Our 8-part series on the Sacrament of Holy Communion explores all the key areas of Church teaching around the celebration of the Eucharist. Episodes are generally around 7-9 minutes duration and offer formation and education around the Sacrament in an easily-accessible manner. The series has also been developed with the Religious Education Directory in mind, to ensure it delivers key messages in line with curriculum requirements for Catholic schools.
Episode 1 – What Is Holy Communion?
Taking a look at the celebration of the Blessed Sacrament, Episode 1 explains the significance of Holy Communion as the “Source and the Summit” of our Catholic faith, describes the over-arching “structure” of the Mass, and also covers some of the key terminology that children will need to understand. Bishop David Oakley (Bishop of Northampton) guides us through this first episode.
Episode 2 – Why Is Going To Mass Important?
Sister Judith Russi (Director of EducareM) leads children through the second episode. Taking a look at the importance of the Eucharist within the setting of Mass, we also learn the importance of our attendance at Mass on a weekly basis. We hear from groups of pupils about their experiences of attending Mass and learn about the calling of each and every Catholic to be a living Saint, and even delve into the world of SuperHeroes….
Episode 3 – Transubstantiation
Bishop Patrick McKinney (Bishop of Nottingham) joins Bishop David Oakley in explaining one of the key concepts within our Catholic faith: Transubstantiation – the transformation of our gifts of bread and wine into the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Taking a look at related scripture verses and explaining the actions of the priest during the Eucharistic Liturgy, the two Bishop’s help explain this “mystery of faith”. They also explain the difference between the celebration of the Eucharist across different denominations.
Episode 4 – The Gifts of Bread & Wine
The gifts we take to the altar during the Offertory Procession, bread and wine, are hugely symbolic. Sister Judith and Bishop David explain the significance of these gifts, as well as the importance of their constituent parts, by highlighting passages from Scripture and some of Jesus’ key teachings. Fr Paschal Uche (Brentwood Diocese) also explains the significance of the Tabernacle – the place where we keep the consecrated hosts.
Episode 5 – The Eucharistic Liturgy
At every celebration of Holy Communion the priest will lead the congregation through the Eucharistic Liturgy. Bishop Patrick takes a more in-depth look at the structure of the liturgy and the phrases and symbols that are called upon during the consecration of the gifts. We hear about the importance of the Last Supper, and explore Jesus’ words as He implores us to “Do this in memory of me”.
Episode 6 – You Are What You Eat
We’re all familiar with the phrase, but how often do we apply it to our celebration of the Eucharist? If we truly believe that the bread is transformed into the Body of Christ then, when we receive the Eucharist, we ourselves become the Body of Christ: Jesus seeks to transform us from within, just as the gifts are transformed from within. Renowned liturgist Jo Boyce helps explain this process, with Fr Paschal Uche exploring some other key Biblical passages: the Feeding of the 5,000 and the Road to Emmaus. We also take a look at the Feast of Coprus Christi.
Episode 7 – Adoration
Our journey with the Eucharist doesn’t begin and end with Holy Communion. Archbishop Bernard Longley (Archbishop of Birmingham) and Fr Simon Baker (Diocese of Birmingham) explain the beauty of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, with Fr Simon’s parish church hosting a 40 Hour Devotion (Quarant’ore) of continuous prayer. This episode encourages viewers to seek to continue to develop their faith in Christ through their relationship with the Blessed Sacrament.
Episode 8 – Blessed Carlo Acutis & Eucharistic Miracles
Monsignor Mark Crisp (SS Peter & Paul, Wolverhampton) speaks about Blessed Carlo Acutis, a young Italian boy who dies in 2006 and was beatified in 2020. Throughout his young life Carlo developed a deep devotion to the Eucharist and began compiling accounts of Eucharistic Miracles from all across the world. He set up a website to help document each of these miracles and is now on the path to sainthood. We explore these miracles, and Carlo’s story, as proof of the living presence of Christ in the Eucharist. To end this final episode, our series contributors offer some words of advice and encouragement to those about to receive Holy Communion for the first time.
