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Before I entered the Catholic Church, I had no idea what the Eucharist was. I grew up in the Free Methodist Church, the Baptist Church and even the Pentecostal church. In these churches, everyone took communion and it was referred to as bread and wine. No one confessed to the priest beforehand; the pastor said it was up to you if you were right with God. I wanted to make sure that before I made the commitment to become Catholic I knew what I was doing.

How could I know so very little about it? The word Eucharist means "thanksgiving." It is also considered a sacrament of initiation because new members are encouraged to participate regularly and often in Holy Communion. I learned it is the most central part of Catholicism, because of the belief that the bread and wine are actually the body and blood of Christ. The presence of Christ in the Eucharist is not symbolic only. It is real. .

I also found out it is considered the "source and summit of the Christian life." It is seen by the Catholic Church as a participation in the Sacrifice of Christ, the manifestation, in the present, of an event that occurred once for all time. The institution of the Eucharist is also one of the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary. In addition, is a commemoration of the passion, death, and resurrection of Christ also known as the Paschal mystery.

The only one authorized to celebrate the rite and consecrate the Eucharist, is a validly ordained priest (or bishop) acting in the person of Christ. The priest represents Christ, who is the Head of the Church, and acts before God the Father in the name of the Church. It must be wheaten bread and grape wine to be valid. Again, very different from what happened in my life in church. The ushers would pass the communion plates and it was white unleavened wafers and grape juice.

I have also learned that communion unites us with Christ. I didn't know that. I thought it was just something we did at church every month because Jesus said to in the Bible. I didn't understand the significance of what I was partaking in. Not only are the members still on earth united but also the members who are already in the glory of heaven. You are in communion with and commemorating the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the saints, when the Church offers the Eucharistic sacrifice . This to me is incredible.

The Church obliges the faithful to take part in the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and feast days and, prepared by the sacrament of Reconciliation, to receive the Eucharist at least once a year, if possible during the Easter season. However, the Church strongly encourages the faithful to receive the holy Eucharist on Sundays and feast days, or more often still, even daily. In the churches I grew up in, they offered communion once a month. I hope to be obedient and be able to take part in the Eucharist when it is offered.

As I prepare for the upcoming Easter vigil at my parish, I become more excited. My husband will also participate and my daughter will have her first communion. In addition, I will also be having communion with my father, my grandmother and my nieces and nephews, and babies that my husband and I never met due to miscarriage, who I believe are all in heaven right now. They will celebrating with us. That is a comforting and exciting feeling for me, and one I would like the people in my life to experience it too.

Learn more about this author, Vanessa Calleja.
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