CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

FROM THE LAST SUPPER TO 100 C.E. Jesus uses the Jewish Passover meal in a new way to express a New Covenant; a promise which establishes a new relationship between God and ourselves and with one another.

At this meal Jesus asked that his followers remember him. He also asked them to have faith that through his word his special presence is made real through the bread and wine.

The new Passover meal or Eucharist is celebrated primarily in private homes as a meal of unity among believers. It was also celebrated in secret in the catacombs underneath the city of Rome.

The celebration of the Eucharist consisted of: Readings from the Old Testament (later, when the gospels and letters of St. Paul were written, sections of these were added to the readings) Explanations or homily about the readings or about the teaching of Jesus Sharing Jesus presence through bread and wine

FROM 100 600 C.E. When Christianity became a state religion in 313, the Eucharist was no longer celebrated in homes but in public buildings which were specifically designed for the gathering of the Christian community and for prayer this marked the beginning of local Churches.

In 383 C.E. Pope Damascus changed the language of the Eucharistic celebration from Greek to Latin.

FROM 600 1903 C.E. The people gathered are no longer allowed to improvise prayers. Specific prayers are gathered and formalized. After the Council of Trent in 1570 the first missal was created and from now on people had to celebrate the Eucharist in the same way all throughout the world.

The council of Trent also defined the manner in which Jesus becomes present in the bread and the wine as TRANSUBSTANTIATION. A group of people known as the Jansenists believed that human beings were too sinful to receive the body of Christ, therefore they encouraged people to go to confession before receiving the Eucharist.

As the celebration of the Eucharist becomes more formalized and official, ordinary people (known as laity) become distanced from the clergy (priests, bishops) and they begin to feel more like passive onlookers than participants. The Eucharist becomes the business of the clergy and the people do not see themselves as worthy enough to receive the Eucharist.

1850 C.E. POPE PIUS X In the 1850 s European Benedictan monks urged greater participation of the people at Mass through singing. In the 1910 Pope Pius X stated that children should receive first Holy Communion when they reach the age of reason (thought to be at age 7) or when they can distinguish between ordinary bread and Eucharistic bread.

1962 VATICAN II At this council, the Pope and the Bishops decided: That the language of the mass should be changed from Latin to whatever language the people spoke That the priest should face the people That there should be a prayers of the faithful to encourage spontaneous prayer and participation That the priests should encourage the people to receive the Eucharist at each mass they attend

GENERALLY SPEAKING... The Mass can be divided into two: The Liturgy of the Word is composed of Scripture readings, which are proclaimed and reflected upon. Usually, there are three readings: an Old Testament selection, a New Testament selection (from the Epistles), and the Gospel reading. After the readings, a priest or deacon delivers a homily, a reflection on the readings. The Liturgy of the Eucharist is the section of the celebration when the gifts of bread and wine are prepared and the Eucharistic Prayer is proclaimed by the celebrant, and the Blessed Sacrament (Eucharist, Communion) is distributed to the assembly.

THE MASS CAN BE FURTHER SUBDIVIDED INTO THE FOLLOWING: INTRODUCTORY RITE OPENING PRAYER LITURGY OF THE WORD GENERAL INTERCESSIONS LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST COMMUNION CONCLUDING RITE

2011 MOST RECENT CHANGES Certain responses and prayers were changed to reflect the true literal language that they were originally spoken it. Ex. And also with you became and with your spirit. The church also introduced symbolic gestures in order to outwardly express what the soul should be experiencing. Ex. To express how sorry we are for our sins we are called to beat our chest three times when asking for forgiveness. Finally periods of silence were introduced after the scriptural readings to encourage personal reflection.