The sacraments celebrated by the Church are signs of grace that make a deeper reality present to us. One reality we encounter through the sacraments is Christ’s presence in the Church community, his Body. This recognition of Christ’s presence in the community should lead to a stronger awareness of being sent on mission to engage in love-inspired action in the world.
As Pope Benedict XVI notes in Deus Caritas Est (God Is Love), the celebration of the sacraments and the ministry of love are “inseparable.” Love in action, he says, is “an indispensable expression” of the Church’s being (no. 25).
This guide focuses on the Sacrament of Baptism, the rite of initiation into the Christian community. As you read, consider the meaning of your own Baptism, your membership in the community, and the mission on which you are sent.
The Eucharist
On Sunday, we gather as the Body of Christ to
celebrate the Lord’s Day, the day of Christ’s
Resurrection:
The Scriptures tell us that Jesus rose on the first day of the week—the day following the Jewish Sabbath. Shortly after daybreak, the women found the tomb empty and Jesus risen from the dead. Jesus’ death and Resurrection opened for us the doors of salvation. Sharing in Jesus’ death in Baptism, we hope to share in his Resurrection. We become a new creation in Christ. It is that new creation which we celebrate on Sunday:
Each Sunday is a “little Easter”—a celebration of the central mysteries of our faith. THE SUNDAY EUCHARIST
The primary way in which we celebrate the Lord’s Day
is with our participation in the Sunday Eucharist. What
better way to celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord than
by celebration of the memorial of his Passion, death, and
Resurrection? This celebration is not a solitary, private event.
Instead, we come together as the People of God, the
Church, to worship with one heart and one voice. The
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that
“participation in the communal celebration of the Sunday
Eucharist is a testimony of belonging and of being
faithful to Christ and to his Church” (CCC, no. 2182). When members of our church community are absent
from this gathering, they are missed. No member of the
faithful should be absent from the Sunday Eucharist without
a serious reason. Th e Liturgy should be the first thing
on Sunday’s schedule, not the last. We should arrive on
time, prepared in mind and heart to fully participate in
the Mass. Those who cannot attend because of illness or
the need to care for infants or the sick deserve our prayers
and special attention. Often, people will suggest that going to Sunday
Mass is not necessary. After all, they can pray at home
just as well. Th is has clearly been an issue in the Church
for more than a millennium. In the fourth century, St.
John Chrysostom addressed this problem directly:
Private prayer, though essential to the spiritual life,
can never replace the celebration of the eucharistic Liturgy
and the reception of Holy Communion. In some communities, the lack of priests makes it
impossible to celebrate the Eucharist each Sunday. In
such instances, the bishop may make provision for these
parish communities to gather and celebrate the Liturgy
of the Word or the Liturgy of the Hours. These Sunday
celebrations in the absence of a priest may or may not
include the reception of Holy Communion. Still, these
celebrations allow the People of God to gather and keep
holy the Lord’s Day.
KEEPING SUNDAY—ALL DAY
Celebrating the Sunday Eucharist—though central and
essential—does not complete our observance of Sunday.
In addition to attending Mass each Sunday, we should
also refrain “from those activities which impede the
worship of God and disturb the joy proper to the day of
the Lord or the necessary relaxation of mind and body”
(Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church,
no. 453). Sunday has traditionally been a day of rest. However,
the concept of a day of rest may seem odd in a world that
runs 24/7, where we are tethered to our jobs by a variety of
electronic gadgets, where businesses run as normal no matter
what the day of the week, and where silence seems to be
an endangered species. By taking a day each week to rest
in the Lord, we provide a living example to the culture that
all time belongs to God and that people are more important
than things. As Pope John Paul II said in Dies Domini (The Day
of the Lord), his apostolic letter on Sunday:
Not everyone has the freedom to take Sundays away
from work. Some people, including medical professionals
and public safety workers, must work on Sundays to
keep the rest of us safe and healthy. Others must work
for economic reasons beyond their control. Resting on Sunday does not mean that we are
inactive. Instead,
To celebrate the Lord’s Day more fully, consider trying
the following:
As we take time each week to celebrate the Paschal
Mystery in the Eucharist and to rest from the burdens of
our daily lives, we remind ourselves that we are made in
the image and likeness of God who “rested on the seventh
day from all the work he had undertaken” (Gn 2:2).
REFERENCES
Catechism of the Catholic Church (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2000. Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Washington, DC:
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2006. Pope John Paul II, On Keeping the Lord’s Day Holy (Dies Domini).
APOSTOLIC LETTER DIES DOMINI .
Excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition,
copyright © 2000, Libreria Editrice Vaticana–United States Conference
of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. Used with permission. All
rights reserved.
Scripture texts used in this work are taken from the New American
Bible, copyright © 1991, 1986, and 1970 by the Confraternity of
Christian Doctrine, Washington, DC 20017 and are used by permission
of the copyright owner. All rights reserved.
Learn about the other sacraments! Visit “Resources and Tools” at www.usccb.org/jphd. |