We Live our Faith as Disciples of Jesus Chapter 16 - Eucharist
PRAYER Closing prayer: pass out strips of paper and have each child write a way they can share Christ with others. Collect these in a basket. Pass the basket a second time, having them draw and read the prayer, responding “Body of Christ. Amen.”
Give out paper with the following already typed: “Jesus, I think I took for granted the privilege of participating in Mass and receiving Your Body and Blood.” Ask them to quietly complete the letter. When they are done, have them place their letters on the “altar” (prayer table).
Write a “prayer letter” to Jesus to express your thoughts about attending and participating in the Eucharist each week. Be honest. No one will read your note. Place the notes in a basket and put the basket on the prayer table as our personal offerings.
Divide into 4 groups that will write an intercession for one of the following (each group chooses a different one), which will be used in the closing prayer: o The needs of the universal Church o All nations and their leaders o People in special need o Needs of Transfiguration parish
OPENING
LESSON Ask for a volunteer to summarize “General Intercessions”. Consider the thought provoker, “what will you pray for so that your parish community will reflect the Body of Christ?”
Large Group Activity – Outline included. Supply list: o Nametags (students and teachers) o Jesus’ picture puzzle pieces in red, green, blue, purple, yellow o “We are One Body” papers for puzzles to be put together on o “We are One Body” banner o Glue sticks o Pencils o Index cards o Pizza/Decaf soda o Plates/Napkins/Cups/Eating Utensils o Copy of Eucharist story – sample included o Small pieces of paper shaped like a slice of bread (1 per student)
ACTIVITIES Play charades using the sacraments and other religious symbols.
Talk about the importance of Eucharist in your own life and how important it should be for them.
Form three groups of students. Give each group 22 slips of paper, each of which has a part of the Eucharistic celebration written on it. Have groups compete to see who can put the slips in order the fastest.
Crossword puzzle handout – sample included. Answers – across: 2. Paschal 5. Eucharist 8. Berakah 9. Last 11. Easter 12. Altar 13. Lord 15. Good Friday down: 1. Wine 3. Christ 4. Sacrifices 6. Holy Thursday 7. Sacrament 10. Meal Page 1 of 7 We Live our Faith as Disciples of Jesus Chapter 16 - Eucharist 14. Old
ACTIVITIES (continued) During the Eucharistic Prayer, the bread and wine on the altar are transformed. While their appearance does not change, their substance truly becomes the Body and Blood of Christ. Artists often try to represent spiritual truths through the inventive use of color and form. How might you represent bread and wine being transformed into the actual Body and Blood of Christ? Prepare a sketch, a painting, or a small model for a sculpture and share it with your class.
Have the students work in groups to create drawings that illustrate and represent each sacrament. They could also draw symbols of what is important to them.
Give each person a piece of construction paper and markers. Draw or outline on the paper a symbol that stands for the truest thing they know about themselves right now (honest, creative, confused, energetic, lonely, etc.). Gather near the prayer table. Each person quietly places their symbol on the table saying, “Here I am, Lord.” After, pass bread and juice around the group and the last person returns it to the table. Then have quiet reflection and prayer.
Compare the way you feel before going to Mass on Sunday with the way you feel after you have celebrated the Eucharist with the parish community. What kind of strength do you draw from this celebration? How might you use this strength to help others? Write a prayer thanking God for this strength.
Set up four stations and divide the students into 4 groups. Each station will represent 1 of the 4 parts of the Eucharist. Have a volunteer from the group currently at the station read in the text about that part of the Eucharist. Ask the kids to talk about how not participating in this part of the Eucharist would impact the spirit of the celebration.
Handout – How Well Do You Know…The Seven Sacraments? Sample included.
Divide students into 4 groups. Each of the groups will take a section(s) of the chapter and will create a presentation of the material in their section on poster board. The group will then present their information to the class. The group will read from sections of the chapter. The teacher will emphasize the gray highlighted areas of text in the Teacher Edition to ensure key points are communicated.
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Large Group Activity (page 1 of 2)
Session Objective: To discover that the celebration of the Eucharist has a four-fold structure: gathering, storytelling, meal sharing, and commissioning.
1. GATHERING (20 minutes) Have the students brought to the session room by their teachers – they should already have their nametags on. Music will be playing. A big banner will be on the wall that says, “Jesus of Nazareth requests your presence at a meal given in His honor.” The students will be greeted by the peer ministers who will hand them a colored puzzle piece. o Greeting script – “Hi (use the student’s name), thanks for coming. We’re glad you could gather here with us. Please take a seat. o NOTE: It’s important to make sure that students in the same class don’t sit together or with their teacher. This is a chance for them to get to know others. Opening Prayer will be sung – a gathering song. Ice Breaker – puzzle pieces that make a sacramental symbol. o The students will have to look for other students that have the same color puzzle piece as they do (the ones handed out by the peer ministers at the door). o Then they go to the corresponding colored table and put the puzzle together. o During the evening, the puzzles will be placed on the banner that says, “We are One Body in Christ”.
2. STORYTELLING (10 minutes) Ask each group to tell stories among each other that pertain to a special holiday or occasion in their lives. These discussions would be facilitated by the teachers. Assign each table a topic. For example o Red table – memorable Christmas celebration o Blue table – a birthday party o Green table – Thanksgiving o Purple table – their First Eucharist o Yellow table – their Baptism These would be shared among those at the table, not with the whole group. Set a time limit so each person has the opportunity to speak.
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Large Group Activity (page 2 of 2)
3. MEAL SHARING (15 minutes) There will be index cards on the table for the students to decide the responsibilities of each to prepare the meal. Compare these to preparing the “meal” at Mass. o Who will get the napkins – altar servers o Who will get the cups – o Who will set the table – deacon o Who will get the drinks – Eucharistic ministers o Who will pour the drinks – o Who will serve the pizza – priest During the meal, or while they’re waiting to be served, each table will sign the Body of Christ Banner. Teachers will take their tables to complete this activity.
4. DEBRIEFING (10 minutes) Facilitated by adult leaders – to compare this activity’s experiences to what we do at Mass (see pp. 40-44 of textbook).
5. COMMISSIONING – (10 minutes) Reflection: decide on one way you will go forth from the Eucharist to be “bread” for someone. The commissioning paragraph on p. 44 of the textbook is a good script to explain this activity. Read the Eucharist story – sample included. Pass out “bread” papers for the students to write their answer to the reflection. Have the peer ministers collect the bread papers in a basket Save these for the following week. Teachers can use them for review of the lesson.
6. DISMISSAL
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Eucharist story
He was old, tired, and sweaty, pushing his homemade cart down the alley, stopping now and then to poke around in somebody’s garbage. I wanted to tell him about Eucharist, but the look in his eyes, the despair on his face, the hopelessness of somebody else’s life in his cart, told me to forget it. So I smiled, said, “Hi!” – and gave him Eucharist.
She lived alone, her husband dead, her family gone, and she talked at you, not to you; words, endless words, spewed out. So I listened – and gave her Eucharist.
Downtown is nice, lights change from red to green and back again. Flashing blues, pinks, and oranges. I gulped them in, said, “Thank you Father” – and made them Eucharist.
I laughed at myself, and told myself, “You with all your sin, all your selfishness, I forgive you, I accept you, I love you.” It’s nice – and so very necessary, too – to give yourself Eucharist.
Tired, weary, disgusted, lonely, go to your friends, open their door, and say, “Look at me” – and receive their Eucharist.
My father, when will we learn you cannot talk Eucharist, cannot philosophize about it – you do it! You don’t dogmatize Eucharist; sometimes you laugh it, sometimes you cry it, often you sing it.
Sometimes it’s a wild peace, then crying hurt, often humiliating, never deserved. You see Eucharist in another’s eyes, give it in another’s hand held tight, squeeze it in an embrace.
You pause Eucharist in the middle of a busy day, speak Eucharist with a million things to do and person who wants to talk. For Eucharist is a simple as being on time, and as profound as sympathy.
I give you my supper, I give you my sustenance, I give you my life, I give you me – I give you…Eucharist.
Page 5 of 7 We Live our Faith as Disciples of Jesus Chapter 16 - Eucharist Crossword
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Across 2. The passion, death and resurrection of Christ is known as the ______mystery 5. The sacrament of Holy Communion is also known as ______8. A prayer form 9. On the night before He died, Jesus celebrate the ______Supper with his disciples 11. Feast day of the resurrection of Christ 12. Another name for the table at which we celebrate Mass 13. “The ______, the giver of life” or the title we use to call Jesus 15. The day Jesus died (2 words)
Down 1. Bread and _____ become the Body and Blood of Christ 3. ______has died, ______is risen, ______will come again 4. Ritual actions that bring about and celebrate our joyful union with God; also called offerings 6. The day of the Last Supper (2 words) 7. A visible sign given to us by Christ through which we share in God’s grace 10. Mass is both a sacrifice and a ______(sharing of food and drink) 14. First foretelling of the Eucharist is found in the _____ Testament
Page 6 of 7 We Live our Faith as Disciples of Jesus Chapter 16 - Eucharist How Well Do You Know…The Seven Sacraments?
The sacraments in the Catholic Church have been referred to as “the doors to the sacred”, because through the sacraments we enter into a special closeness, a communion with God. See if you can name the 7 sacraments!
1. (John at the river Jordan) ______.
2. (The apostles receive the Holy Spirit) ______.
3. (Jesus’ special Passover meal) ______.
4. (I’m sorry…can you forgive me?) ______.
5. (“I now pronounce you…”) ______.
6. (Special vow of service to others) ______.
7. (A prayer for healing) ______.
How many of these have you received? ______
Are there some you may receive only once? ______
______
Are there some you can receive many times? ______
______
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