1.

MEETING: THE SACRAMENTS, MEETINGS WITH

JESUS LIVES
Meeting with parents 2nd (November)
A) INTRODUCTION
In this meeting with the parents,
after caring for the cordial once again
the welcome of those present, the topic is addressed
26 "We encounter the risen Jesus in
the sacraments of the catechetical nucleus VI
(“The Holy Spirit and the Church”) from the Catechism
Jesus is Lord. It is a fundamental theme.
to take care of the cores later
catechetical VII, VIII and IX. It corresponds to
the theme 26 With Jesus and with his Church
the San Pablo publishing house (pp. 14-17), I believe in
Jesus2 from the PPC publishing house (pp. 17-22) and
Come and you will see from the PPC publisher (33-38).
To make the celebration more meaningful, it is advisable that the children have seen
recently (or reviewed) topic 26.

B) OBJECTIVES
to help parents grasp the richness of gestures, signs, and symbols in
the communication between people.
That parents become aware that God is with us in crucial moments.
of our life through sensitive signs that are the sacraments.
To recognize God and discover that He comes into our lives in those moments.

C) DEVELOPMENT OF THE MEETING

RECEPTION OF PARENTS.
As in the previous session, it is important to continue giving a lot of importance to this.
initial moment of the meeting. Parents can be invited to say their name and to
Say something that your children have mentioned to you about catechesis or any question they have.
they have done lately.

2. TESTIMONIAL AND DOCTRINAL EXPOSITION OF THE TOPIC.

As always, a climate of simplicity and cordiality should be created where the guide raises the
the parents the topic, trying to avoid it being something cold and monotonous both in content and form.
The guide must demonstrate experientially that the sacraments are encounters with Jesus that
makes himself present 'sacramentally'.

a. Man is a sacramental reality that also sacramentalizes.

It is true that the current dominant culture is scientific, but we also observe the
importance of the symbolic and the ritual in the world. The symbolic soul emerges spontaneously
in people (of today, yesterday, and always). What's the reason? It seems very clear: the symbolic, the
"sacramental" (in a broad sense) is a fundamentally human dimension. Man is
sacramental (all his intimate and invisible world is manifested through the body) and
"sacramentalizes" -loading with symbolic value- the world in which he/she lives: things (a photo),
the facts (a specific victory in football), the moments (graduation at the end of a)
study stage), the people (an important character).
The symbol is that sensible reality capable of making another non-sensible reality transparent.
For example, a flower or a kiss can symbolize the affection of the giver.
What can be a symbol: an object, a song, a gesture, a place, a person...
If it seems appropriate, the following story can be read or told:
I was studying in Madrid. I remember it well. It was the 11th of
11 about 11 in the morning. The postman brought me a large envelope that
it came from my family in Burgos. I opened it eagerly. It contained a
postcard and another little box. On the postcard, everyone in the house wrote: my
brothers and my parents. In it they congratulated me on my birthday and
they said they remembered me a lot. Then I opened the little box in which
there was my father's old wristwatch that, in turn, had
inherited from his father. Excited, I remembered the times I had
I asked my father to give it to me as I liked it a lot.
Since that day, for me that watch is not just any watch. I wear it on my wrist all day.
and when I place it on the nightstand before going to sleep, a deep joy overwhelms me. It is
a small treasure. It is a living signal that when I see it, it "speaks" to my heart. It reminds me
and I present to my dear father, all that I have learned from him, all the affection that I
he has and what led him to part with his beloved watch.
Manu.
Two possible questions from this story:
1. Why was the watch so important to Manu?
Do you have anything that has a special value to you?

In the specific case of the sacraments, the visible element not only evokes, refers to the
deep reality but truly makes present what it means: to Jesus Christ giving,
giving, accompanying, feeding, training...

b. The sacraments are encounters with the living Jesus.

Jesus Christ is the great sacrament of God; the Church is the sacrament of Christ; the seven
Sacraments are the realization and updating of the sacramentality of the Church.
The sacraments are encounters with the risen Jesus that prolong the gestures.
saviors of Jesus. The Lord continues through them giving his life (baptism),
forgiving (reconciliation), accompanying the sick (anointing), gifting His Spirit
(confirmation), feeding their friends (Eucharist), empowering some Christians to
that he be made present as a good shepherd (priestly order) and through conjugal love
(marriage).
In the sacraments, an encounter is realized
friendship with Christ Friend. He is present in them.
Jesus Christ offering us his love and encouraging us to
respond to him with our friendship and our love. This
the gathering among friends will be much richer in content
the more we value and put in our part
they.
To understand the sacraments and perceive the presence of Jesus Christ, faith is needed.
Without that trust in Jesus and in his words, they have no meaning and may seem
nonsense.
 - The basic elements of a sacrament are:
the realization of a human gesture that contains a
important expressive force (food, forgiveness, mutual delivery
of two people...);
that in that gesture something deeper and invisible is accomplished
the body and blood of Jesus, the forgiveness of the
sins, the spousal delivery of Christ to his Church...
This sacramental gesture makes sense when it is experienced.
from faith, a faith that is not individual or private but ecclesial;
4/ they radically entail an encounter with Jesus Christ.
Evangelical text: Let's look at these elements in the evangelical narrative of the institution of the
sacrament of the Eucharist (Mt 26,26-29).
During dinner, Jesus took a bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
‘Take and eat. This is my body.’ And taking a chalice, he gave thanks and gave it to them, saying:
Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the new covenant, which will be shed for
many, for the forgiveness of sins.
Clues to comment on this text:
Jesus placed great importance on meals with others. It was a moment of deep
friendship and communion they. In the awareness of their impending death and the burning desire to
to say goodbye to his apostles, he organizes a dinner.
At one point during that dinner, he took a loaf of bread and a cup of wine and distributed them among his followers.

apostles, using those gestures to achieve something transcendent, beyond what is

can see and touch. He does not only give them a piece of bread and a little wine but surrenders himself to
himself, his Body and his Blood as Bread of Life and Drink of Salvation. In others
words, it is Jesus who becomes present and who gives himself as food even though apparently
a little bread and wine can be seen. A gesture of friendship that becomes a gesture of
salvation.

c. The seven sacraments

Next, a journey through the sacraments can be made to remember them and
reinforce them in the memory of parents. We believe it is important to strengthen the part
catechetical as it is possible that the parents do not remember any of them. Instead of
if we limit ourselves to theoretically exposing the sacraments, we can try to understand them as
gifts that Jesus gives us to remember Him and draw closer to Him.
The seven sacraments are gifts from God to show us His love and closeness.
in the key moments of our life: birth (baptism), growth (confirmation),
food (Eucharist), forgiveness (penitence), illness (anointing of the sick), surrender to the
others as a servant of the community (priestly order) and love between a man and a
woman (marriage).
Let's look at it a little more closely:
oThe first, Baptism: it makes us Christians, children of God in the image of Jesus and
members of the Church. We are washed from original sin, we die to all sin and
We are born to a new life. In baptism, Jesus gives us his own life as a son.
For the second, Confirmation: the baptized receive the Spirit more fully.
Saint, we unite more with Jesus Christ and His Church and are sent to proclaim the gospel.
Jesus gifts us His Spirit in fullness.
 For the third, the Penitence or Confession:
the Church, in the name of Jesus, forgives our
sins and reconciles us with God and with the
men. Jesus gives us his forgiveness and puts us in
in the embrace of the Father to the Son.
or the fourth, the Eucharist or Communion: the
Church celebrates the memorial of Easter
Christ, the update and offering of His only
sacrifice on the cross. The Eucharist unites us more to
Christ and the Church strengthen us in life
Christian and helps us grow in love for others.
Jesus gives himself as food.
For the fifth, the Anointing of the Sick:
we are strengthened in illness and helped
-if we are in danger of death- uniting our suffering with the suffering of Christ. We
gives his love to live the pain and face death.
For the sixth, the priestly order: some Christians are consecrated to be
ministers of God (deacons, priests, and bishops) in the Church and continue the mission that
Christ gave to the apostles. He gifts us his ability to love as a good shepherd.
Through the seventh, Marriage: it sanctifies the union of man and woman from which it is born.
Christian family as a community of life and love. It gives us its capacity to love.
unconditionally as spouses.
Dialogue with parents
At this moment it would be appropriate to foster dialogue with the attendees based on
the following questions or others that may seem more appropriate:
What memory do you have of one of the sacraments you have received? (This question
it could also be the one that opened the meeting to start the reflection).
What environment do you want your children to have for their First Communion?
How can I help my children receive it in the best way?
sacraments? Do I foster the child's sensitivity so that they can recognize the living God?
what's coming?

3. MOMENT FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION

-After listening to the testimonial and doctrinal presentation, a...
sheet with the essentials of the presentation and other complementary material they can use
then at home. Next, a few moments of silence are left (it can be about 5
minutes) to personally reflect on what has been said. It may help to listen
a soft music in the background that favors introspection.
4.The guide proposes to the parents one of the following commitments:
Talk about the sacraments with your children, reminding them of anecdotes and moments lived.
at their baptisms or at the parents' wedding. They can use videos and photos of those
events.
Put some religious sign (an image of Jesus or Mary, a Bible...) in some
significant place in the house or revalue it (if we already have it set).

5.SENTENCE to end the parents' meeting (if there is a final celebration with the children)
leave the prayer for that moment) and to pray together as a family.
A)
What a great gift, Jesus! You do not leave us alone, you are alive and present in the
sacraments that the Church celebrates. By receiving them, your grace makes us similar to You.
Thank you, Jesus, for always being with us! United to You, we grow love and
joy in your Church and in the world.
B)
 Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of baptism, because in it… you make us beloved children of God.
Father.
Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of forgiveness, because in it... you show us what we
you want.
Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of the Eucharist, because in it... You are close to us and
you give us strength to live.
Thank you, Jesus, for all the sacraments, because in them... You always show us your
closeness and friendship.

SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS (for

to deliver to the parents on a sheet that they can
take home to read and delve into

Texts for further exploration:

CLASSES OF SACRAMENTS
Sacraments of initiation:
1. Baptism: It unites us to Jesus Christ. We become
members of the Body of Christ, the Church, in brothers and
sisters of Jesus and, therefore, children of God.
2. Confirmation: After baptism, the one who
freely choose to live as a child of God, ask for the gift of
Holy Spirit that gives him the strength to be a witness of the
love of God with words and deeds. Whoever is confirmed is
transforms into a full and responsible member of the
Catholic Church that tries to build a world according to
to the wishes of God.
Communion: In this sacrament, Jesus gives Himself for us in His Body and
Blood, so that we may also surrender ourselves to Him with love. In communion, we unite.
more intimately with Him, we become living members of His Body, we are renewed and
we strengthen internally.
Sacraments of healing:
4. Reconciliation or penance: It is the sacrament that allows us to reconcile with God.
and with men every time we have offended him.
5. Anointing of the Sick: It provides comfort, peace, and encouragement to the sick person by joining them in a

deeper way with Christ.

Sacraments in the service of the community and the mission:
6.Sacred Order: Through this sacrament, the priest receives as a gift of the Spirit
Saint, a particular force to make Jesus, Good Shepherd, present for his
brothers.
Marriage: Equips Christian spouses to become - with their marital life
and familiar - a credible sign of God's faithful, unconditional, and fruitful love for mankind.

Prayer to say in the family

Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of baptism, because in it… you make us beloved children of God.
Father.
Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of forgiveness, because in it... you show us how much you love us.
Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of the Eucharist, because in it... You are close to us and
you give us the strength to live.
 Thank you, Jesus, for all the sacraments, because in them... You always show us your
closeness and friendship.

BRIEF CELEBRATION WITH PARENTS-CHILDREN-CATECHISTS:

THE SACRAMENTS, ENCOUNTERS WITH THE LIVING JESUS
(Only if it seems appropriate)

A) INTRODUCTION
This celebration is joint for parents and their children, the catechists, the guide for parents.
and if possible, the priest. If the priest cannot preside over it, the guide or one of the
catechists.
It is designed to last a maximum of 10 minutes. It will take place at the end of the
Parents' meeting. The parents would have had their meeting in one room and the children in another.
For the celebration, they will gather in one of the two rooms or in another suitable place.
Necessary material
Script for the celebration: The sacraments, encounters with the living Jesus.
The PowerPoint 'Sacraments' (which can be found on the website).
The text of the song 'My God is alive'.
B) DEVELOPMENT OF THE CELEBRATION:
Preparation by the CHILDREN (while the parents have their meeting).
See in the catechesis session or review topic 26 which deals with the sacraments in general.
Spend a few minutes rehearsing the song 'My God is Alive'.
My God is alive, He is not dead. My God is alive, in my heart.
My God is alive, He has risen, I feel Him in my hands, I feel Him in my feet, I feel Him in
my soul and in all my being.
OH, ONE MUST BE BORN FROM WATER. OH, ONE MUST
BORN OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD.
OH, YOU MUST BE BORN OF WATER AND OF THE SPIRIT OF
GOD MUST BE BORN OF THE LORD (repeat).
GET READY TO FEEL (3) THE SPIRIT.
LET IT MOVE (3) INSIDE YOUR
HEART.
My God is alive, He is not dead. My God is alive in my heart. I see Him by my side.
he never abandons me, I see him in the air, I see him by the sea, I see him walking through the mountains.
OH, ONE MUST BE BORN OF WATER. OH, ONE MUST BE BORN OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD.
OH, ONE MUST BE BORN OF WATER AND OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD ONE MUST BE BORN OF
Mister (repeat).
GET READY TO FEEL (3) THE SPIRIT.
LET IT MOVE (3) INSIDE YOUR HEART.
Celebration
1. After meeting, the children sing: "My God is alive."
2. Watch the PowerPoint "Sacraments" (3:43).
3. Thanksgiving prayer for the sacraments, using the screen or
a leaf.