Seventh Session of Fr. Robert Barron's Catholicism Project



"The Eucharist "is the great school in which we learn to see the face of God, we enter into an intimate relationship with Him, and we learn at the same time to turn our gaze towards the final moment of history, when He will satisfy us with the light of his face."
~Pope Benedict XVI, Jan. 16, 2013, General Audience ~

 This week (Wednesday 16th February) at Our Lady of Lourdes School, the Parish of Our Lady of Lourdes & St. Joseph, Leigh-on-Sea will be presenting the 7th Session of Fr. Robert Barron's excellent and epic Catholicism Project. This fantastic series of documentaries attempt to redress the modern situation that we encounter of other people telling the Catholic story, and telling it wrong! Instead, we need to tell our own story, we need to re-invigorate ourselves with all the beauty, colour and texture of our incredible faith. This series sets out to do that, it is our story told by us.
This week, we are looking at the The Church's Sacrament and Worship~ The public worship and gathering of the Church and the blessed Sacrament of the Real Presence.

Outline: Episode 7 – Word Made Flesh: True Bread of Heaven 

I. Communion with the Lord
A.  Aristotle: the best activities are the most useless
B. Romano Guardini: "The Playfulness of the Liturgy"
C.  Liturgy exists for its own sake; we "do liturgy" because it is good to do
D. Mass is a microcosm of God's right order preserved

 II. The Gathering 
A.  The Mass brings about real unity amidst authentic diversity
B.  This unity is focused on the person of Jesus Christ
C. Singing is an embodied expression of harmony
D.  We call to mind our sins, acknowledging our guilt and need for forgiveness
E.  The Gloria: we render to God due glory; we love God for his own sake

III. The Telling of the Stories 
A. Proclamation of the  Word of God: Old  Testament,  New  Testament  epistle, Gospel
B. They draw us into the biblical world and the story of salvation
C.  Scripture, inspired by God, tells the story of God
D. Preaching is meant to bring about a transforming encounter E. The Creed: the great profession of faith

IV: The Offering 
A.  The Liturgy of the Eucharist
B.  The offering of sacrifices
1. God does not need our sacrifice
2. Sacrifice is an expression of thanksgiving, dependence
C.  Through God's goodness, bread and wine are offered
D.  The Eucharistic Prayer

V: The Real Presence 
A. John 6 contains some of the most challenging, shocking words in the Bible
B.  Miracle of the loaves and fishes an. 6: 11-13)
1. Prayer, thanksgiving, distribution of bread
2. Foreshadowing the Last Supper, institution of the Eucharist
C.  "It is I, do not be afraid" an. 6:20): Similar to "I AM" (Ex. 3:14)
D.  A series of four exchanges/discourses marked by "Truly, truly"
1. The people seek physical comfort, not truth an. 6:26)
2. God, not Moses, gave the manna from heaven an. 6:32)
3. Those who believe have eternal life an. 6:47)
4. Eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood an. 6:53-4)
E. Jesus spoke literally and sacramentally
F. Jesus emphasized the scandalous nature of his words
G.  Many of the disciples drew away from Jesus; the Eucharist is a stumbling block
H.  Peter: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." an. 6:68)

VI. St. Thomas Aquinas and Transubstantiation
A.  The great hymn, Tantum Ergo, Adora te Devote (Corpus Christi)
B.  Transubstantiation:  the  total substance of  bread  and  wine  becomes  the substance of the body and blood of Christ
C.  Key terms: truly, really, substantially contained, ete.
D.  The mystery of the Eucharist is closely related to the mystery of the Incarnation
E.  "This is my body" and "This is the cup of my blood
F.  F. Jesus-really, truly, and substantially present-is now offered to the Father

VII. "Our Father"
A.  The fundamental Christian prayer (CCC, par. 2759)
B.  The summary of the whole Gospel (CCC, par. 2761)
C.  The center of the proclamation of the Gospel (CCC, par. 2763)
D.  Affirmation that  we  are children of God,  reborn through baptism,  desiring to partake of Jesus Christ
E.  The Eucharist is the sacrament of the kingdom of God

VIII. Communion and Sending
A.  Having received the Lord and given thanks, we are blessed and sent
B.  Transformed,  we are  sent to  proclaim God's Word and transform the  temporal order


If you want to know more about liturgy and the sacraments, I have written several posts you might find interesting:



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