Year of the Eucharist
The Year of the Eucharist is the name of the liturgical year from October 2004 to October 2005, as celebrated by Catholics worldwide. On June 10, 2004, Pope John Paul II announced the dedication of an entire year to the Blessed Sacrament and invited the entire Church to reflect upon the Eucharist.
Opening the Year
Pope John Paul II stated that the idea came from scheduled events to take place in the following liturgical year. The International Eucharistic Congress was scheduled for October 10, 2004 to October 17, 2004, and would mark the opening of Year of the Eucharist. The year would close with the Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, held from October 2, 2005 to October 29, 2005.
He stated that the World Youth Day 2005 was another consideration in his decision of the dedication. He said, "I would like the young people to gather around the Eucharist as the vital source which nourishes their faith and enthusiasm."
Specifically how the year was to be celebrated was left to the particular Churches. However, Pope John Paul II offered some basic guidelines. Suggestions were also presented by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. In the United States, many dioceses encouraged local parishes to conduct celebrations, to examine the place of the Eucharist in parish life, to encourage Eucharistic adoration separate from the Mass, and to evaluate how Eucharistic adoration is conducted locally. Many Bishops took the time to encourage their local parishes to institute 40-hour devotions.
Goals of the Year of the Eucharist
Pope John Paul II made several suggestions to the Church in order to help the faithful benefit from the Year of the Eucharist. He called on Catholics to understand the Eucharist as "an urgent summons to testimony and evangelization," providing the necessary strength to carry out the "charge" given at the end of each Mass to spread the Gospel. John Paul II also asked for a commitment to a "culture of the Eucharist," i.e. a commitment to providing witness to God's real presence in the world.
Another reflection offered by Pope John Paul II is that of the meaning of the word Eucharist: Thanksgiving. John Paul II said, "In Jesus, in his sacrifice, in his unconditional 'yes' to the will of the Father, is contained the 'yes', the 'thank you' and the 'amen' of all humanity." He asked for a commitment to giving thanks to God, which he called a "'Eucharistic' attitude."
Notable events
Among the many reflections published in honor of the year, Archbishop Alfred C. Hughes' of the Archdiocese of New Orleans wrote, "On this side of heaven, one cannot experience a more substantial or intense communion with Christ's presence than in the Eucharist."[1] This year also saw the death of Pope John Paul II on April 2, 2005 (the one who established the year itself), and the subsequent election of Pope Benedict XVI on April 19, 2005.
There was an Eucharistic Congress in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., on September 25, 2004, the homily was given by Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship.[2] The closing Mass was attended by 3,000 Catholics.
References
- "Apostolic Letter Mane nobisum Domine". Apostolic Letter, MANE NOBISCUM DOMINE, of the Holy Father John Paul II to the Bishops, Clergy and Faithful for the Year of the Eucharist. Retrieved December 13, 2005.
- "Solemnity of Corpus Christi – Homily of John Paul II". Mass and Eucharistic Procession for the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, Homily of John Paul II, Basilica of St John Lateran, Thursday, June 10, 2004. Retrieved December 13, 2005.
External links
- Official website
- Year of the Eucharist Vatican Website
- Catechesis of His Holiness John Paul II on the Eucharist presented by Adoremus
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Liturgy of the Word |
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Liturgy of the Eucharist |
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Post-Mass |
- Altar crucifix
- Altar rails
- Ambo
- Antependium
- Candles and candlesticks
- Triple candlestick
- Paschal candle
- Sanctuary lamp
- Candles and candlesticks
- Chalice veil
- Communion bench
- Corporal
- Credence table
- Kneeler
- Lavabo
- Misericord
- Pall
- Piscina
- Purificator
- Rood
- Tabernacle
objects
- Altar bell
- Ashes
- Aspergillum
- Censer
- Chalice
- Ciborium
- Crotalus
- Collection basket
- Communion-plate
- Cruet
- Evangeliary
- Fistula
- Flabellum
- Funghellino
- Holy water
- Incense
- Manuterge
- Paten
- Processional cross
- Pyx
- Sacramental bread
- Sacramental wine (or must)
- Thurible
- Antiphonary
- Ceremonial of Bishops
- Customary
- Roman Gradual
- Graduale Simplex
- Roman Missal
- Divine Worship: The Missal
- Sacramentary and Lectionary
- Roman Pontifical
- Tonary
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Periods |
discipline
- Abstemius
- Concelebration
- Church etiquette
- Closed communion
- Communion and the developmentally disabled
- Communion under both kinds
- Eucharistic fast
- First Communion
- Frequent Communion
- Genuflection
- Head cover
- Host desecration
- Infant communion
- Intinction
- Reserved sacrament
- Sacramental bread and wine (or must)
- Spiritual communion
- Thanksgiving after Communion
- Viaticum
theology
- Body and Blood of Christ
- Corpus Christi
- Epiousion
- Grace ex opere operato
- In persona Christi
- Historical roots of Catholic Eucharistic theology
- Koinonia
- Liturgical colours
- Mirae caritatis
- Mysterium fidei (encyclical)
- Origin of the Eucharist
- Passion of Jesus and its salvific nature
- Priesthood of Melchizedek
- Real presence
- Transubstantiation
- Year of the Eucharist
and concepts
- Agape feast
- Anaphora of the Apostolic Tradition
- Ambrosian Rite
- Catholic theology
- Christian liturgy
- Catholic liturgy
- Christian prayer
- Dicastery for Divine Worship
- Council of Trent
- Ecclesia de Eucharistia
- Eucharistic adoration and benediction
- Eucharistic miracle
- Fermentum
- Fourth Council of the Lateran
- Gelineau psalmody
- Gregorian chant
- History of the Roman Canon
- Lex orandi, lex credendi
- Liturgical Movement
- Liturgical reforms of Pope Pius XII
- Mediator Dei
- Missale Romanum (apostolic constitution)
- Music
- Pope Paul VI
- Sacraments of the Catholic Church
- Second Vatican Council
- Summorum Pontificum
- Traditionis custodes
- Stercoranism
- Tra le sollecitudini