Level 6, Lesson Plan 19, Chapters 24 and 25: "Lift Up the Cup of Salvation" and "Come to the Table of the Lord" Dinner with Father (5:30-6:30) Primary Aim: Our Daily Bread Materials: Bibles, evaluations, pencils, rosaries, Prayer handout Key Words (Vocabulary): hosanna: a Hebrew word meaning "save us." It is a special exclamation of joy at the salvation God has promised us. Doxology: A prayer of adoration and praise, said especially in honor of the Blessed Trinity. The prayer said by the priest after the Consecration: "Through him, with him, in him..." is an example of a doxology. Explanation 1. Opening Prayer and Scripture (6:30-6:35 PM) Opening Prayer: Prayer Before Communion (from the Catholic Devotional) Come O blessed Savior, and nourish my soul with heavenly Food, the Food which contains every sweetness and every delight. Come, Bread of Angels, and satisfy the hunger of my soul. Come, glowing Furnace of Charity, and enkindle in my heart the flame of divine love. Come, Light of the World, and enlighten the darkness of my mind. Come, King of Kings, and make me obedient to Your holy will. Amen. Catholic Prayer: "Our Father" Scripture Reading: Mt 6:9-13 2. Activity (6:35-6:55 PM) Show the students the vessels and linens used at Mass. (from Chapter 19, pg. 232 of the Teacher's Manual) Take the students to the church (or if this is not possible arrange to do this activity in the classroom with a table). Show the students the vessels and linens used at Mass. o Altar: It is the table of the Lord and altar of sacrifice The altar is to be solid, immovable, made of solid material (preferably stone or precious wood). It is the symbol of Christ himself, who is the cornerstone of our faith. (Show the students the altar stone and tell them which saint's relics are contained therein.) o Altar cloth: It reminds us of the holy shroud.
o Corporal: This is taken from the word for body. It is placed on the altar, upon which are placed the paten and chalice. o Chalice: It is the cup used to contain wine, which will become the Precious Blood. It must be made of precious metal. It should be the very best, for it contains Christ. o Paten: This is the place upon which the host that will become the Sacred Body of Christ is placed. This, too, is made of precious metal. o Purificator: It is a linen used to purify the vessels after the Consecration. o Pall: It is a square to cover the chalice to protect the Precious Blood from outside elements. o Cruets: They contain water and wine. o Water basin (lavabo) and finger towel: These are there to wash the hands of the priest. The vessels and linens used at Mass should be the very best for the sacred meal is for Lord. 3. "The Gifts" (6:55-7:00 PM) The bread used for the hosts is made from wheat and water. o It must be unleavened (no yeast). o Wheat is harvested and ground into flour to make bread. o The bread is made from many grains of wheat, just as many people make up the Mystical Body of Christ. o It is a sign of the unity of the People of God's Church. Wine used for the Mass is made from grapes which were crushed in order to become wine. o This should remind us that we need to die to ourselves so that Christ can live in us and work through us. At Sunday Mass, a collection is taken during the Offertory and brought forward with the gifts. o This is one way to support the church in its financial needs. o The collection from the Mass maintains: The church building (e.g., plumbing, electrics, cleaning) Lay staff salaries (e.g., Youth Minister, Organist). The mission Church. Various charities. The diocesan offices, etc. o The collection is a sacrificial gift of the People of God. o We work hard for our money, and it is a sacrifice of our labor. o We should give from our excess, but also from needs. 4. "Prayers Over the Gifts" (7:00-7:05 PM) After the priest offers the bread and wine to God, we say "Blessed be God forever." o We are uniting our: Voices with the priest in offering God praise.
Wills with that of the priest in the Sacrifice of the Mass. o Just as the priest is offering God the bread and wine (which symbolizes us), we should offer ourselves to God in the Sacrifice of the Mass. o We can offer all we are, all we have, and all we do for his greater glory. o The priest ask God to accept these gifts, which we offer with humble and contrite hearts. Humility: absence of pride or self-assertion; conscious of one's shortcomings or defects. Contrition: a feeling of remorse for sins or wrongdoing; earnest repentance. The priest washes his hands and says: "Wash me, O Lord, from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin." o This reminds us of our Baptism (as when we bless ourselves with holy water). o We should ask God to purify us, too, at this time, as we are united with the priest in this offering to the Father. Next, we stand, and the priest invites the people to pray that our sacrifice will be acceptable to the Father. o We respond: "May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of his name, for our good and the good of all his Church." We acknowledge that the priest is our mediator. We ask God to accept the sacrifice as a worthy sacrifice at the hands of his servant the priest. We also ask to share in the benefits of the Sacrifice of the Mass. We end by saying: "Amen," which means: "I believe this to be true," or "so be it." This is the end of the Offertory, which is followed by the Eucharistic Prayer. 5. "Eucharistic Prayer" (7:05-7:08 PM) The Eucharistic Prayer is the high point of the Mass. o This is the part of the Mass when transubstantiation occurs. The bread and wine become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus. o We need to pay particularly close attention during this part of the Mass o There are several Eucharistic Prayers currently accepted by the Church. The Eucharistic Prayer is sometimes called the Canon. The oldest of the Eucharistic Prayers is the Roman Canon. The parts of the Mass are taken from Scripture (they are not just made up). E.g: o The "Holy, Holy, Holy" is taken from Revelations 4:8. o The "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" is from Matthew 21:9. o These prayers come from Scripture and reflect the Tradition of the Church. 6. "Consecration" (7:08-7:13 PM) During the Epiclesis, the priest extends his hands over the gifts. o He calls the Holy Spirit to come down upon them to make them holy, so that they may become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. o With his hand, he traces a cross in the air over the gifts. o Next comes the Consecration. The Consecration is the most sacred part of Mass.
o It is the prayer that changes the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus. o Up to this point the priest speaks in the third person. During the Consecration, he speaks in the first person because it is Jesus speaking through the priest (who is acting in the Person of Christ). o The priest recounts the events of the Last Supper and is acting out these same events as he says the very words of Jesus at the Last Supper. "This is my body... This is the chalice of my Blood." o These words, the prayer of Consecration, are the form of the Sacrament of the Eucharist. o The matter of the Sacrament is bread and wine. o This change into the Body and Blood of Jesus is called transubstantiation. o With these words, Jesus is made present. o At the Consecration of each of the species, the priest genuflects in adoration. o We should make an act of adoration as well, such as the one that Saint Thomas said: "My Lord and my God." We then proclaim the mystery of faith. (There are three options.) Next is the Doxology: o "Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever." This should only be said by the priests. We unite our prayers with them by saying "Amen." With this, the Canon is complete. (After the Doxology, we stand.) 7. "Our Father" (7:13-7:18 PM) The Our Father is the model prayer that Jesus gave us. o It summarizes the Gospels. o It contains all the "spiritual ingredients" we need to move us into a close and loving family with God. "Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy name." o We call God "our Father," rather than "my Father" because we are his children through the Church. o All people in the Church are God's children. o We acknowledge that God is in heaven. However, God is all present: he is everywhere. We think of God as in heaven, for heaven is our greatest desire where we can be perfectly happy and in union with God. o When we say: Hallowed be thy name, we ask that all people will know and honor God and realize the sacredness of his name. This calls us to recognize the truths of the Faith. "Thy Kingdom Come." o We want the reign of Christ to be present on earth, so we can live in his love. "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" o We surrender our will to God. o If all people did this here on earth, it would be like heaven. "Give us this day our daily bread." o We ask for God to provide for our needs.
o In a special way, we recognize Jesus in the Eucharist offered daily at Mass. "And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." o We ask to be forgiven as much as we forgive. "And lead us not into temptation." o Let not the world or our flesh lead us to sin and distract us from God's ways. "But deliver us from evil." o Give us God's divine protection against all spiritual evils, including Satan and the demons. 8. "Peace Be With You" (7:18-7:20 PM) After the Our Father, we exchange a sign of peace. o Usually, we extend our hand to shake hands with the people immediately surrounding us, saying either: "Peace be with you." "The Peace of Christ." o The peace we extend is the reassurance of having Jesus' mercy and love. o Therefore, we must strive to live Christ's peace in our families, our work places, our school, our church, etc. As the Right of Peace ends, the priest takes the Host and breaks it over the paten in what is called The Fraction Rite. o It is important to understand that as the Host is broken, Jesus is not broken. o He is truly and wholly present in each of the parts of the Sacred Host. o The priest places a small piece of the Host in the chalice, saying quietly: "May this mingling of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ bring eternal life to us who receive it." o Meanwhile, the congregation prays the Agnus Dei: "Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us... grant us peace." Jesus, of course, is the "Lamb of God;" he takes away the sins of the world. The Paschal lamb that is eaten by Jewish families to celebrate the Passover, which freed the Israelites from the Egyptians, is a symbol of the true Paschal Lamb who frees us from the slavery of our sins. 9. "Communion" (7:20-7:25 PM) After the Agnus Dei: o The priest elevates the Eucharist and says: "Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world." "Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb." o We reply: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed." We may receive Holy Communion if we are worthy/properly disposed. o The priest holds the Host before the communicant and says: "The Body of Christ." o The communicant answers: "Amen." When we say "Amen" we are saying: "Yes, I believe this is really Jesus
Christ." If we are unable to receive Communion for some reason, we should us the time to pray and ask Jesus to be present with us. o If Communion is offered under both species, the chalice will be offered and the priest will say: "The Blood of Christ." Again, the reply is "Amen." It is important to understand that if we receive only the Sacred Host, we nonetheless receive the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus---the whole of Jesus If one receives only a piece of the Host, this is also true. Likewise, if one receives from the chalice alone, he receives the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus. How should we receive Communion? o In what spirit? o How should we be with Jesus once we receive him? When we receive Holy Communion, Jesus remains physically present within us as long as the species remains, approximately 10-15 minutes. When Communion is over and the altar is cleared, we stand to pray the prayer after Communion, which will change with each day of the liturgical year. The priest then gives a final blessing in the name of the Trinity. o The priest declares: "Go forth, the Mass is ended." o The people respond: "Thanks be to God." 7. Evaluation (7:25-7:30 PM) Fill in the blank and True or False answer key. 1. Amen means: "I believe this to be true," or "so be it." 2. When the priest washes his hands and says: "Wash me, O Lord, from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin," this reminds us of our Baptism. 3. Parts of the Mass such as the "Holy, Holy, Holy" are not just made up; they are taken from Scripture. 4. The Our Father is the model prayer that Jesus gave us. 5. The prayer of Consecration is the most sacred part of Mass. It is the prayer that changes the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Write one or more petitions to pray during our Intercessory Prayers. For...... We pray to the Lord. Conclusion: prayer in the Church (7:30-8:00 pm) Exposition
Hymn: Father I adore you Intercessory Prayers Divine Mercy Chaplet Hymn: Sanctuary Benediction Divine Praises Hymn: "Give Me Jesus"