First Communion Students are catechized and prepared to receive the Body and the Blood of Our Savior, Jesus Christ throughout their first and second years of Religious Education. The reception of Holy Eucharist normally takes place in the spring of their 2nd year of their formal Faith Formation. As part of their preparation for the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist, they prepare for and receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation during the first half of their 2nd year of their formal Faith Formation.
The Eucharist is the most special sacrament, in which Christ himself is contained, offered, and received, and by which the Church constantly lives and grows. The Eucharistic sacrifice, the memorial of the death and resurrection of the Lord, in which the sacrifice of the cross is perpetuated over the centuries, is the summit and source of all Christian life and worship; it signifies and affects the unity of the people of God and achieves the building up of the Body of Christ.
As children reach the age of reason, generally around age seven, the Church extends to them an invitation to celebrate the sacrament of the Eucharist. The initiation into the Christian community that took place at baptism is further extended by inviting children to enter fully into the heart of Christian faith through participation in the Eucharist.
The Eucharist is the sacrament by which Catholics receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. For Catholics, this is the most treasured gift given to the Church by the Lord at the Last Supper. In receiving the Eucharist, we are nourished by the Lord. The bread and wine used in the Mass are transformed in all but appearance into the Body and Blood of Christ.
For more information, please contact the parish office at 781-326-1071.