Sacred Rite - Roman Catholic Christian Sacramental Worship - Research Paper Example

Sacred Rite - Roman Catholic Christian Sacramental Worship Introduction Roman Catholic Church is the world’s largest Christian church with about one billion followers. Its purpose is to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ through administering of the sacrament and works of charity. The priests and bishops of the church carry Jesus work while the pope is the sole successor of Saint Peter of the New Testament. Catholic Church has a flawless doctrine of faith, which its members to advise them into decent lives. The church centres its worship in the Eucharist. In addition, Christians in the Catholic Church share bread and wine in remembrance of Jesus painful death on the cross. This paper will discuss the sacred rites around the Catholic Christian worship. Catholic catechism helps it followers understand the deep mysteries of the Church. It purport to be the only church left by Jesus Christ, and they state this in the creed the decreed the church as one, holy, Catholic and apostolic. To Catholics, a sacrament is a sacred procedure through which God uses to express his grace to humankind. In addition, sacraments depict Gods presence. Before Jesus Christ left earth, Catholics believe he celebrated seven sacraments, which they hold dear in their faith. These include baptism, confirmation Eucharist, penance, anointing of the sick, matrimony, and religious orders. Eucharist is a vital sacrament that holds most of the catholic faith. They believe that it completes a new believer’s initiation to the church. It is the only sacrament that is celebrated daily as Catholic faithful congregate for their prayers that they call “mass.” Eucharistic sacrifice includes prayers, reading parts of the bible, singing of hymns, and a priests present. The wheat and wine in some peculiar glasses are lifted to God, and the priest chants some words to invite God to do the transformation. After these prayers, Christians partake of the bread as the body of Jesus and wine as the blood of Jesus. In this, they celebrate his death and resurrection on the cross, which they believe to have washed their original sin caused by Adam and Eve. Not all Catholic Christians participate in the Eucharist in a celebration. Eucharist is sacred and therefore, Christians living in sin will not partake of it. Such Christians include married couples who did not have their union blessed in church, and people who have not gone for atonement for some time and thus have accumulated sins. In the Catholic faith, ordination to the priesthood is a sacrament on its own. Every Christian has the right to choose to marry or spend a celibate life. Apparently, there are two sacraments directed towards service of others and Ordination to the priesthood is one of them. The second one is marriage. Priesthood is a religious ritual undertaken by persons who feel called to serve in the church and charity. It consists of three orders or position that includes bishops, priests, and deacons. Deacons are in the lowest level and cannot perform the Eucharistic sacred rites or join a couple. After choosing the life of priesthood, men cannot marry. Equally, after choosing the life of a nun, a woman cannot be married. They are expected to perform various duties in the church including preaching, baptising, witness marriages, conduct funerals, celebrate the Eucharist, listen to penance and anoint the sick. The life of a priest is supposed to be a religious one. Pope John Paul II was elected into Papacy in 1978. He was born in 1920 in a family of three in the polish town of Wadowice. He was baptised one month after his birth, partook his first Holy Communion at nine, and confirmed when he was 18 years of age. In 1938, John enrolled in Jagiellonian University School for Drama. Nazi forces closed the University in 1939 forcing young John to work in a quarry. He discovered his call to the priesthood in 1942 and after the Second World War; he graduated from Krakow cardinal seminary and received his ordination in 1946. Shortly after his ordination, John worked in Rome under the guidance of French Dominican. During his vacations, John took clerical service to immigrants of different countries. He worked as a bishop serving different countries from 1958. In 1965, Pope John II contributed in the construction of the Catholic constitution. He received his papal position in 1978. Vatican news quotes him as a man who was driven by his pastoral solicitude, openness, and kindness to humankind. His love for the young people saw him form the famous world youth day (Vatican news web) Catholic liturgical calendars are sacred rites, and the church teaches it is faithful to participate in celebration of each, which revolve around the life of Jesus when he was on earth. A ceremonial schedule is also known as the church year and determines the feast days, celebration of saints, and colours for each season. Liturgical cycle divides the year into different seasons and dictates the colours for the vestments for the clergy season, the theme for the readings, and the prayers. In the catholic religious rites, a liturgical year starts in advent as Christians prepare to receive the birth of Jesus. This ends on the eve of Christmas and is closed by the baptism of Jesus. A period of lent follows after this when Catholics remind themselves of the forty days Jesus spent in the wilderness. This period starts with an ash Wednesday and ends on the Holy Thursday as Christians remember the last supper with Jesus. Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday follows after, which depicts the death on the cross, burial, and resurrection of Jesus respectively. Pentecost follows seven weeks after Easter when Catholics celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit on his disciples. What follows of the liturgical calendar is called normal times with a few solemnities, feasts, and memorials. For example, in August 22 the schedule dictates a celebration of queen ship of Mary (Mathieson web). Preaching the gospel is a religious rite in the Catholic Church. After Jesus departure from the earth, he left the work to preach to his disciples who have thus passed it on to priests in the only holy church “the Catholics.” Although the church lacks in the ecumenical spirit, the faithful meet in a celebration of mass and read three parts in the bible specifically the Psalms, the New Testament, and the Old Testament. Later, the priest expounds on the theme of the day and the faithful leave the church. Catholics do not engage in searching for souls outside their churches since this is not part of the priests work. Their work is to say mass to the faithful gathered in the churches. According to Cammenga, Roman Catholic highlight the celebration of Mass to preaching which is a command from God. This is what Martin Luther King complained of before branching from the Catholic Church (Cammenga web) Roman Catholics use icons in their worship. They refer to statues of saints as sacred, and they venerate them in respect of the dead saints. An icon is a visual representation of something else. Catholics argue that when they look at the image, the see a representation of an attribute of God. They see an image of holiness that depicts a certain saint. To Catholics, icons are more than sacred and theological. Places of worship are a religious rite in the Roman Catholic Church. Engineers design churches to attract faithful who happen to pass by. Usually, catholic faithful will remove a cap, make a sign of the cross, or just bow if they happen to pass by a church. This is the reason why churches bear the most beautiful of the architectures in the world. According to journal of Sacred architecture, “Places of veneration, such as a domus dei, hold the most exalted place within that hierarchy and as such require prominent sitting, the expenditure of superior craftsmanship and materials, and should be freestanding” (Gallegos 9) A shrine is a sacred place where Catholic faithful visit occasionally to make their own prayers. They include historic sites associated with Jesus, Mary and other saints. Usually, they perform sacred pilgrimages in a group and pray together. In such places, Roman Catholics put statues of the saint and believe in secrecy of the place where one can experience miracles or see visions. Inside each of the catholic churches, there is a place where a portion of transformed wheat is kept called a tabernacle. Persons entering the church bow towards the tabernacle to honour the body of Jesus. The same in the shrines and pilgrim centres allow the faithful has their quiet times speaking to their saviour. Conclusion In the Roman Catholic Faith, sacred rites revolve around their way of worship. They use icons to represent Jesus, Mary, and various saints whom they venerate in their worship. They believe in seven sacraments, Holy places of worship, pilgrimages, which depict sacred rites. Liturgical calendar guide catholic faithful in their way of worship. For churches to attract and serve as sacred rites, which they are, they build it on outstanding architecture. Works Cited Cammenga, Ron. “Preaching in reformed worship” Reformed Alberta. 1994. Web, 7 June 2012, Gallegos, Mathew. “Charles Borromeo and catholic Tradition” Sacred Architecture Journal, 2012, 9: 1-27 Mathieson, Robert. “2011 Roman Catholic Liturgical Calendar- Cycle A year 1” Blue Panjeet, 2010, Web, 7 June 2012, Vatican News “His Holiness Pope John Paul II” 2005, Web 7 June 2012, Read More