Eucharist

From its earliest days the Church has taught that Jesus Christ is truly present in the Holy Eucharist.  Catholics believe the Eucharist to be the very Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

CCC 1324 "The Eucharist is "the source and summit of the Christian life."¹³⁶ "The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch."¹³⁷

CCC 1325 "The Eucharist is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of that communion in the divine life and that unity of the People of God by which the Church is kept in being. It is the culmination both of God's action sanctifying the world in Christ and of the worship men offer to Christ and through him to the Father in the Holy Spirit."¹³⁸

CCC 1326 "Finally, by the Eucharistic celebration we already unite ourselves with the heavenly liturgy and anticipate eternal life, when God will be all in all.^139"

The most important way to encounter Jesus Christ present in the Eucharist is to attend and fully participate in the Holy Mass.  Parents and catechists prepare children for the reception of this great gift of the Eucharist.  Children usually make their First Holy Communion in 2nd Grade.  Sacrament preparation starts with Family participation in Total Lifelong Catechesis (TLC) and includes additional weekly Wednesday Classes and Learning Centers.  Special arrangements are made for older students who have not received this Sacrament.  The First Holy Communion Mass is celebrated each Spring, typically, on the last Sunday in April.