First Penance and Holy Communion

 

Near the end of his life, the great emperor Napoleon was talking to a historian. The historian said, "What was the happiest day of your life? Was it the day of your victory at Lodi? Was it the day you entered Vienna? Was it the day you marched through Berlin in triumph? Or was it the day you were crowned emperor?" Napoleon said, "It was none of these things. The happiest day in all my life was the day of my first communion. I felt so close to God. I'd do anything to get that feeling back again!"

 

The Eucharist, instituted by Christ at the Last Supper on the night before His passion, is a sacrament of the New Covenant -- the greatest of the sacraments. In this sacrament, the Lord becomes food for the soul under the appearances of bread and wine Celebrating the Sacraments of Eucharist for the first time should be an integral part of the ongoing religious experience of a child. Receiving First Communion further initiates a child into the life of the Christian community. Pope John Paul II speaks directly to children about the solemn importance of First Holy Communion in this excerpt from his "Letter to Children" written in 1994 during the "Year of the Family". Holy Father says: "There is no doubt that an unforgettable meeting with Jesus is First Holy Communion, a day to be remembered as one of life's most beautiful."

 

Every year, the day of First Penance and Solemn First Holy Communion is also a great day of celebration in St. Stephen Parish. I would like to congratulate Smamntha Federovitch and Alex Bodnar who confessed their sins and received Jesus for the first time last Sunday in our Church. Their participation at the table of the Lord is a sign that they are growing up in their spiritual lives as well as physically. This was, indeed a happy occasion for our parish community and for these children's families. A sincere thank you to Dorothy Rygiel who has served as their catechist for the last year.