Adult Catechism Class

Adult Catechism Class

Overview Review Opening Prayer Sacrament of Marriage Marriage God s Plan Marriage Call to Holiness Marriage the Domestic Church Sacrament of Holy Orders Holy Orders Christ the High Priest Holy Orders To offer Sacrifice Holy Orders Equipping the Saints

Review What is a sacrament? Outward sign Instituted by Christ To give Grace

Order of the Seven Sacraments in the CCC Sacraments of Initiation Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist Sacraments of Healing Sacraments Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick Sacraments at the Service of Communion Marriage, Holy Orders

Opening Prayer The Sacraments are opportunities to encounter the living Lord Jesus Open our hearts and minds to the presence of God Allowing the Lord to transform us into His image and likeness Communion / communication with God In the context of the sacramental life of the Church we read the story of the wedding feast of Cana

Opening Prayer The Wedding Feast of Cana (John 1 see also CCC 1613) On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." (And) Jesus said to her, "Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come." His mother said to the servers, "Do whatever he tells you."

Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings, each holding twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told them, "Fill the jars with water." So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, "Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter." So they took it. And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from (although the servers who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, "Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now."

Opening Prayer Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him. After this, he and his mother, (his) brothers, and his disciples went down to Capernaum and stayed there only a few days.

Opening Prayer Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there. He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace."

First miracle of the public life of Jesus in St. John s Account Model of Sacramental life Context of a Wedding Feast Mary s Role Jesus Role Points to Ponder Woman Aguni Water for purification rite used

Points to Ponder The change that happens THE BEST WINE!!!! Christ present in the sacrament of Marriage and Holy Orders THE BEST WINE!!!! Moving to the Passover Direct connection to the saving mystery of Christ Christ the priest / prophet and King Jesus claiming and CLEANING the Father s house Recollection of the destruction of the temple and the building of the temple

Sacrament of Marriage Christ is the Bridegroom the Church is the Bride Over arching image in all marriages In all sacraments CCC on Marriage Sacraments at the Service of Communion 1601 "The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament.

God s Plan: Covenant Not a contract but a FAMILY BOND In the beginning God covenants Himself with Adam and Eve 7 th day of creation it is a covenant with His creation Oath to the people Even if one side breaks the agreement it still holds a bond with both Marriage is a covenantal bond with God and with the other

God s Plan: Covenant In each of the sacraments a window opens and we can glimpse the mystery of God and God's plan for the salvation of the world. In Christian marriage we see that God was not content to be alone, but embarked on a whole new life project. Out of love God created us and all that is. God is faithful no matter what. Whether we are faithful or faithless, God is faithful; whether we wander away in sin or remain in the embrace of love, God is always there and is ever ready to embrace us. http://www.americancatholic.org/newsletters/cu/ac0596.asp

God s Plan: Covenant CCC 1617 The entire Christian life bears the mark of the spousal love of Christ and the Church. Already Baptism, the entry into the People of God, is a nuptial mystery; it is so to speak the nuptial bath 111 which precedes the wedding feast, the Eucharist. Christian marriage in its turn becomes an efficacious sign, the sacrament of the covenant of Christ and the Church. Since it signifies and communicates grace, marriage between baptized persons is a true sacrament of the New Covenant. 112

Call to Holiness In the rite of marriage Who confers the rite? Is it the Priest?????? NO 1623 In the Latin Church, it is ordinarily understood that the spouses, as ministers of Christ's grace, mutually confer upon each other the sacrament of Matrimony by expressing their consent before the Church.

Consent Call to Holiness Free act of will 1627 The consent consists in a "human act by which the partners mutually give themselves to each other": "I take you to be my wife" - "I take you to be my husband." 126 This consent that binds the spouses to each other finds its fulfillment in the two "becoming one flesh."

The VOWS Call to Holiness I take you to be my lawful husband/wife I will be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.

Call to Holiness Help each other to heaven Christ is present in a Christian Marriage 24/7 Help each other to know Christ to love Christ and to serve Christ in this life and to be happy with Christ in the next. Commitment to pray for one another and to respect the sacred ground of each other s lives

Prayer of the Couple For Husband: Lord I thank you for my beautiful wife. I thank you for her strengths and her weaknesses I ask you to bless her and make her into the woman you have called her to be, Not the one that I want her to be. Lord I thank you for my beautiful wife. For Wife: Lord I thank you for my beautiful husband. I thank you for his strengths and his weaknesses I ask you to bless him and make him into the man you have called him to be, Not the one that I want him to be. Lord I thank you for my beautiful husband.

Call to Holiness 1642 How can I ever express the happiness of a marriage joined by the Church, strengthened by an offering, sealed by a blessing, announced by angels, and ratified by the Father?... How wonderful the bond between two believers, now one in hope, one in desire, one in discipline, one in the same service! They are both children of one Father and servants of the same Master, undivided in spirit and flesh, truly two in one flesh. Where the flesh is one, one also is the spirit.

The Domestic Church Openness to Life The gift of Children in Marriage As they see you love one another and grow in holiness they will follow The gift of Fatherhood and Motherhood Radically changed Responsibility to love Never stop being a parent Reflection of the love of God participants in creation

The Domestic Church Concerning Conjugal Love: 1646 Love seeks to be definitive; it cannot be an arrangement "until further notice." the "intimate union of marriage, as a mutual giving of two persons, and the good of the children, demand total fidelity from the spouses and require an unbreakable union between them. It is the ratifying of the marriage covenant

The Domestic Church 1655 Christ chose to be born and grow up in the bosom of the holy family of Joseph and Mary. the Church is nothing other than "the family of God." From the beginning, the core of the Church was often constituted by those who had become believers "together with all [their] household. Jesus is in the context of family. Our families are in the context of Jesus!

The Domestic Church 657 It is here that the father of the family, the mother, children, and all members of the family exercise the priesthood of the baptized in a privileged way "by the reception of the sacraments, prayer and thanksgiving, the witness of a holy life, and self-denial and active charity." 168 Thus the home is the first school of Christian life and "a school for human enrichment." 169 Here one learns endurance and the joy of work, fraternal love, generous - even repeated - forgiveness, and above all divine worship in prayer and the offering of one's life.

Holy Orders Jesus is the Great High Priest 1536 Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time: thus it is the sacrament of apostolic ministry. It includes three degrees: Episcopate Presbyterate Diaconate

Holy Orders Sacrament: Outward Sign: The candidate himself Oil of Chrism Laying on of Hands Instituted by Christ: The apostolic succession shown in Sacred Scripture The 12 Apostles plus the choosing of the replacement To give Grace For the good of the Church sacramental presence of Jesus

Holy Orders 1538 Ordination is also called consecratio, for it is a setting apart and an investiture by Christ himself for his Church. the laying on of hands by the bishop, with the consecratory prayer, constitutes the visible sign of this ordination.

Christ the High Priest It is not a right as to say I have a right to food, protection, work and safety 1578 No one has a right to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders. Indeed no one claims this office for himself; he is called to it by God. 69 Anyone who thinks he recognizes the signs of God's call to the ordained ministry must humbly submit his desire to the authority of the Church, who has the responsibility and right to call someone to receive orders. Like every grace this sacrament can be received only as an unmerited gift.

Christ the High Priest Preparation for ordination the Seminary Place of discernment with the guidance of a spiritual director and the study of Scripture and Tradition and Magisterial documents to discern what the vocation is 3 years philosophy - 5 years theology Said to me prior to my ordination: The Church does not need you you need the Church

Christ the High Priest It is the priesthood of Jesus Christ Orders: For the ordering of the Church To communicate the sacraments To offer sacrifice To be a servant leader For the good of the People of God

Christ the High Priest Priesthood of the Baptized (3 fold munera ) The MINISTERIAL priesthood Christ is acting in the priest in spite of his human weakness, sinfulness and unworthiness. 1545 The redemptive sacrifice of Christ is unique, accomplished once for all; yet it is made present in the Eucharistic sacrifice of the Church. the same is true of the one priesthood of Christ; it is made present through the ministerial priesthood without diminishing the uniqueness of Christ's priesthood: "Only Christ is the true priest, the others being only his ministers."

Christ the High Priest Episcopate BISHOP The fullness of the priesthood Consecrated for service in the Church Apostle of the Lord Appointed by the Pope Consecrated by three other bishops Charged with a Diocese geographical area of the world Is responsible for all the souls in that geographic area

Christ the High Priest Presbyterate the PRIEST Ordained by the Bishop Sharing in the ministry of the bishop Obedience to the bishop and his successors Delegated authority Pastor responsible for all the souls in the parish geographical area

Christ the High Priest Diaconate the DEACON Order of service From the book of acts to order the gifts of the people To look after the widow and the orphan

Equipping the Saints 1592 The ministerial priesthood differs in essence from the common priesthood of the faithful because it confers a sacred power for the service of the faithful. the ordained ministers exercise their service for the People of God by teaching (munus docendi), divine worship (munus liturgicum) and pastoral governance (munus regendi). The purpose of the ministerial priesthood is to help the laity in their call of holiness in the world

Equipping the Saints It is the duty of the pastor of a parish to discern the charisms with the laity, to empower them to use the charisms in the world for the building up of the Body of Christ It is the duty of the priest to preach prophetically as to encourage, support, admonish if need be, and to empower. It is the duty of the priest to manifest the sacramental presence of Christ in the community and to live a life according to the dignity of the office bestowed.

Parish Mission Renewed, Reconciled and Revived in the Trinity Mark your calendar for February 26, 27 and 28 th at 7:00 pm and come to St. Boniface Church for a time of renewal, reconciliation and revival. Make a difference this Lent and encounter the love of the Trinity. Deacon Steve Thomashefski

March 23-24 (Friday evening to Saturday afternoon) Micholite Retreat Centre just outside of London Topics: Morality / 10 Commandments Reconciliation & Healing Eucharist / The Mass & Adoration Cost: $40 includes accommodation and Lunch Carpooling option Retreat