart of the celebration of the Eucharist is the Eucharistic Prayer, the consummation of the Mass is found in Holy Communion, whereby the people purchased for the Father by his beloved Son eat and drink the Body and Blood of Christ. They are thereby joined together as members of Christ's mystical Body, sharing the one life of the Spirit. In the great sacrament of the altar, they are joined to Christ Jesus and to one another.

It was also Christ's will that this sacrament be received as the soul's spiritual food to sustain and build up those who live with his life, as he said, "He who eats me, he also shall live because of me" (John 6:57). This sacrament is also to be a remedy to free us from our daily defects and to keep us from mortal sin. It was Christ's will, moreover, that this sacrament be a pledge of our future glory and our everlasting happiness and, likewise, a symbol of that one body of which he is the head (cf. Luke 22:19 and 1 Cor 11:3). He willed that we, as members of this body should be united to it by firm bonds of faith, hope and love, so that we might all say the same thing, and that there might be no dissensions among us (cf. 1 Cor 1:10). As Catholics, we fully participate in the celebration of the Eucharist when we receive Holy Communion. We are encouraged to receive Communion devoutly and frequently. In order to be properly disposed to receive Communion, participants should not be conscious of grave sin and normally should have fasted for one hour. A person who is conscious of grave sin is not to receive the Body and Blood of the Lord without prior sacramental confession except for a grave reason where there is no opportunity for confession. In this case, the person is to be mindful of the obligation to make an act of perfect contrition, including the intention of confessing as soon as possible. A frequent reception of the Sacrament of Penance is encouraged for all.

8. Christ is "truly, really, and substantially contained" in Holy Communion. His presence is not momentary nor simply signified, but wholly and permanently real under each of the consecrated species of bread and wine.

9. The Council of Trent teaches that "the true body and blood of our Lord, together with his soul and divinity, exist under the species of bread and wine. His body exists under the species of bread and his blood under the species of wine, according to the import of his words."

10. The Church also teaches and believes that "immediately after the consecration the true body of our Lord and his true blood exist along with his soul and divinity under the form of bread and wine. The body is present under the form of bread and the blood under the form of wine, by virtue of the words [of Christ]. The same body, however, is under the form of wine and the blood under the form of bread, and the soul under either form, by virtue of the natural link and concomitance by which the parts of Christ the Lord, who has now risen from the dead and will die no more, are mutually united."

11. Since, however, by reason of the sign value, sharing in both Eucharistic species reflects more fully the sacred realities that the Liturgy signifies, the Church in her wisdom has made provisions in recent years so that more frequent Eucharistic participation from both the sacred host and the chalice of salvation might be made possible for the laity in the Latin Church.

The Mass (Part2): The Liturgy of the Eucharist

"Take, eat; this is my body…this is my blood” Matt 26:26-28

Opening Prayer:

Father in heaven, help us to have more faith in the real presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Blessed Sacrament. Send us your Holy Spirit to enable us to be more like Your dearly beloved Son. Amen

Theme:

Understanding the meaning of the Last Supper in relation to the Mass. To encourage reverence for the Eucharist and to understand it as both sacrifice and communion. To examine Biblical support for the Catholic teaching of Transubstantiation.

Bible Readings:

Matt 26:26-28 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

1Cor 11:23-29 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 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.

John 6:47-56 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh." The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" So Jesus said to them, "Truly, 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; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.

Explanation of the Bible readings: Jesus made it clear that the sacrifice of the Eucharist was to be celebrated throughout the ages. He instituted the Priesthood at the Last Supper primarily for this purpose. As related in John chapter 6, many people were scandalized by the following saying, “my flesh is real food”. If this was not what Jesus actually meant, he would have clarified the statement rather than lose many disciples. Notice in John chapter 3 how Jesus clarifies a misunderstanding with Nicodemus (John 3:1-11). When the Lord was confronted by a lack of faith in his words regarding the Eucharist, he did not back away from what he originally said. Reverence must be shown for the Blessed Sacrament because it is actually the Lord. Good Friday becomes present at the sacrifice of every Mass! Jesus Christ becomes present on the altar. The sacrifice of the Mass re-presents the same sacrifice as Calvary, but in an unbloody manner.


Matt 26:26-28 Jesus said, ”This is my body and my blood”
1Cor 11:23-29 Do this in remembrance of me
John 6:47-56 My Flesh is real food and my Blood is real drink


Teaching :

Jesus is truly and substantially present in the Blessed Sacrament. It is really He! The Real Presence is the real Jesus. Jesus became flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary and that same flesh is mysteriously present in the Eucharist. Had she not given Him His flesh and blood 2,000 years ago, there could not be a Eucharist today. It is God become man in the fullness of His divine nature, in the fullness of His human nature, and in the fullness of His body and soul. Our Catholic Faith demands that we believe this and accept it as an article of faith. If we believe this, we are truly Catholic. If we do not accept this, we reject the words of the Lord Himself.

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."

1366 The Eucharist is thus a sacrifice because it re-presents (makes present) the sacrifice of the cross, because it is its memorial and because it applies its fruit:
[Christ], our Lord and God, was once and for all to offer himself to God the Father by his death on the altar of the cross, to accomplish there an everlasting redemption. But because his priesthood was not to end with his death, at the Last Supper "on the night when he was betrayed," [he wanted] to leave to his beloved spouse the Church a visible sacrifice (as the nature of man demands) by which the bloody sacrifice which he was to accomplish once for all on the cross would be re-presented, its memory perpetuated until the end of the world, and its salutary power be applied to the forgiveness of the sins we daily commit.

1382 The Mass is at the same time, and inseparably, the sacrificial memorial in which the sacrifice of the cross is perpetuated and the sacred banquet of communion with the Lord's body and blood. But the celebration of the Eucharistic sacrifice is wholly directed toward the intimate union of the faithful with Christ through communion. To receive communion is to receive Christ himself who has offered himself for us.

1383 The altar, around which the Church is gathered in the celebration of the Eucharist, represents the two aspects of the same mystery: the altar of the sacrifice and the table of the Lord. This is all the more so since the Christian altar is the symbol of Christ himself, present in the midst of the assembly of his faithful, both as the victim offered for our reconciliation and as food from heaven who is giving himself to us. "For what is the altar of Christ if not the image of the Body of Christ?" asks St. Ambrose. He says elsewhere, "The altar represents the body [of Christ] and the Body of Christ is on the altar." The liturgy expresses this unity of sacrifice and communion in many prayers….

1409 The Eucharist is the memorial of Christ's Passover, that is, of the work of salvation accomplished by the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, a work made present by the liturgical action.

1410 It is Christ himself, the eternal high priest of the New Covenant who, acting through the ministry of the priests, offers the Eucharistic sacrifice. And it is the same Christ, really present under the species of bread and wine, who is the offering of the Eucharistic sacrifice.

1411 Only validly ordained priests can preside at the Eucharist and consecrate the bread and the wine so that they become the Body and Blood of the Lord.

1412 The essential signs of the Eucharistic sacrament are wheat bread and grape wine, on which the blessing of the Holy Spirit is invoked and the priest pronounces the words of consecration spoken by Jesus during the Last Supper: "This is my body which will be given up for you. . . . This is the cup of my blood. . . ."

1413 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 (cf. Council of Trent: DS 1640; 1651).



Faith words:

Eucharist: The name given to the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar in its twofold aspect of sacrament and Sacrifice of Mass, and in which Jesus Christ is truly present under the bread and wine.

Sacrifice of the Mass: As in the Old Testament the expiatory power of the sacrifice lay in the blood of the victim, so also the expiation for the forgiveness of sins is ascribed to the "Blood of the New Testament" There is thus nothing more precious than the Blood of Christ: ".

Transubstantiation: Defined as "the transition of one thing into another in some aspect of being". The bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ in substance after the consecration. After the consecration, there is no longer any bread left on the altar.

Reflection Questions:

Is it difficult to believe that the bread and wine really become Jesus Christ?









How do you think Holy Communion will help you live your everyday life?









Why do you think Jesus decided to stay with us in the physical presence of the Eucharist?