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
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 ...
When choosing a religious service I was very limited on my choices so I was intrigued to go back to my roots and try the Catholic denomination. This denomination is the one that is most prevalent in my community and also in my social circle as well. Since I have actually been to a Catholic church as a child I thought I knew what to expect but I was shocked at how naive I was to the subject. My preconceived ideas and thoughts were that there would be a lot of getting down on your knees then back up again then saying your Hail Mary’s with not much depth to a service. Also growing up with a social group that was full of Catholics you would always hear of confession so that was something I was particularly dreading for the fact that I did not quite understand the concept and believe in it. This did not take place however which was a sigh of relief on my part cause I was not ready for that big of a leap from my own comfort zone.
The study is the result of a communion service that was held at the home of a member of the Northview Church of the Brethren congregation in Indianapolis, Indiana. The service was held on Sunday, March 14, 2010 at 6:00PM and was conducted at the residence of an elderly member of the congregation, Marge Gaier. Those in attendance, in addition to Ms. Gaier, were the pastor of Northview Church of the Brethren, Rob Miller, Richard Propes, and myself (Michael Smith). The service was an abridged version of Love Feast therefore will also be discussed within the larger context of the Love Feast sacrament. However, the observed service did not include the washing of feet component that is normally part of Love Feast.
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.
Many times couples will incorporate Communion into the wedding ceremony, making Communion their very first act as a married couple.
I was dragged to Catholic church every Sunday as a child. Despite the numerous temper-tantrums, I could not be more thankful for the efforts of my parents. After many Wednesday nights and a hefty amount of volunteer hours, I was confirmed in the Catholic Church. The
... 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
The purpose of this paper is to explain some of the important reasons why believers still need to partake in this ordinance and to discuss some of the spiritual benefits that regular observance of communion can offer. In sharing this information with you I hope that you will be able to recognize that the Lord’s Supper is more than a pointless ritual kept alive by tradition and a sense of duty or obligation.
...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
The second sacrament is the Holy Eucharist. Catholics also call this Communion. This Sacrament, just like baptism, was seen several times in the bible and was given to Catholics directly from Jesus. The ritual practice of the Eucharist comes from Christ at the last supper. According to the book of Matthew,
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.
“Take me to the water to be baptize,” this was the mediational hymn. I heard my church members sing as I walked towards the baptism pool. With my feet headed towards the water. The doors began shaking and I immediately felt like the spirit of my grandmother was with me at that moment. I knew from that very moment, this was going to be a day I would never forget. As I was embarking on a rite of passage that many Christians go on.
...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.
Only through the words of consecration, “This is my Body… and this is my Blood”, can we truly experience the fruits of the Eucharist. This is only possible through God’s accordance with the Scriptures, Sacraments(the Eucharist in this case), minister(priest or bishop), and the people of the Church(The Body of Christ). Just like Jesus and his disciples during the Last Supper, all of the members of the Mass join in intercession in order to properly bestow power upon the Sacrament of the Eucharist. As the priest serves as a representation of Jesus, we serve as his disciples.