WHAT IS EUCHARIST?
The Eucharist is the Body and Blood of our Lord. It is the "Source and Summit" of Christian faith because all sacraments direct us towards the Eucharist or flow from it's grace. Holy Eucharist is the Sacrament in which Jesus Christ gives his Body and Blood-himself-for us, that we too might give ourselves to him in Holy Communion. In this way we are joined with the one Body of Christ, the Church. The minister of the Eucharist is a priest or bishop. Only these two members of the clergy may consecrate bread and wine into the Eucharist. The ordinary ministers of distributing the Eucharist include deacons, priests, and bishops. The Extraordinary ministers of distributing the Eucharist include lay people who are trained to assist at Mass and bring the Eucharist home bound. The form of the sacrament is said by a priest or bishop. The words said must never change! The form for this sacrament is much more than a blessing, the bread and wine is physically turning into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ through transubstantiation. The form for Eucharist, also known as the words of consecration are: "Take this, all of you, and eat of it: for this is my body which will be given up for you. Take this, all of you, and drink from it: for this is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins, "Do this in memory of me." The matter of this sacrament is bread made from wheat and water and the wine made from grapes. In the Roman/Western Christian Churches, we do not use yeast in the bread for the Eucharist. This is also more commonly known as unleavened bread (matza). In the Eastern/Orthodox Christian Churches, they use yeast and bread for the Eucharist. This is more commonly known as leavened bread. The rite of the sacrament of the is divided into two parts. The first part of this sacrament is the Liturgy of the Word. In this part, the Scriptures are read and the bishop, priest, or deacon delivers the homily, explaining how the readings are applied to our lives. The second part is the Liturgy of the Eucharist. In this portion, the priest or bishop consecrates the bread and wine changing it into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.
PHOTO FROM MY FIRST HOLY COMMUNION
WHAT IS ADORATION?
Adoration is defined as a time of prayer spent before the Blessed Sacrament outside the context of the Mass. This is usually done in front of a monstrance. The monstrance is a sacred object used to display Christ, in the form of consecrated bread on special occasions for adoration by the faithful so that we may adore our Lord. Adoration is not something that has recently started. This has been going on for centuries and is an essential teaching of Catholic Christianity. Berengar was an 11th century French monk who began to teach that bread and wine in the celebration of the Eucharist would not go through transubstantiation. In response, Pope Gregory VII demanded a retraction from Berengar saying that the Body and Blood of Christ were truly present in the Eucharist. The result of this was a refining of the Church's teaching on the real presence. Eucharistic devotion resulted in Europe, which became a part of the Catholic life. Times of extended exposition of the Blessed Sacrament outside the Mass grew out of this action, and eventually a blessing with the exposed Eucharist, or benediction, developed. The feast of Corpus Christi was a day when processions, and other devotions such as adoration became popular. Like the practice of the earliest Christians, adoration can keep us connected to the community's celebration of the Eucharist.
WHEN IS ADORATION OFFERED?
At Kellenberg, adoration is offered the first Friday of every month all day in the Maria Regina Chapel. It is also offered at special events, such as XLT and Evening of Recollection.
At my own particular parish, it is offered from 12:00 to 1:00 daily.
At my own particular parish, it is offered from 12:00 to 1:00 daily.
THE EUCHARISTIC MIRACLE OF BUENOS AIRES
A Eucharistic miracle is any miracle involving the Eucharist. It is usually taken place because God wants to reveal himself to us. One major Eucharistic miracle that took place was the one that took place in Buenos Aires on August 18, 1996 at 7 PM. At this time Mass was being taken place at a by Fr. Alejandro Pezet. After he finished distributing Holy Communion, a woman came up to him and told him that she had found a discarded host on a candle holder in the back of the Church. Since Fr. Alejandro Pezet was not able to consume it, he followed proper procedure and placed it in a container of water and put it away in the tabernacle of the Blessed Sacrament. On Monday, August 26, he went to the tabernacle to check on the host. Usually, the priest will find that the Host has dissolved, where he can then dispose of the water. In amazement, he saw that the Host had turned into a bloody, flesh-like substance which would begin to grow in size. He informed Cardinal Bergoglio, who gave instructions on having it professionally photographed, which were take on September 6. The Host would remain in the tabernacle for several years with no signs of decomposition. This is when the Cardinal decided to have it scientifically analyzed. On October 5, 1999, Dr. Castanon, who had no idea that this bloody fragment was actually a host, took a sample of the Host and sent it to New York for testing. His final analysis was that the substance was real flesh and blood containing human DNA. He also stated that it had white blood cells which penetrated the tissue, which further indicates that the heart had been under severe stress, as if the owner had been beaten severely about the chest. They also found the place that this person was from with this sample, and it was found that he was somewhere in the Middle Eastern region -- JESUS!!