Goldie Ann E. DonceraasSr. Perseveranda U. Jagmis, MSLT

Ateneo de Manila UniversityMA in Religious Education

A Theological Understanding of the Eucharist as Presence- Sacrament, a basis for

explaining why families should go to Mass.

INTRODUCTION

Eucharist as Presence- Sacrament

Within the Eucharistic celebration itself, Christ “is really present in the assembly itself, gathered in his name, in the person of the minister, in his Word [since he speaks when the holy scriptures are read], and indeed substantially and unceasingly under the Eucharistic species (SC7; Instr. Rom. Missal 7)…. Christ’s presence in the consecrated bread and wine is called ‘real’ not to exclude all other types of presence, but because it is presence in the fullest sense, a substantial presence by which Christ, the God-Man, is wholly and entirely present (MF 39; cf. CCC1374) 1

It is through the presence of Christ in our lives that we are nourished and strengthened spiritually

with the help of the grace that we receive from the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Our family’s

constant encounter with him through the Holy Eucharist will gradually transform us to be Christ-

like and help us to become witnesses to Christ’s presence in the world. Moreover, in carrying out

the mission to become witnesses to Christ’s presence, it is important to consider the role of the

family especially the parents in engaging every member to celebrate the Holy Eucharist. “The

family as the “first school of discipleship” (PCP II Decrees, Art. 48; PCP II Doc. 421, 576) is

where we come to exercise the daily Christian virtues of generous self-giving in active charity, in

mutual forgiveness and obedience, in prayer and thanksgiving.” 2

1 cf. Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education, Catechism for Filipino Catholics; (CBCP, July 1,1997): 1722

2 Ibid., 1014.

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BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Catholic Families need to understand the value of the Eucharist. Often times we observe

that some families prioritize their work to be able to provide for their family even on a Sunday,

some tend to look at it as a mere obligation that they have to attend to, while others prefer to

have an out of town trip and do other things rather than attend mass. These are just some of the

disturbing realities in some Catholic families which show that there are several challenges that

pastoral leaders have to face in engaging families towards Church activities like Eucharistic

celebration. Their attention is being diverted into other activities and priorities. They also tend to

compartmentalize their faith so that it is seen as an extra-curricular activity. This is one of the

reasons why there are lesser number of people attending mass every Sunday compared when

there’s a special occasion like Christmas. To be able to encourage them to attend mass, we plan

to elaborate how Christ is present in the Eucharistic celebration.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The challenge for Catholic families is to understand Christ’s presence in the Eucharistic

celebration that they may be able to see its relevance for them and inspire their witnessing. This

witnessing should start in their family itself by “bringing up their children in the nurture and

admonition of the Lord”, as Bushnell insisted, that the “atmosphere of the home” is the key to

Christian nurture.3 Their way of life should radiate Christ’s presence to other people. We need

the grace of God coming from the Eucharist (one of the sources) to nourish and strengthen our

spirituality, to help us combat with everyday challenges.

3 Thomas H.Groome, Will There Be Faith? A New Version for Educating and Growing Disicpples (WY. HarporOne, 2011), 203-204

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However, considering how people see the sacrament nowadays, we can say that they will

miss to receive the “grace” that they need from the Eucharist, simply because they fail to

recognize the essence of the Holy Eucharist. 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 can express their lives and manifest to others, the

mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church.” 4 Hence, there is a need to emphasize

that Christ is really present in the celebration through the Word being proclaimed, Holy Bread,

assembly and the One being celebrated is Christ himself so that they will be motivated to attend

mass and hopefully be able to make present the Risen Christ to other people through their

witnessing. From here, this study seeks to respond to the problem: How can the Eucharist as

Presence- Sacrament serve as a basis for explaining why families should go to mass?

SCOPE AND LIMITATION

This study will discuss the Eucharist as Presence- Sacrament as a basis for explaining

why a Catholic family should go to mass, particularly in the rural area, with the help of selected

online journals about the Catholic family and Eucharistic celebration which were read and

reflected upon, we also cited some Church teachings from Familiaris Consortio and

Sacrosanctum Concilium, Catechism of Filipino Catholics, The Catholic Faith and the Holy

Bible. This will not discuss about the history of the Holy Eucharist and will not cover other

dimensions of the Eucharist as Sacrifice-Sacrament and Communion-Sacrament, so as to give

emphasis on the presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

4 J.Neuner,S.J., J. Dupuis, S.J., The Christian Faith, (Theological Publications in India, 2001), 1574

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This study will focus on the presence of Christ in the assembly, the minister, in the Word

being proclaimed, in the bread and wine (body and blood of Christ) and in the Catholic family

itself and their witnessing.

The researchers will explore texts from the Sacred Scripture, Church Documents, books

and other related articles on the theology of the Eucharist as Presence-Sacrament and of Family

life.

OBJECTIVE SIGNIFICANCE

The Eucharist is the mystery of Christ’s “real” presence because He becomes

substantially present, whole and entire, in the reality of His Body and Blood. But it is

through his complete hiddenness that He becomes a mystery of light, if only we open

ourselves up to the dimension of the mystery. It is also Jesus’ way of inviting everyone

to a moment of deeper relationship with Him, allowing space and time for God’s grace

to be revealed and to be shared by all. Therefore, Catholic families should attend mass to be

able to witness to Christ’s presence.

SUBJECTIVE SIGNIFICANCE

The Holy Eucharist must be at the heart of every Christian family which desires to

give witness to the loving presence of Christ. The presence of Christ in the lives of the

members of the family nourishes and strengthens the familys’ spirituality. Therefore, this

study is of great help for Catholic families so that they may be able to realize that celebrating the

Eucharist is to: 1) encounter Christ in the Eucharist and to strengthen the bond of unity,

worship together and to help the members of the family to become Christ’s presence

wherever they may be. 2) live out daily the christian virtues of generous self- giving in

active charity, in mutual forgiveness and obedience, in prayer and thanksgiving. 3)

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educate their children about their faith and to draw them closer to Christ by teaching

them how to pray and to participate in the celebration of the Sacraments 4) emulate the

examples of Christ 5) witness to the truth and 6) exercise their proper vocation in the

Spirit of the Gospel by the testimony of their lives as they emanate the radiance of their

faith, hope and charity.

METHODOLOGY

The following steps have been taken by the researchers in the attempt to

discuss the Eucharist as Presence-Sacrament in the context of the family’s witnessing to

the presence of Christ.

In order to obtain the data needed, the researchers first made an Internet

research of the materials in connection with the Eucharist and Family Catechesis and

consulted some books related to it. Reflective and critical reading of the materials gathered

was made to come up with the necessary data requisite to the study.

Secondly, the basic written sources of the Church were explored, namely: the

Sacred Scriptures, the Documents of the Vatican Council II ( Vat II ), the Acts and

Decrees of the Plenary Council of the Philippines ( PCP II ), the Apostolic Exhortion of

St. Pope Paul II on the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World ( Familiaris

Consortio ),

Thirdly, other sources were also consulted like The Catechism of the Catholic

Faith 1014 and 1722, Catechism of the Catholic Church ( CCC ), and other books and

articles about Christ’s presence in the Eucharist.

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Christ’s Multiple Presences

Jesus Christ instituted the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist to be able to give grace to the

people , as one of the sources, that we may be able to feel God’s presence in our lives. In return,

we express our gratitude for the grace we receive by radiating His presence to others. The

following are the reasons why a Catholic family should attend mass.

In the Eucharist

Within the Eucharistic celebration itself, Christ “is really present in the assembly itself, gathered in his name, in the person of the minister, in his Word [since he speaks when the holy scriptures are read], and indeed substantially and unceasingly under the Eucharistic species” (SC7; Instr. Rom. Missal 7)…. Christ’s presence in the consecrated bread and wine is called ‘real’ not to exclude all other types of presence, but because it is presence in the fullest sense, a substantial presence by which Christ, the God-Man, is wholly and entirely present (MF 39; cf. CCC1374) 5

Christ is present in the Eucharist in many ways. First, he dwells at the center of the people

(assembly) celebrating the Eucharist. The spirit of God animates and helps the Catholic family

and other poeple to participate in the celebration. They get to share the grace that everyone

receives.“The Lord Jesus is present in the midst of those who gather in his name. It is not any

gathering of Christians which is assured of this special presence of Christ, but only a gathering in

faith. It is the Holy Spirit who enables Christians to believe in the Lord Jesus.”6 Second, he is

also present in the One celebrating the Eucharist. “The Lord is present in the person of the priest

or the bishop presiding over the celebration. But a priest or bishop is one who by ordination has

received a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit and has been set by the same Spirit over the

flock of christ ( cf. 2 Tim. 1: 6; Acts 20: 28 ),7 which means that he is present through the actions

5 cf. Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education, Catechism for Filipino Catholics; (new ed., enl.,: Manila: Word and Life Publications, July 1,1997)17226 Bishop Teodoro C. Bacani, JR., D. D, The Eucharist and The Filipino, (Makati: Salesiana Publishers Inc., June 21, 1987), 1057 Ibid.

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and words of the minister, hence, the Catholic family will also hear the salvific message of God

through the homily of the priest. Third, the One being proclaimed is Christ himself when we hear

the scriptures as a community, where God constantly reveal Himself and His salvific message to

the people. “When the Scriptures are read in the Church, Christ is present and it is he himself

who speaks to the faithful.”8 Moreover, they need to experience this both alone and in the

community because, “hearing the scripture in community is a way of deepening as well as

safeguarding our experience of God’s communication with us.”9 Doing so will also help the

Catholic family clarify their misconceptions about the Word being proclaimed and allow them to

share their faith experiences to the people in the community, so that they may learn from it. That

is also their way of communicating with God so they can strengthen their relationship with Him,

leading them to know and love Him more deeply. As they strengthen their relationship with God,

they gradually emulate Christ’s examples through the Word being proclaimed in the scriptures,

therefore if they repeatedly hear the Word being proclaimed, it becomes a part of who they are,

shaping them to be truly Christians. In response to that ,their words and actions should testify to

the Word that they constantly hear for “if we celebrate faithfully, we ought to be conforming

more and more to the image and generosity of the One, because the final test of whether the mass

works is: “By their fruits shall you know them.”10 Fourth,when they celebrate mass they also

express their desire to “share in the most intimate experience of self-giving—Holy

Communion--- and recognize him in the brothers and sisters with whom we are sharing the act

of self-giving.”11 They make other people feel and see Christ’s presence through their act of

kindness especially those people in dire need and hopefully influence them the way Christ did,

8 Sacrosanctum Concilium 7.9 John F. Baldovin, S.J., Why Go to Mass? (America; May 10, 2004): 13-15.10 Ibid.

11 Ibid.

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when he had table-fellowship with the outcasts, forgave the sinners, loved without exception and

the like. As what Mahatma Gandhi said, “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” Thus, an

act grounded in Christ will make flesh the Word being proclaimed in the celebration of the

Eucharist. Finally, “At the last supper, Christ broke the customary silence of the Paschal meal by

identifying the bread and wine with his own body and blood, which means that they are

receiving the whole PERSON of Jesus Christ when they receive the consecrated bread and wine

in the Eucharist.”12 However, if Christ’s presence satisfies spiritual hunger, same goes with

physical hunger, how? Through the people moved by the grace of God, to share what they have

and to support organizations which cater to the needs of the poor, downtrodden and the

marginalized. Hence, when they celebrate they do not only bring their own personal intentions

but the whole world’s intentions as well, in which the realities of our world (bread, wine, men

and women) with all it needs, joys and struggles are transformed into the body and blood of

Christ. Being aware of the World with all its concerns helps us to make the mass the experience

of Christian life in a consecrated way. 13

In the Catholic Family

Moreover, Christ is also present in the Catholic family celebrating the mass. When they

teach their children the importance of each part of the mass and the values that they learn from

them through the following : (1) Christ through the parents, awakens the consciousness of the

children about their faith and leads them closer to the Eucharist by answering and clarifying

some of their queries about the mass, (2) teach them the value of sharing during the offertory,

respect for the one being celebrated by observing the proper behavior while inside the church,

12 cf. Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education, Catechism for Filipino Catholics; (new ed., enl.,: Manila: Word and Life Publications, July 1,1997), 1716

13 Baldovin, 13.

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unity with other parishioners like when they hold hands together when praying The Lord’s

Prayer, when they respond to the priest as a family of God and sing with the choir, humility to

reconcile with other people by sharing God’s peace as we say, “Peace be with you” (3) explain

the importance of partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ through the Holy Communion and

how they participate in the mission entrusted to us, “Go in peace”, which is to share Christ’s

presence to other people because “to eat his body is to assent to his mission to bring good news

to the lowly”. All these radiate Christ’s presence in the celebration.

Effects of Christ’s Presence

Hence, Catholic families should regularly attend mass to be able to witness to the

mentioned various presences of Christ in the Eucharist. In return, Catholic families should

cooperate with the grace that they received by sharing the presence of Christ to other people, so

that even those who haven’t heard mass may witness to it. “By sharing in the Eucharist, a

Catholic commits himself or herself to what Jesus calls each to—making Jesus present in the

world. All one’s actions become united with the Lord. One dies to oneself so that one can rise

with Christ in the world.”14 Therefore, witnessing to Christ’s does not stop in the Eucharistic

celebration. Catholic families are to bring the presence of Christ first to their families and to the

community where they belong. As Paul VI says:

The family, like the Church, ought to be a place where the Gospel is transmitted and from which the Gospel radiates. In a family which is conscious of this mission, all the members evangelize and are evangelized. The parents not only communicate the Gospel to their children, but from their children they can themselves receive the same Gospel as deeply lived by them. And such a family becomes the evangelizer of many other families, and of the neighborhood of which it forms part. (123)15

14 Altemose, Why do Catholics…? (Makati: Salesiana Publisher Inc.; 1989), 5515 Familiaris Consortio 52

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Christ’s presence should be seen in the family through the way they live out God’s Word being

proclaimed in the Holy Eucharist, with the way they relate with others and the way they live their

lives. As Vatican II has taught us, “having experienced the presence and love of the Lord in

prayer and worship, the Christian has to go forth and bear witness to Him.”16 However, we do

not only make Christ present in the assembly, minister, scripture, bread and wine, and in the

Catholic family but also in their witnessing grounded in Christ’s ministry.

Jesus liberates those he encounters. Just as it is remarkable how accessible Jesus is, it is equally remarkable that Jesus does not enter intrusively into the lives of those he encounters. He visits their houses but does not become part of their family. He remains in a very real sense the stranger, even as he gains astonishing intimacy. He is present to them; it appears in order that they might be truly present to themselves.17

Through the Catholic family’s witnessing they can also bring the liberating presence of Christ

that they received in the Eucharist by influencing them to have the courage to stand for what is

true and just, so that they may be able to help lessen some of the injustices in our society today

and give hope to those who were enslaved by fear, discrimination and tragic experiences due to

the failure of recognizing Christ’s presence around us. Hence, they need the Eucharist to be able

to witness to Christ’s presence that they may be nourished and strengthened in fulfilling the

mission entrusted to us by God which is to witness to the Truth. Altemose cited Vatican II in his

book Why do Catholics…?, which challenges Catholics to consider the mass in its deepest

theological dimensions as a precious heritage, the sacramental presence of the Lord in word,

sacrament, priest and people. The mass is Jesus living on. 18 His presence should be manifested

in the Catholic family’s everyday life as they relate to people from all walks of life because

Christ is for everyone. The presence of Christ should inspire the Catholic families to live out

16 Vatican II ( Acts and Decrees of the Second Plenary CouncilL of the Philippines # 78 ) (20 January – 17 February 1991)17 Johnson, Luke Timothy, The Eucharist and the identity of Jesus (Priest People; June 15, 2001):23218 Altemose, Why do Catholics…? (Makati: Salesiana Publisher Inc.;1989), 55

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daily the “Christian virtues of generous self-giving in active charity, in mutual forgiveness and

obedience, in prayer and thanksgiving,”19 making other people recognize who he is through their

works and deeds. As a result, we hope that even those who haven’t heard mass will radiate the

presence of Christ that they received from the Catholic families that they encountered.

Implementation MaterialType of Activity: Half-day RecollectionAudience: Catholic Parents in the rural areaSize: 40 participants

19 CFC 1722

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Objectives:

At the end of the whole day recollection the Catholic family should be able to; A. recognize Christ’s various presence in the Eucharist and in a Catholic family’s experiences.

B. witness to Christ’s presence in the celebration of the Eucharist by having a full, conscious and active participation.

C. celebrate mass as a way of experiencing Christ’s presence that the Catholic family may be nourished and strengthened by it.

AM

8:00-8:30

8:30-8:35

8:35-8:45

8:45-9:10

Part I

Registration

Opening Prayer: You Are Mine (Video Presentation)

Short Introduction: Discuss the purpose of the activity and their expectations.

Introductory Activity: “Foot Signing”This introductory activity will help the participants be

acquainted and be at ease to each other. It will give also the participants the opportunity to experience how Jesus showed humility by washing of the Feet of his apostles found in the scripture as a way of witnessing to Christ’s presence.1. Let the participants form a circle and prepare their pen.2. Participants are expected to approach one another and

mark their signature on the sole of the foot. (Each participant is only allowed to sign one signature at the foot of each individual.)

3. To encourage them to be at ease to one another, at the end of the activity they must count the signature written on their feet. (Signatures must be clear and full, no initials or shortcut signatures)

4. The goal of the activity is to experience how Jesus

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9:10-9:30

showed humility when he washed the feet of his apostles. Play music. After 2 songs let the participants go back to their seats and count the signatures.

Processing

9:30-10:00 BREAK10:00- 12:00 Session 1: Getting to know Christ

Activity 1: My Family’s Crossroads

This activity aims to help the participants stir their

hearts into reflection of their life situation and recognize

Christ’s presence within the situation.

Instructions:

The participants will be given handouts where they can fill up

guide questions per signage. Each direction will correspond to

a particular question, such as:

a. 1st direction – What are my family’s values in

life?

b. 2nd direction – How do we find our family at the

moment?

c. 3rd direction – What is really important for us?

d. 4th direction – How do we recognize Christ’s

presence in every situation that we experience

as a family?

A. Plenary Sharing (2 - 4 sharers)

B. Deepening/Integration B.1 Scripture reading: Matthew 18: 20

"For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst."

B.2 Discuss the importance of the Eucharist as a way of experiencing Christ’s multiple presences in the celebration and in the family itself.

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Prayer Integration: Pray for one another as a way of radiating Christ’s presence. (Play Music: Lauds )

(1) place your hands over your chest – pray about the values and things/persons important to self

(2) place your right hand over the shoulder of the person to your right - pray for the concerns of the person and his hopes

(3) place your left hand over the shoulder of the person to your left - pray for the concerns of the person and his hopes

Closing song: Hesus ng Aking Buhay

AVP: Hesus ng Aking Buhay

12:00nn-1:00pm

LUNCH BREAK

PM

1:00-2:00Session II: FAMILY’S WITNESSING

Eucharistic Celebration

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