The Eucharist

John Paolo Casal

Objectives
• Articulate the theological
foundations of the Eucharist
• Hold the celebration of the
Eucharist as the source and
summit of one’s faith
• Demonstrate one’s faith by
participating actively in the
celebration of the Eucharist
Baccalaureate Mass Novena Mass

Thanksgiving Mass
Requiem Mass

Class Mass Monthly Mass

Retreat Mass
Outstanding expression of our faith and of being Church:
“For the liturgy, "through which the work of our
redemption is accomplished,” most of all in the divine
sacrifice of the Eucharist, is the outstanding means
whereby the faithful may express in their lives, and
manifest to others, the mystery of Christ and the real
nature of the true Church”
(Sacrosanctum Concilium, 2).

Source and Summit of Christian Life: “Taking part in the

Eucharistic sacrifice, which is the fount and apex of the
whole Christian life, they offer the Divine Victim to God,
and offer themselves along with It”
(Lumen Gentium, 2).
What does the Mass
mean for you?
Key Concepts for Understanding
the Theology of the Eucharist
1.Meal and Sacrifice
2.Word and Sacrament
 1. Sacrifice and Meal

“At the Last Supper, on the night when He was

betrayed, our Saviour instituted the eucharistic
sacrifice of His Body and Blood. He did this in order
to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout
the centuries until He should come again, and so to
entrust to His beloved spouse, the Church, a
memorial of His death and resurrection”
(Sacrosanctum Concilium, 47).
 “The Lord Jesus, on the night he was
handed over, took bread, and, after he
had given thanks, broke it and said,
“This is my body that is for you. Do this
in remembrance of me.” In the same way
also the cup, after supper, saying, “This
cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do
this, as often as you drink it, in
remembrance of me.”
(1 Cor. 11:23-25).
During the
Passover Meal,
the Lord Jesus
instituted the
Eucharist as
the memorial
of his passion
“The Eucharist is the memorial of Christ’s Passover,
the making present and the sacramental offering of
his unique sacrifice, in the liturgy of the Church
which is his Body” (CCC, 1362).

When we mean “Memorial” it does not mean

simply a recollection of past events but of making
the mystery being celebrated present (anamnesis)
“For in the celebration of Mass, in which the Sacrifice of the
Cross is perpetuated, Christ is really present in the very
liturgical assembly gathered in his name, in the person of
the minister, in his word, and indeed substantially and
continuously under the Eucharistic species” (IGMR, 27).
 “There is also to be a cross, with the figure of Christ
crucified upon it, either on the altar or near it, where it is
clearly visible to the assembled congregation. It is
appropriate that such a cross, which calls to mind for the
faithful the saving Passion of the Lord, remain near the altar
even outside of liturgical celebrations” (IGMR, 308).
The Eucharist is a sacrifice in the form of a meal:
whenever we gather to partake of the bread and
wine, now the Body and Blood of the Lord, we
proclaim his death until he comes again
(cf. 1 Cor. 11:26).
The Eucharist is the ritual memorial of
the Lord’s Passion
 “The altar on which the Sacrifice of the Cross is made
present under sacramental signs is also the table of the
Lord to which the People of God is called together to
participate in the Mass, as well as the center of the
thanksgiving that is accomplished through the Eucharist”
(IGMR, 296).
 Memorial Acclamation

•We proclaim your death, O Lord, and profess

your resurrection until you come again.

•When we eat this bread and drink this cup we

proclaim your death, O Lord, until you come again.

•Save us, Savior of the world, for by your Cross

and Resurrection you have set us free.
 2. Word and Sacrament

The story of the Lord’s meeting with his disciples on the road
to Emmaus provides the basic form of the celebration of the
Eucharist: proclamation of the Word and the celebration and
sharing of the Sacrament
(cf. Lk. 24:13:35).
 The Preaching of the Word

“Then beginning with the Moses and all the

prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to
him in the Scriptures” (Lk. 24:28).
 The Ambo

“The dignity of the word of

God requires that the church
have a place that is suitable for
the proclamation of the word
and toward which the
attention of the whole
congregation of the faithful
naturally turns during the
Liturgy of the Word” (IGMR,
309).
 Primacy of the Word of God
“In the celebration of Mass
the biblical readings with
their accompanying chants
from the Sacred
Scriptures may not be
omitted, shortened, or,
worse still, replaced by
nonbiblical readings”
(General Instruction on the
Lectionary, 12).
The Treasures of the Word of
God
“The treasures of the
Bible are to be opened
up more lavishly, so
that richer fare may be
provided for the faithful
at the table of God’s
word” (Sacrosanctum
Concilium, 51).
 The Homily

“By means of the homily, the mysteries of the faith

and the guiding principles of the Christian life are
expounded from the sacred text, during the course
of the liturgical year; the homily, therefore, is to be
highly esteemed as part of the liturgy itself; in fact,
at those Masses which are celebrated with the
assistance of the people on Sundays and feasts of
obligation, it should not be omitted except for a
serious reason” (SC, 52).
 The Prayer of the Faithful
“In the Prayer of the Faithful, the people respond in a
certain way to the word of God which they have
welcomed in faith and, exercising the office of their
baptismal priesthood, offer prayers to God for the
salvation of all. It is fitting that such a prayer be included,
as a rule, in Masses celebrated with a congregation, so
that petitions will be offered for the holy Church, for civil
authorities, for those weighed down by various needs, for
all men and women, and for the salvation of the whole
world” (IGMR, 69).
“For in the readings, as
explained by the homily,
God speaks to his people,
opening up to them the
mystery of redemption and
salvation, and offering
them spiritual
nourishment; and Christ
himself is present in the
midst of the faithful
through his word”
(IGMR, 55)
 The Eucharistic Prayer
 ”Now the center and summit of the entire celebration
begins: namely, the Eucharistic Prayer, that is, the prayer of
thanksgiving and sanctification. The priest invites the people
to lift up their hearts to the Lord in prayer and thanksgiving;
he unites the congregation with himself in the prayer that he
addresses in the name of the entire community to God the
Father through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit. Furthermore,
the meaning of the Prayer is that the entire congregation of
the faithful should join itself with Christ in confessing the
great deeds of God and in the offering of Sacrifice. The
Eucharistic Prayer demands that all listen to it with
reverence and in silence” (IGMR, 78).
 The Parts of the Eucharistic
Prayer (cf. IGMR, 79)
Thanksgiving (expressed
especially in the Preface): In
which the priest, in the name
of the entire holy people,
glorifies God the Father and
gives thanks for the whole
work of salvation or for some
special aspect of it that
corresponds to the day,
festivity, or season.
Acclamation: In which the whole
congregation, joining with the heavenly
powers, sings the Sanctus. This acclamation,
which is part of the Eucharistic Prayer itself,
is sung or said by all the people with the
priest.
Epiclesis: In which, by means of particular
invocations, the Church implores the power of the
Holy Spirit that the gifts offered by human hands
be consecrated, that is, become Christ’s Body and
Blood, and that the spotless Victim to be received
in Communion be for the salvation of those who
will partake of it.
Institution narrative and
consecration: In which, by
means of words and actions
of Christ, the Sacrifice is
carried out which Christ
himself instituted at the Last
Supper, when he offered his
Body and Blood under the
species of bread and wine,
gave them to his Apostles to
eat and drink, and left them
the command to perpetuate
this same mystery.
Anamnesis: In which the
Church, fulfilling the
command that she received
from Christ the Lord through
the Apostles, keeps the
memorial of Christ, recalling
especially his blessed
Passion, glorious
Resurrection, and Ascension
into heaven.
Offering: By which, in this very memorial, the Church and in
particular the Church here and now gathered offers in the
Holy Spirit the spotless Victim to the Father. The Church’s
intention, however, is that the faithful not only offer this
spotless Victim but also learn to offer themselves, and so
day by day to be consummated, through Christ the
Mediator, into unity with God and with each other, so that
at last God may be all in all.
Intercessions: By which expression is given to the fact that
the Eucharist is celebrated in communion with the entire
Church, of heaven as well as of earth, and that the offering
is made for her and for all her members, living and dead,
who have been called to participate in the redemption and
the salvation purchased by Christ’s Body and Blood.
Final doxology: By which the
glorification of God is expressed and
which is confirmed and concluded by
the people’s acclamation, Amen.
 Holy Communion
“Since the Eucharistic Celebration is the
Paschal Banquet, it is desirable that in
keeping with the Lord’s command, his
Body and Blood should be received as
spiritual food by the faithful who are
properly disposed. This is the sense of the
fraction and the other preparatory rites by
which the faithful are led directly to
Communion” (IGMR, 80).
 Parts of the Communion Rite

1. The Lord’s Prayer

2. Prayer for Peace
3. The Fraction
(Agnus Dei)
4. Communion
5. Prayer After
Communion
 Communion: Sharing Christ’s
body and blood
“The more perfect form of participation in the Mass whereby
the faithful, after the priest’s communion, receive the Lord’s
body from the same sacrifice, is strongly commended” (SC,
55).

“It is most desirable that the faithful, just as the priest

himself is bound to do, receive the Lord’s Body from hosts
consecrated at the same Mass and that, in the instances
when it is permitted, they partake of the chalice (cf. no. 283),
so that even by means of the signs Communion will stand
out more clearly as a participation in the sacrifice actually
being celebrated” (IGMR, 85).
 “With that their eyes were opened and they
recognized him, but he vanished from their sight.
Then they said to each other, “Were not our hearts
burning [within us] while he spoke to us on the way
and opened the scriptures to us?”
(Lk. 24:31-32).
 The Eucharist and the
Sacraments of Initiation
“The Holy Eucharist completes Christian
initiation. Those who have been raised
to the dignity of the royal priesthood by
Baptism, and configured more deeply to
Christ by Confirmation, participate with
the whole community in the Lord’s own
sacrifice by means of the Eucharist”
(CCC, 1322).
 Full, conscious, and active
participation
“The Church, therefore, earnestly desires
that Christ’s faithful, when present at this
mystery of faith, should not be there as
strangers or silent spectators, on the
contrary, through a good understanding of
the rites and prayers they should take part
in the sacred action conscious of what they
are doing, with devotion and full
collaboration” (SC, 48).