Liturgy Reflections: The Centrality of the Paschal Mystery. The paschal mystery is at the very heart of Catholic Christian life, liturgy and spirituality. The word “paschal” is from a Greek or Hebrew word that means “passover,” while the word mystery comes from a Greek word meaning a “secret reality” or a “rite.” The paschal mystery refers to the mystery of Christ’s “passing over” to the Father, while at the same time drawing all humankind and all of history with him.
Thus all creation is transformed. Christ does this, of course, through all of the events of his passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and the pouring out of the gift of the holy Spirit. Clearly the paschal mystery finds its most solemn expression in the liturgies of Holy Week and Easter, but the reality of the paschal mystery impacts us at every moment, and so every liturgical act celebrates the paschal mystery - the mystery of the dying and rising of Jesus and our incorporation into that mystery.
Dictionary of Catholic Terms. Catechism of the Catholic Church - PART 2 SECTION 1 CHAPTER 1 ARTICLE 2. 1114 "Adhering to the teaching of the Holy Scriptures, to the apostolic traditions, and to the consensus . . . of the Fathers," we profess that "the sacraments of the new law were . . . all instituted by Jesus Christ our Lord. "31 The People of God is formed into one in the first place by the Word of the living God. . . .
The preaching of the Word is required for the sacramental ministry itself, since the sacraments are sacraments of faith, drawing their origin and nourishment from the Word.43 St. Thomas sums up the various aspects of sacramental signs: "Therefore a sacrament is a sign that commemorates what precedes it - Christ's Passion; demonstrates what is accomplished in us through Christ's Passion - grace; and prefigures what that Passion pledges to us - future glory. "58 1131 The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. 1134 The fruit of sacramental life is both personal and ecclesial. The Sacraments: Eucharist | Seasonal Feature. Catholics believe the Eucharist, or Communion, is both a sacrifice and a meal.
We believe in the real presence of Jesus, who died for our sins. As we receive Christ's Body and Blood, we also are nourished spiritually and brought closer to God. The Sacraments: Eucharist Click on an image below to send a Catholic e-Greeting! What does the Eucharist mean to you? We'll post selected responses in this feature.
What the Eucharist Means to Me: Our Readers Respond As the Year of the Eucharist came to an end, 10 of our readers revealed how their lives were changed by the Body of Christ. "Eucharist: Food for Mission" Pope John Paul II's 2004 Message Eucharist and Mission 201 Inspirational Stories of the Eucharist by Sister Patricia Proctor, O.S.C. Newsletter Articles: Catholic Update "Eucharist: Heart of the Church" John Paul II's encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia in condensed form "The Liturgy of the Eucharist" By William H. "The Real Presence: Jesus' Gift to the Church" by John Bookser Feister.
Catechism of the Catholic Church - The sacrament of the Eucharist. Eucharist, because it is an action of thanksgiving to God. The Greek words eucharistein141 and eulogein142 recall the Jewish blessings that proclaim - especially during a meal - God's works: creation, redemption, and sanctification. The Breaking of Bread, because Jesus used this rite, part of a Jewish meat when as master of the table he blessed and distributed the bread,144 above all at the Last Supper.145 It is by this action that his disciples will recognize him after his Resurrection,146 and it is this expression that the first Christians will use to designate their Eucharistic assemblies;147 by doing so they signified that all who eat the one broken bread, Christ, enter into communion with him and form but one body in him.148 The Eucharistic assembly (synaxis), because the Eucharist is celebrated amid the assembly of the faithful, the visible expression of the Church.149 The signs of bread and wine The institution of the Eucharist 1338 The three synoptic Gospels and St.
Christ in the Eucharist. Protestant attacks on the Catholic Church often focus on the Eucharist. This demonstrates that opponents of the Church—mainly Evangelicals and Fundamentalists—recognize one of Catholicism’s core doctrines. What’s more, the attacks show that Fundamentalists are not always literalists. This is seen in their interpretation of the key biblical passage, chapter six of John’s Gospel, in which Christ speaks about the sacrament that will be instituted at the Last Supper. This tract examines the last half of that chapter. John 6:30 begins a colloquy that took place in the synagogue at Capernaum. The Jews asked Jesus what sign he could perform so that they might believe in him. As a challenge, they noted that "our ancestors ate manna in the desert. " Again and Again Jesus first repeated what he said, then summarized: "‘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.’
Eucharist. So rich is the mystery of the Eucharist that we have a number of terms to illumine its saving grace: the Breaking of the Bread; the Lord's Supper; the Eucharistic Assembly; the Memorial of Christ's Passion, Death, and Resurrection; the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Holy and Divine Liturgy; the Eucharistic Liturgy; Holy Communion; and Holy Mass (cf. CCC, nos. 1328-1332). The use of bread and wine in worship is already found in the early history of God's people.
In the Old Testament, bread and wine are seen as gifts from God, to whom praise and thanks are given in return for these blessings and for other manifestations of his care and grace. The story of the priest Melchizedek's offering a sacrifice of bread and wine for Abraham's victory is an example of this (cf. Gn 14:18). The harvest of new lambs was also a time for the sacrifice of a lamb to show gratitude to God for the new flock and its contribution to the well-being of the family and tribe. resources on the eucharist.
What is the Holy Eucharist? Questions about The Holy Eucharist 343. What is the Holy Eucharist? The Holy Eucharist is a sacrament and a sacrifice. In the Holy Eucharist, under the appearances of bread and wine, the Lord Christ is contained, offered, and received. (a) The whole Christ is really, truly, and substantially present in the Holy Eucharist. (b) All Christians, with but few minor exceptions, held the true doctrine of the Real Presence from the time of Christ until the Protestant Revolution in the sixteenth century. (c) The word "Eucharist" means "Thanksgiving. " 344. Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper, the night before He died. (a) About a year before the Last Supper Our Lord promised to give us the Holy Eucharist. 345.
When Our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist the apostles were present. 346. 347. (a) Christ could not have used clearer, more explicit words than "This is My body. " 348. 349. 350. 351. 352. 353. 354. 355. 356. Electronic text (c) Copyright EWTN 1996. Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder? Read Jonathan Klawans’s article “Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder?” As it originally appeared in Bible Review, October 2001. The article was first republished in Bible History Daily in October 2012. In 2016, Klawans wrote a follow-up article, “Jesus’ Last Supper Still Wasn’t a Passover Seder Meal.” —Ed. Traditional Views of Jesus’ Last Supper as a Passover Meal With his disciples gathered around him, Jesus partakes of his Last Supper.
The meal in this late-15th-century painting by the Spanish artist known only as the Master of Perea consists of lamb, unleavened bread and wine—all elements of the Seder feast celebrated on the first night of the Jewish Passover festival. Many people assume that Jesus’ Last Supper was a Seder, a ritual meal held in celebration of the Jewish holiday of Passover. Three out of four of the canonical Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) agree that the Last Supper was held only after the Jewish holiday had begun. The Passover Seder and Sacrifice A San Francisco seder. The Last Supper.