David Madril
Mrs. Layman Sacraments
25 September 2015
Meeting Jesus in the Sacrament Summer Reading Essay
During my reading of Meeting Jesus in the Sacraments, I reflected on my journey as a
Catholic. Although I do not remember my baptism it is an important part of my life. I was baptized on August 12, 2000 and it welcomed me into the Catholic family. As Pope Francis emphasized, the Sacrament of Baptism initiates all of the Sacraments we receive on our journey as Catholics. “And with the grace of Baptism and of Eucharistic Communion I can become an instrument of God’s mercy, of that beautiful mercy of God.” (Francis, p.52) Baptism gives us a new sense of identification and grants us forgiveness of sin. We are all on a journey to heavenly
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Jesus Christ becomes our meal where we gather to learn about Jesus and to learn of His sacrifice. Act of God and man together is represented every time we celebrate the Eucharist. It is a wonderful thanksgiving. Celebrating the Eucharist also confirms our community relationships. We share our belonging to Jesus during First communion. ”It is important that every child be prepared well for their first communion and that every child receive it, because it is the first step of this intense belonging to Jesus Christ, after baptism and confirmation.” (Francis, …show more content…
When we go to confession the priest represents our brothers and sisters in Christ and he represents Christ also. My feelings towards confession changed because now I realize that the more that I go to confession the more unburdened my soul will be. I will start thinking about confession in a more positive way. No longer will I feel ashamed or scared before I go. I know that after confession I will be relieved of the burdens of my sins and I will be on the right path to redemption. My shame is actually a gift because I am not hiding anything from myself or from the Lord. My family has experienced the Anointing of the Sick first hand. My father had his hip replaced and Father Martin, a St. Thomas Alumni, came to our home. This was very comforting to my dad. We felt that the entire community of the Church supported
Priest have to listen to countless confessions and to pick a random person to help them with their struggle does not seem realistic. Confession also is to be anonymous which would mean the priest would not know who is struggling with what and if they can even help them. It is very unreasonable to ask the priest to keep rather help every single person with their sins and keep them accountable. There are far too many people in the church for one priest which throws out the question of if the priest can do something to help those who are struggling with their specific sins. Also, it is not done frequently enough to ensure that the person confessing is on the right track with God.
My church had extended worship one particular service, the Holy Spirit was so tangible in the room that we all were on our knees in complete surrender to God. There was such a shift in the atmosphere of our church in complete surrender to god and within my hear as I began to lay things at the cross that I’d been holding so dear, for I only desired and desire Jesus.
St Paul of Tarsus is a model for all Christians as he made Christianity accessible to the whole world, and set it on its path to becoming a global religion by writing much of the Christian Theology that still forms the foundations of Christian beliefs, teachings and community that exists today. Paul established the Eucharist as the principle ritual for Christians, and discussed the appropriate manner by which this ritual is to be celebrated. “For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 11:26-27) The belief and teachings of the Eucharist allowed and continues to allow adherents to be brought closer to God by enabling them to give thanks, and be brought closer to ...
The offerings of bread , wine and other gifts are brought to the altar. The next section is the Eucharistic Prayer. The Communion is the fifth and probably the most important part of the Mass. It starts with the Lord's Prayer ( Paternoster ) and ends with the Communion for the Clergy and Congregation. Communion is where the gifts of bread and wine are blessed and then received.
...express their beliefs as well as listen to the words of the Lord. As Jesus said at his last meal with his disciples before his execution, “Do this in memory of me”. This quote is reflected in the mass in the stage of ‘being fed’ when an adherent receives both the body and blood of Christ, called Transubstantiation. In this way, Christian adherents are able to unit in a diverse environment following the ways that our Lord has taught us. Therefore through this, Christian adherents are able to express their faith.
... is to remember Christ, once again we are just confirming what has already bee said here. “The bread and the cup are not holy elements in and of themselves. But they do represent something that is very holy… recognizing it is a symbol of what Jesus Christ accomplished for us on the cross” (Laurie 2008:nn). Laurie above sums it up well, the wine and the bread are only symbols of what really happened on the cross 2000 years ago, we must not revere the symbols or the elements but Christ and His work on the cross
...le, the scripture passage Luke 24:30-32 in the bible explores the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is recognised after “he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them” This is important to Christian followers, as it is the foundation of Christian beliefs. This has also impacted the way Christians practise traditional rituals and ceremonies, such as the Eucharist and Baptism. Also the scripture reference provides adherents with the knowledge of Jesus’ resurrection and how he will be “with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28), even after his death and resurrection. Thus, the ritual of Eucharist and Baptism supports adherents in seeking where Christ is in their everyday lives. Hence, the rituals and ceremonies, such as the Eucharist and Baptism are significant to Christianity, through it shaping it as a living and dynamic tradition
The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church recognizes two sacraments only. They are the Sacrament of Baptism and The Lord’s Supper. “Sacraments, ordained of Christ, are not only badges or tokens of Christian men’s profession, but rather they are certain signs of grace and God’s good will toward us, by . . . invisibly in us, and . . . quicken, but also . . . confirm, our faith in, Him.” Baptism is not only a flag of declaration and stamp of separation by which Christians
First off Catholics believe that they are receiving the very Body and Blood of Christ Himself. At the Last Supper Jesus said, "This is my body which is given for you" and offering His disciples the cup of wine said, "Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins." In the Gospel of John they read: "Jesus said to them, '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. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day, for my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink (St. Louis Parish para 1).” When receiving communion and the person ahead of you is receiving Communion you offer a simple bow of reverence with your head and then step forward. You receive Holy Communion either in your hands or directly on the tongue. If you receive in the hands you should take care that they are clean (as a sign of reverence) and place one hand over the other and raise them up high, forming a throne with our hands to receive Jesus. As the priest places the host in our hands and says "The Body of Christ" you should respond loudly and clearly "Amen (St. Louis Parish para 5)." Also, one major point in Catholic Communion is with non-Catholics. Non-Catholics are not permitted to receive Holy Communion. The very action of receiving Communion says that the church believes it is the Body and Blood of Christ and that we share in the whole life of the Catholic Church. Inviting non-Catholics to Communion can be an obstacle to one day reaching full communion by blurring the differences in belief among Christian denominations.
In order to truly receive the Eucharist with awareness and reverence for the fact the it is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ; Catholics must spend time adoring it. Pope Benedict XVI reflected on adoring the Blessed Sacrament, saying that “the act of adoration outside Mass prolongs and intensifies all that takes place during the liturgical celebration itself” (Zia 58). With admiration for the Eucharist before receiving it Catholics can understand the fullness of it’s beauty during mass. Adoration requires reverence and one way to show this is by kneeling in prayer in front of the Eucharist, a practice seen over ten times in sacred scripture to show respect to
Roman Catholics believe that through the sacrament of confession the Lord will forgive the sins that they have committed. The Priest acts as an intercessor for Christ; he hears the sins that the Catholic has committed then with the power he receives from Jesus is able to forgive the sins (catholic.org). This works when the Priest gives absolution to the repenting soul, the Catholic must truly be sorry for the sins he has committed otherwise Christ will not forgive them (jesuschristsavior.net). The Priest then makes the sign of the cross with the candidate saying, “I absolve you from your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (jesuschristsavior.net). The Priest will then give a penance to the candidate. The Penance is usually some type of prayer, fasting, or nice act to another person to truly show that you feel sorrow for the sins committed
Many times couples will incorporate Communion into the wedding ceremony, making Communion their very first act as a married couple.
Father Redmon explained in our interview that each person is to join his or her voice in united faith. My observation was of people outwardly participating e.g., kneeling, crossing themselves but vocal participation was minimal or left to the choir. During my interview with Father Redmon, I mentioned my observation regarding the various responses and he emphasized the centrality of the Eucharist, saying “Worship of the Holy Trinity through the Eucharist is the purpose of the church” and it is through this that they grow both individually and as the Church.
...rd was trying to tell me this. It was during this time I heard the word ‘seek first the kingdom’. As I heard this word, I cried out to God for the first time in my life to remember me. It was here I made a vow to the Lord in the faith that I would find remembrance. As I made this vow and fulfilled it, the Lord opened doors that I can truly say would not have been opened if I didn’t respond to the word to ‘seek first the kingdom’. Out of this time, the Lord blessed me financially, led me to buy a home and healed my anxious heart. It was here that I began to find testimony before God through offering. This is something I am still finding to this day.
I attended Mass at my local parish, the Parish of St. Francis de Sales, on Sunday, October 9th, in order to receive the Sacrament of the Eucharist. This also happens to be the 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time because the priest of the parish, Father Phan, wore green in order to symbolize life, anticipation for the coming of Christ, and hope. The liturgical season of Ordinary Time is also significant because it focuses on the fruits of Jesus’s three-year public ministry, his educational parables, and his extraordinary miracles. The season of Ordinary Time also serves as a reminder that the Church’s mission, our mission, is to not only share the life and hope of Jesus