The Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist
“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 on 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. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father so he who eats me will live because of Me”. (John 6:53-57, RSV)
“At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved Spouse, the Church, a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet ‘in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us.’” (CCC 1323)
The Eucharist is the supreme act of worship of God. So the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is celebrated daily. It is in the Eucharist that we find our strength to live our Catholic faith, including doing our part to continue the mission of Christ in the world today.
“The Eucharist is the source and center of the Christian life.” In the Eucharist, we find our life, our hope and our strength and we return all of our love and thanksgiving to the Eucharist, “for in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch.” (CCC 1324)
To receive Holy Communion, one must be a Catholic in good standing with the Church. Children who have not yet received their 1st Holy Communion should enter the parish Religious Education program and adults who would like to receive this or any of the other Sacraments are invited to join our O.C.I.A. program. For more information, contact the Parish Office.