Eucharist Study Activities

Imagine you are preparing this chart for someone who has never
participated in the celebration of the Eucharist. List the ritual actions
of the Mass from beginning to end. Write a brief description of their
meaning.

Action
(Draw or write)

Meaning

Investigate the practice of making the Sign of the Cross. Why did
different ways of making the Sign of the Cross develop?
Where in the gospels do we find Jesus greeting his disciples with
Peace be with you?
Why is the Book of the Gospels treated with great reverence?
What word is similar to cathedra? Why?
In the fifth chapter of Matthews gospel Jesus delivers the Sermon
on the Mount. This is one of his most important instructions because
it contains the Beatitudes which serve as a basis for how Christians
should live. Read the first two verses of the fifth chapter of
Matthews gospel.
What is Jesus posture when he delivers the Sermon on the Mount?
Imagine what it would be like to address a large crowd sitting down.
What does this tell you about the relationship between the crowd
and the speaker?
What does studying the signs and actions of the Eucharistic liturgy
tell us about Catholic beliefs?
List three actions associated with the celebration of the Eucharist.
What do they mean?
Describe two ways of making the Sign of the Cross.
What is the symbolism of standing during the liturgy?
Why do Catholics genuflect when they enter and leave a church?
Why is the Sign of Peace an important action?
What is the Book of the Gospels?
What was an early term for the celebration of the Eucharistic?

This Next activity will help you to think about some of the ordinary human
experiences that help us to understand the Eucharist.

Activity
A friend from another Christian religion asks you the following questions.
Select
one question, and develop a response to share with the class.
Why did people think that they should not go to Communion unless
they had
been to confession that same day?
What is Benediction and how is it celebrated?
Why does the Church today encourage people to receive Holy
Communion within each celebration of the Eucharist?
What does the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist mean?
What event does the Jewish Passover recall and celebrate?
Name at least two stories in the life of Christ that are set at
Passover time.
Which three gospels imply that the Last Supper of Jesus was a
Passover Meal?
What does it mean to say that Jesus is the new Passover lamb?

What freedom and deliverance do the death and resurrection of

Jesus bring?
How and where did the very earliest Christians celebrate the
breaking of
the bread?
What were some of the changes that occurred in the
celebration of the
Eucharist after Constantine?
What signs were there that for a long time, beginning with the
Middle
Ages, people kept their distance from the Eucharist?
Why may this have happened?
List at least five changes that came to the celebration of the
Mass with the Second Vatican Council.

How many main parts are there in the present day celebration of
the Mass?
Name these.
What does the belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist
refer to?
The Second Vatican Council tells us that the Eucharist is the
source and
summit of the Christian life. Explain what you think this means.