Day on Celebrating the Eucharist
More than 70 people came to Alexander House, the home of the Clifton Diocese’s administrative offices, on a crisp morning to a day run by the Clifton Diocese Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation. The day was led by Anne White the writer and producer of the ‘Here I am’ and ‘Walk with me’ religious education programmes used across the country by parishes and schools.
The day started with a prayerful reflection acknowledging the presence of Jesus and putting before him our hopes, dreams, concerns and responsibilities in preparing children and young people to participate and celebrate the Eucharist. Using the words at the beginning of the Preface at Mass:
The Lord be with you And also with you
Lift up your hearts We lift them up to the Lord
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God It is right to give God thanks and praise
we acknowledged Thanksgiving Sacrifice as being at the heart of the Eucharistic Celebration. We went on to look at the skills needed in preparing the children, the first being the capacity to be thankful. How many times do we give thanks in a day? Not only to Jesus but to our fellow beings, many more times than we perhaps realise.
Then we were asked to think of a time when a celebration of the Sacrament of Eucharist was a deeply spiritual personal experience. How did we feel? Were we able to express these feelings? The basic skill we bring to the Eucharistic celebration is our human ability to enter into relationships, to find joy in them and to be thankful. We discussed what, in today’s society, develops this ability and what inhibits it. Therefore, what skills do we need to develop in this respect?
Three words summed up the approach needed:
Integrity: be faithful to the handed down tradition rooted at all times in the Scripture and in the children’s reality of their experience;
Flexibility: openness, sensitivity, ability to work collaboratively;
Creativity: ability to make connections between material and spiritual; connection with the children.
We were then invited to explore the message in everyday hymns, many of which we take for granted and never give a second’s thought to, starting with Here in this place new light is shining … Belief expressed in this gathering song: time, place, flesh and blood. Anne suggested that the words of hymns and the words of the Mass (especially Eucharistic Celebrations for children) were both good places to start catechesis.
As beings, at once body and spirit, we express and perceive spiritual realities through physical signs and symbols. As social beings we need signs and symbols to communicate with others, through language, gestures and actions. The same holds true of our relationship with God.
A group exercise followed to discuss what signs and symbols children will encounter in the sacrament and what spiritual realities they express? Various points came out of this discussion: acting together as a community, capacity to listen, to forgive and to ask forgiveness, expression of gratitude, conviviality, exchanging greetings, experience symbolic actions and festive celebration. The group then went on to discover the various strategies they had found helpful in conveying these aspects to children.
In the afternoon Anne showed us a poster of the Washing of the Feet. This event is found in St John’s Gospel where, during the Last Supper, Jesus commanded his apostles to follow his example of service to others, whereas the other 3 Gospels speak about the blessing of the bread. We were invited to reflect on how many times we had celebrated the Washing of the Feet, not only in church but, with family, friends and strangers. This basic skill we bring to the Eucharistic preparation is the ability to enter into loving relationships of service, to find joy in them and to be thankful.
We then went on to discover how children ‘develop a taste for the Word of God’. Jesus frequently invites people to listen and see. Children need to develop listening skills and ‘see’ into the Word of God. We need to respect and develop their ability to read and understand the Scriptures.
While preparing children to appreciate the significance of the Liturgy of the Eucharist we should focus on what he did and said, and why. Focus on bread and wine: symbols of giving, life and joy. Focus on doing what Jesus asked us to do. Focus on the Eucharist as we show our love for him and our love for each other.
In summary the ay covered:
Skills/qualities for participating in and celebrating the Eucharist are inherently human;
Strategies must root the work of preparation in the Scriptures and in the community and develop and challenge the community’s celebration of Eucharist.
Resources: anything that helps you, the children and their families to make connections between their everyday life and the Eucharistic celebration.
Ronnie Mitchinson, Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation
To contact the department for further information on what they can offer you, please call 0117 902 5595.
The day started with a prayerful reflection acknowledging the presence of Jesus and putting before him our hopes, dreams, concerns and responsibilities in preparing children and young people to participate and celebrate the Eucharist. Using the words at the beginning of the Preface at Mass:
The Lord be with you And also with you
Lift up your hearts We lift them up to the Lord
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God It is right to give God thanks and praise
we acknowledged Thanksgiving Sacrifice as being at the heart of the Eucharistic Celebration. We went on to look at the skills needed in preparing the children, the first being the capacity to be thankful. How many times do we give thanks in a day? Not only to Jesus but to our fellow beings, many more times than we perhaps realise.
Then we were asked to think of a time when a celebration of the Sacrament of Eucharist was a deeply spiritual personal experience. How did we feel? Were we able to express these feelings? The basic skill we bring to the Eucharistic celebration is our human ability to enter into relationships, to find joy in them and to be thankful. We discussed what, in today’s society, develops this ability and what inhibits it. Therefore, what skills do we need to develop in this respect?
Three words summed up the approach needed:
Integrity: be faithful to the handed down tradition rooted at all times in the Scripture and in the children’s reality of their experience;
Flexibility: openness, sensitivity, ability to work collaboratively;
Creativity: ability to make connections between material and spiritual; connection with the children.
We were then invited to explore the message in everyday hymns, many of which we take for granted and never give a second’s thought to, starting with Here in this place new light is shining … Belief expressed in this gathering song: time, place, flesh and blood. Anne suggested that the words of hymns and the words of the Mass (especially Eucharistic Celebrations for children) were both good places to start catechesis.
As beings, at once body and spirit, we express and perceive spiritual realities through physical signs and symbols. As social beings we need signs and symbols to communicate with others, through language, gestures and actions. The same holds true of our relationship with God.
A group exercise followed to discuss what signs and symbols children will encounter in the sacrament and what spiritual realities they express? Various points came out of this discussion: acting together as a community, capacity to listen, to forgive and to ask forgiveness, expression of gratitude, conviviality, exchanging greetings, experience symbolic actions and festive celebration. The group then went on to discover the various strategies they had found helpful in conveying these aspects to children.
In the afternoon Anne showed us a poster of the Washing of the Feet. This event is found in St John’s Gospel where, during the Last Supper, Jesus commanded his apostles to follow his example of service to others, whereas the other 3 Gospels speak about the blessing of the bread. We were invited to reflect on how many times we had celebrated the Washing of the Feet, not only in church but, with family, friends and strangers. This basic skill we bring to the Eucharistic preparation is the ability to enter into loving relationships of service, to find joy in them and to be thankful.
We then went on to discover how children ‘develop a taste for the Word of God’. Jesus frequently invites people to listen and see. Children need to develop listening skills and ‘see’ into the Word of God. We need to respect and develop their ability to read and understand the Scriptures.
While preparing children to appreciate the significance of the Liturgy of the Eucharist we should focus on what he did and said, and why. Focus on bread and wine: symbols of giving, life and joy. Focus on doing what Jesus asked us to do. Focus on the Eucharist as we show our love for him and our love for each other.
In summary the ay covered:
Skills/qualities for participating in and celebrating the Eucharist are inherently human;
Strategies must root the work of preparation in the Scriptures and in the community and develop and challenge the community’s celebration of Eucharist.
Resources: anything that helps you, the children and their families to make connections between their everyday life and the Eucharistic celebration.
Ronnie Mitchinson, Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation
To contact the department for further information on what they can offer you, please call 0117 902 5595.
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