Habitat for Humanity

Over Spring Break, I, along with my family and friends, took part in a volunteer organization known as Habitat for Humanity. This is a charity organization that volunteers to build homes for those in need but cannot afford one. I had the amazing opportunity to volunteer and give back to my community. Out of all the service projects I have done, Habitat for Humanity is by far the most charitable and rewarding project. I got to engage with many of my close friends and family, and even people from my church, St. John Vianney. During this service project, there were several activities to choose from. These activities consisted of: interior/exterior painting, plastering, grouting, roof work, and much more. I chose interior painting and grouting. This was a very new experience for me because I have never been around such caring and selfless people. Everyone seemed to be so happy to be helping others in need, and it really opened up my eyes to those who were less fortunate. I am very blessed to have been able to take part in such a beautiful organization and I would highly recommend this to every person any age. Habitat for Humanity changed me as a person and brought me closer to my family and friends. 

Women in the Church

Women have played various amount of roles in the Christian Church. Until recently, they have always been generally excluded from clerical positions within the Christian churches. However, many women have been very influential in the life of the Church through the roles they fill. These roles would be: theologians, doctors of the Church, missionaries, abbesses, nuns, mystics, founders of religious institutes, military leaders, monarchs, and martyrs. Christianity derived from societies that placed men in positions of authority in marriage, society, and priesthood. Though women are restricted in these areas, they still continue to be a huge contribution not only to the Catholic Church, but the whole world as well.

Who Can Receive Communion?

Today I will be talking about who can receive communion. First of all, Holy Eucharist is one of the Seven Sacraments. This sacrament is most important because this is the only Sacrament that we receive the very body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ himself. We are filled with an abundant amount of grace when we receive this sacrament. In the Holy Eucharist, we are intimately encountering Chris through the consumption of his body and blood. In this way, we actually acquire Christ into our bodies, which is the closet we can get to him. Consuming the Eucharist also strengthens us because in it Jesus himself, the word made flesh, forgives us of our sins and helps us resist the temptation to sin. Every time we do this we are one step closer to eternal life with God the Father in Heaven.



Holy Communion is not just as simple as eating Jesus' body and blood, it takes much preparation before hand. First, you must be in a state of grace and meditation. If we feel we are unworthy of accepting the Eucharist yet we still do, it is wrong. Second, we must have participated in confession after our last mortal sin. This cleans the slate of our soul which allows Jesus to act fully within us. Third, we must believe in the doctrine of transubstantiation. Transubstantiation means more than the Real Presence. Fourth, we must observe the Eucharistic fast, meaning no consumption of any other food or drink 1 hour prior to receiving the Eucharist.  Finally, one must not be under an ecclesiastic censure. As you can see it takes much preparation to receive the Eucharist. Therefore, not just anyone can consume the body and blood of Jesus Christ, we must be worthy of it.

Miracle of Lanciano

The miracle of Lanciano was a miracle that took place in the city of Lanciano, France. It occurred around 700. This is what happened: A Basilian hieromonk was assigned to celebrate Mass in a fairly small Church of St. Longinus. He celebrated it in the Latin Rite and by using unleavened bread. So the monk had doubts about the presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist. During the mass, the monk said the words of consecration, which are, "This is my body, and this is my blood." However, he said these words with doubts in his soul. The priest then saw the bread change into living flesh, and the wine turn into live blood which coagulated into five globules. This miracle influenced the many people that witnessed it to preach the word of God. As members of the Catholic Church, we should not have to be influenced by a miracle to preach the word of God, we should be strong enough in our faith to preach the word of God, without witnessing a miracle. 

Catechumenate

Today I am going to talk about Catechumenate. In the early Church, if someone wanted to join the Church they had to go through a process called the catechumenate. A catechumen is one who receives information from a catechist in the principles of the Christian religion with a view towards baptism. They are prepared to join the Church by being instructed the teachings of the Faith and prepared for the Sacraments of Initiation. It was applied to one who had not yet been initiated into the sacred mysteries, but was undergoing a course of preparation for that purpose. This practice is most commonly used by orthodox Christians and Roman Catholics. When they became prepared for the initiation in the Church, they initiated them the night before the Easter Vigil, also known as the night before the commemoration of Christ's resurrection.