(JOHN H. H., The healing power of the Eucharist, India: Claretian Publications,
2004.)
Student Name: THEMBO T. JOHN 11050T.
HOW TO RECEIVE THE EUCHARIST DEVOUTLY.
In order one to receive Christ in
the Eucharist has to be ready and prepared with enthusianism just as we do
prepare with great effort when visitors come to our homes or houses. So this
time is Christ coming to us himself into our hearts. As a guest he should find
us already in the state of grace and
we can at best do this
through the Sacrament of
reconciliation. “We should examine our conscience and, if we are conscious and
certain of any grave or mortal sin which
requires the absolution of a
priest, we must receive the Sacrament of
reconciliation before hand.” Every kind of our sins hinders in some way the flow
of grace to us. In our preparation we should also observe a fast to dispose
ourselves before God “God will manifest himself to you just as you show
yourself available to him.”
According to St.Alphonsus we can
best prepare through total detachment including creatures and deriving from our
hearts all that is not of and not for God, he also adds that we need to stir up
a great desire to receive Jesus and his Holy love. This should aim at enabling
us to advance in the divine Love of God and trusting that he will heal and
grant us our needs.
In the above respect after
communion, we need also to give thanks and our gratitude to him. This can be
made in the form of prayer conversing with God and through hymns of praise
hence our union with God. At this very moment Christ is the one in us who animates, we can also express our thanks
by contemplating on the mysteries we have celebrated and received, also by
giving thanks through giving petition, that God may grant us the graces to fulfill everything we have
promised in offering ourselves.
Like the Blessed Virgin Mary who
bore the Lord, she became the temple of the Lord and was distinguished from other
pregnant women, though outwardly she was like others, but inwardly was deeply
in union with God. “She was a living tabernacle where the Holy of Holies was residing.” Thus we too when we receive
the Eucharist we become temples of the living God. So we are to give praise
after communion and adore the Lord we are carrying within us. We are not left
the same after communion.
THE EUCHARIST : JESUS THE TRUE SACRIFICIAL LAMB
The
paschal mystery is the final stage of Jesus, in which he fulfils and
accomplishes his mission, his own teaching and of the prophets. The cross is of
great significance through which he reconciles and unites all humanity back to
God, a division that has been since the sin of Adam. Jesus is the new Adam who in
his own body and blood offers himself to create us a new and binds us with the
father and the Holy spirit, in this covenant of love, as he overcomes our sin
on our part.
Each
day Christ is the lamb offered for our sacrifices. It is to him we cast our
sins, he takes them upon himself and we are set free from the dominion of sin
and death. Although he has offered himself once and for all, he is each day
offered in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist as Lamb of God and for the
salvation of all humanity. “The Eucharist contains this radical newness, which
is offered to us again at every celebration.”[1] (No
9)
The
Eucharist instituted by Christ derives from the ritual meal of the Jews, in remembrance
of their deliverance from slavery in Egypt , but also foreseeing and
hopeful for the deliverance yet to come, a hope which was foretold by the
prophet. This was to be fulfilled in the messiah who was to come, although
their conception and role of this messiah was quite obscured, for they thought
would be a political messiah.
In the prayer of thanksgiving,
Jesus did not only thank God for the wonders and events which God did in the
past, but also he gives thanks to the
father for his own exaltation and glorification over the cross and death. His
victory and glory are already implied in this Eucharist. Also Christ offers
himself as the lamb for sacrifice. This Eucharist also reveals to us how the
violent and absurd death Christ was the maximum and highest act of love for
humanity and is our great sign.
The
Eucharist surpasses the ritual meal of the Jews, for God in his gift of love through
the son has given himself as the food of eternal life. In responding to his
command “Do this in remembrance of me” is to make his gift sacramentally
present through the power of the Holy Spirit. Our celebration of the Eucharist
is actually not a repetition of the last supper, rather it is radical and we do
it in newness of life as Christians. So we too enter into the self giving and
become one with Christ in the paschal event.
The
change of bread and wine into his body and blood also symbolize the change of
new life through Christ. Receiving the Eucharist worthily, we become transformed
and one in union with Christ, hence new persons.
[1] Benedict XVI, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhotation Sacramentum Caritatis, Nairobi : Pauline Publications 2007.
****
Name: THEMBO T. JOHN 11050T.
(JOHN H. H., The healing power of the Eucharist,
India: Claretian Publications, 2004.)
WAYS TO STYMIE GRACE.
Through
the Spirit God continues to give us the
graces that each person deserves according to his ability and needs. However
according to John H.Hampsch, we can quench this grace before it produces the
effect God intends, and this can be achieved through receiving the Eucharist. God
has always willed to fill us with his
graces but because of our sinfulness,
this becomes a barrier to this flow and his working in us. These barriers
include;
Limited
devotion to the Eucharist. This happen
when it is received with limited
love and devotion. In most cases
we are taken by routine and loose sense of this sacrament. Love and devotion will enable one to yearn
and hunger for the Eucharist and nothing else. This also expresses the faith at
hand and in the Eucharist. Faith is fundermental to realize the power of God
through the Eucharist, and his graces in our lives, for example the woman who
touched Jesus with faith got healed. Today people’s faith is so challenged
although they practice religion or continue to receive the Eucharist. Their
faith does not at all induce the healing power from Christ. Thus our cry,
prayers and attendance remains empty. “Faith is merely a faith of urgency, not
a faith of loving expectancy.”[1] No
wonder this is the result why many question a bout the real presence of Christ
in this symbol of bread and wine.
Also
infrequent reception of the Eucharist regarding to the number of times of receiving
communion. “Pope John Paul II has reminded us that, in a normal situation
anyone who calls him/herself a good
catholic, should receive communion atleast once a week.” [2] This is because the Eucharist sustains our
life spiritually as we feed on it with fervent hearts. In fact, as a body if
not fed on food it would result into malnutrition and kwashako, so is also with
the lack of the Eucharist, our spiritual life would be affected. “We need to
receive Jesus in the Eucharist frequently to sustain the flow of grace needs to
nourish us spiritually and transform the potential energy of the sacrament into
actual spiritual energy.”[3]
Another
way is failure to partake of the Eucharist. Many people do not receive the Eucharist
either by choice, or because they don’t
understand its efficacy and,
so doubt
if partaking has any effect and value. Others are sick,
prisoned and in places where there is no priest. However those who desire but
not able to receive due to the conditions of their situation, God understands
them. “Even though they can not physically receive communion, God attaches great
importance to their loving desire, which if present, would provide for them
exceptionally a spiritual communion.”[4]
Receiving
the Eucharist sacrilegiously. Before receiving the Eucharist, one has to be
fully prepared both body and soul. It is a sacrilege when it is received in a state of serious, unrepented and unconfessed sins,
such as abortion, adultery, living in invalid marriage, missing mass on Sunday
with no good reasons. “Such sacrilegious communions can cause not
just gre
[1] JOHN
H. HAMPSCH, The healing power of the
Eucharist,62
[2] JOHN
H. HAMPSCH, The healing power of the
Eucharist, 67
[3] Pg
JOHN H. HAMPSCH, The healing power of the
Eucharist,67
[4] JOHN
H. HAMPSCH, The healing power of the
Eucharist,68.
*****
Name: THEMBO T. JOHN 11050T.
(PAUL F.BRADSHAW, Eucharistic
origins, Great Britain :
Ashford Colour Press, 2004.)
EUCHARISTIC ORIGINS- CHURCH FATHERS
Justin Martyr
In
the first apology, shows that Jesus took the bread, gave thanks and
commanded that this be done
in his “remembrance”. He gave the bread as his body and the cup his
blood, to the apostles. In his account,
Justin reports the command of Jesus “Do
this in my remembrance” before the words “This is my body.” Thus the emphasis is on this memorial command
to the apostles. The reason for
this could be that, Justin saw the narrative was handed down by the Apostles as it was
commanded them. Although it could be that he based on the Gospel of Luke, he
could also probably be quoting from memory, whatever the case, he wants to
drive at this important point, “that the food over which thanks have
been given is both the flesh and blood of that
incarnate Jesus.”[1]
The emphasis and meaning of this is that, it is a doctrine handed down and not only a liturgical ritual. If his quotation is
based on memory, would mean that , it is from an old tradition or narrative
that was used for catechesis than the Gospel texts which came later
in Justin’s community.
Irenaeus
That
Jesus took from creation bread and wine, he called his body and blood
respectively. Also he does not show that Jesus implied in this, his passion in
the order of the supper. Like Justin, he has in his sequence, “took-gave
thanks-saying” and also he does not refer to the breaking of the bread, so
possibly should have been familiar the teaching that was held by memory and
used for catechesis. This memorial is thus a doctrine rather than a liturgical ritual.
In
this command Jesus directed his disciples to offer the first fruit of Gods
creation. However he did not indicate that this action be repeated. Ireanaeus
is also familiar with Mathew’s account of the last supper.
Tertullian and cyprian
At
this time the New Testament writing are gaining great influence. Tertulian does not refer that Jesus gave thanks, broke
the bread. Instead he shows that Jesus first gave bread and likewise the cup,
there after he referred to what they have received, and made it his
body and blood respectively. Also
he does not place it into the paschal context and referring to the covenant. Tertullian was basically
responding to Docetism.
Cyprian.
He bases so much on the last
supper account in Mathew but not like others before on the catechetical
tradition. Rather than using the words, gave thanks,Cyprian used “blessed” and
also uses “will be poured out” which is a future tense indicative than the
present. When quoting St Paul
referring to the bread, Cyprian uses these words, “which will be given up for
you” this is related to Luke’s text in these words, “which is given for you”.
Cyril of Jerusalem
He was a Bishop
of Jerusalem 350-386. He was much quoting St.Paul very much. “Our lord Jesus
Christ, having taken bread and having given thanks, broke (it) and gave (it) to
his disciples saying, Take, eat, this is my body. Like wise he took the cup,
gave thanks, gave it to them saying, Take, drink, this is my blood.”[2]
The Pauline narrative is unique
and close to Mathew and Sarapion’s versions account by the use of these words
“and gave (it) to his disciples and, Take, eat.”
In
contrast to the Sanctum Pascha, it does not include these words “which is for
you from the words over the bread and the command to repeat the action from
both the words over bread and the cup are abbreviated.” Instead it refers to
the cup as the new Covenant in my blood,
this is in relation to Justin Martyr.+ in view of this, it shows that Cyril was
not only influenced or based on paul’s
account (1Cor) but also the
sanctum pascha and Sacramentary of Sarapion.
Conclusion
In the views of
these fathers we see various thinking and development in the Eucharistic
celebration in respect with their time. However it is important to note that
they both use the most and common elements looking at the last supper, for
example giving thanks, giving it to the disciples and acknowledging the real
event from which they derive their views.
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