“When Jesus was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him … Then the disciples told what had happened … and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread” (Luke 24:30-31,35).
The disciples knew the risen Lord Jesus in the breaking of the bread. Holy Scripture records that the earliest believers devoted themselves daily to prayer and the breaking of bread. And it was our Lord, after feeding the thousands during his earthly ministry, who proclaimed, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh” (John 6:51).
Whoever eats this bread will live forever. In the Holy Eucharist, as we bring the Body of Christ into us, we are assured that we ourselves have been brought—incorporated—into the Body of Christ. Like the sacrament of Holy Baptism, the Holy Eucharist is a sacrament of unity with Christ and with Christ’s Body, the Church. In the Eucharist, the fixed boundaries between bodies—my own body, the Body of Christ, and the Body of Christ—begin to disappear. In the Eucharist, the bread and wine are the gifts which we offer to God; and they are the gifts—Christ’s Body and Blood—which God is offering to us. The Eucharist is the Church’s sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving (the word Eucharist literally means “Thanksgiving”), and it is the way in which the Church remembers and celebrates Christ’s sacrifice—the offering of his body for the life of the world.
The Church is a Eucharistic people. Church of the Holy Family is no different. The celebration of the Holy Eucharist is at the very center of our life together. We celebrate it every Sunday, and frequently on weekdays as well (we observe the Feasts of our Lord, Saint’s Days, and other Major Feasts). All that we are begins and proceeds from our corporate encounter with the Lord Jesus in the breaking of the Eucharistic bread.
The Eucharistic elements are “the Gifts of God for the People of God.” All baptized persons, regardless of Church denomination, are invited to receive the sacrament of Holy Communion at Holy Family. Those who are not baptized are invited to come forward and receive a blessing from the priest (to request this, simply cross your arms over your chest at the altar rail). We hope that you will join with us as we keep the feast.