2020.02.16 The Divine Liturgy

Overview & Learning Objectives:

Today the children learned about our inspiring Divine Liturgy. We held class in church and used a large floor chart in the shape of a cross to help us identify its key component parts. It was a wonderful opportunity to spend time in God's house surrounded by our beautiful icons.

The Divine Liturgy (or Mass) is a celebration of prayer, love, and thanksgiving. At the heart of it, is a miracle - the transformation of ordinary bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. When we come to the Divine Liturgy we are exercising our free will to follow His command  - "Do this in memory of Me!' Luke 22:19

The Divine Liturgy is a public service wherein we gather as a church family, in communion with all of the angels and saints, to worship and to feast. It also is an open invitation, in which God is waiting for us to accept, embrace and reciprocate.

Every Mass begins and ends with a blessing, as we call upon the Holy Trinity to be ever-present in our minds and in our hearts. The first and last response by the people is "Amen" which means "so be it". It is an affirmation of our belief that, through the cross and the Resurrection, we have been saved!

Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice by giving and forgiving on the cross. At the Divine Liturgy we too must give of ourselves completely (our joys, sorrows, needs intentions, weaknesses, problems, pain, and suffering), so that we are united with Jesus on the altar, and sanctified.

The first part of the Liturgy is PETITIONS wherein we bring what is of this world into God's hands and entrust our needs to His mercy. In response to the petitions, we say or sing, "Hospody Pomiloy", meaning "Lord have mercy"!

Next is the WORD where we hear readings from the Bible. The first reading is called the Epistle and the second is called the Gospel. Father Ronny then gives his homily to teach us about what we have just heard. Our job is to listen and then change our ways to live more like Jesus.

Having heard the readings, we then celebrate the EUCHARIST, which is a Greek word that means "thanksgiving" for God's gift of His only Son. Father Ronny carries the gifts of bread and wine to the altar. Then we say an important prayer called the Creed. This is an expression of our faith and it covers every important belief that we, as Ukrainian Catholics, hold close to our hearts.

Soon we kneel as Father says the words of CONSECRATION, wherein by the power of the Holy Spirit, ordinary bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus. It is amazing to think that, throughout the world and in every language known to man, the same words that Jesus spoke at the Last Supper are used to this day.

The OUR FATHER (or Otche Nash) is collectively prayed during this part of the Mass. It is powerful to watch Father Ronny raise his hands as he looks up to heaven to lead us in this perfect prayer.

Another sanctifying prayer that we soon recite is the prayer before Holy Communion, which includes the Publican's Prayer of Contrition, wherein our venial sins are forgiven through what is called general absolution. If we have no serious sin to confess, and we have a contrite heart, our souls are ready to become one with Jesus. Through the partaking of Holy Communion, we become filled with grace and are the closest we will ever be to Jesus while we are still on this earth.

The last part of the Divine Liturgy is called the CLOSING. This is the time that we beg for peace, salvation and a final blessing. As we acknowledge the Father's love for all of mankind, we leave inspired to spread the word outside the walls of the church, so that others can come to know both the genius of our faith and the power of living like Jesus.

New Words:

Liturgy, Mass, Petition, Sacrifice, Absolution

At Home Reinforcement:

Many of the children have been called to be Altar Servers at our Divine Liturgies.  If your child has answered "yes", thank them for their service and find a way to celebrate!

If your child has yet to serve, encourage them to do so. Talk to them about the opportunity to be at the altar with a close up view of what Father does as he carries out his Holy Orders. If they have questions that you are unable to answer, create a list and have them bring it to Sunday school. Sharing and exploring their curious view of serving at the altar would be a great learning experience for our entire class.

Also, next time you and your family are at the Divine Liturgy:

- Find out what special intentions your child has and actively pray for them.
- Make it a point to pay close attention to the day's readings and Father Ronny's homily. After the service talk about the theme and see how it can apply to your daily lives. 
- Focus on praying the Communion Prayer with the sincerity of a good confession, then model receiving the Holy Eucharist in a reverent way. Staying focused and intentional will elevate the experience and provide a template for your child on how to turn their time in church into something truly transformational.