Today in RCIA we covered another Sacrament. This week we focused on the Eucharist. Father Burt conducted the class and it was so interesting! I have to say that one of the things that I have a hard time grasping (not counting grace!) is the Eucharist. I don't mean the meaning of Holy Communion or anything like that but as a "not yet Catholic" it is hard to imagine what it will be like to participate in the Lords Supper. All I have to go on is my Protestant memories of Communion which are pale in comparison to what I know now!
So Fr. Burt shared a ton of information with us! Here are the highlights... I took lots of notes :-)
The Eucharist is the source and summet of Church life. That it is what binds the Church (people) together. It is a source of grace and unites us.
Father compared not participating in the Eucharistic Mass as like becoming a virus. You lose strength and become infected. Pretty strong words but when you think about it, it makes sense!
My notes are scattered all over a blank page so forgive me if I jump around.
One of the fruits of Holy Communion is that it awakens the instincts of the soul. It is a bond of unity with every church member. It is a type of economy... value. A sharing or exchange of gifts. Participating helps you become more and more like Christ which is the idea after all!
Of course we discussed Transubstantiation (sp?) and the fact that it is changing substance to a higher form. That it can only be understood by faith and not by science (like so much of our faith journey!) It is the central faith of all Catholic. He also stated that you can feel Christs presence.
We discussed the forshadowing in the Old Testament briefly. We talked about Abraham and his willingness to sacrifice his son. He related the carrying of the wood to the carrying of the cross. We also talked about Passover. Interesting stuff that I can't wait to dig deeper into! Of course I say this about every subject! Perhaps I'll be able to help with the RCIA class next year and go over all of this again with a little more knowledge when I'm not still trying to learn the basics.
Last but not least, we talked about the fruits of labor. About how it isn't just money that is a fruit of labor. The act of forgiveness that is only possible with Gods grace is a fruit of labor, compassion, working to help someone, being patient with your children even!
Father reminded us that everything we have is a gift from the Father. He asked us how often we thank God for air. We have to have it to live or we would die but even as one of the most important things required for life... how often do we thank God for it? If you are like me, not often or at all! So, he challenged us to try to remember the little things (or big!) that we take for granted and remember to give thanks.
All in all it was a very awesome class!
now, I have a question! I read that Canon Law still states that we should not eat meat on all Fridays of the year but that some areas allow you to do another act in place of abstinance. I found and read this in the book of Canon Law but one of my teachers says that it isn't a rule here. How do I find out? Is there somewhere maybe on the Diocese website that would say whether our Bishop has said we don't need to abstain? I ran into this information while researching abstinance and fasting and can't seem to get it out of my mind.
*Don't forget! Only about an hour left for my contest! If you haven't entered please do! Or tell someone you know :-)
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