Celebrations
The Eucharist is celebrated daily at the Church of St. Bernard, Wednesday through Friday at 9:00 am in the Main Church. The schedule for the Sunday celebration of the Eucharist is Saturday at 5:30 pm (Sunday Vigil), Sunday 9:30 am (English Mass) and 11:30 am (Spanish Mass).
The children of our parish receive their first Holy Communion in the second grade or after having completed two years of religious instruction in our program. Any baptized adult in our parish, who has not yet received his or her first Holy Communion, is encouraged to participate in our RCIA program so that they can complete their sacramental initiation into the Catholic faith (i.e. Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist). Click here for more information.
Homebound parishioners can have the Eucharist brought to them at home. Arrangements can be made by calling the rectory and scheduling a time for a visit by an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist or a Parish Priest.
Theology
At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout all ages until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved Spouse, the Church, a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled we grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1323).
Guidelines for Receiving Communion for Catholics
As Catholics, we fully participate in the celebration of the Eucharist when we receive Holy Communion. We are encouraged to receive Holy Communion devoutly and frequently. In order to be properly disposed to receive Holy Communion, participants should not be conscious of grave sin and normally should have fasted for one hour. A person who is conscious of grave sin is not to receive the Body and Blood of the Lord without prior sacramental confession except for a grave reason where there is no opportunity for confession. In this case, the person is to be mindful of the obligations to make an act of perfect contrition including the intention of confessing as soon as possible (Code of Canon Law, canon 916). Guidelines issued at The Cathedral of St. Patrick, New York City
Holy Communion Guidelines for Other Christians
We welcome our fellow Christians to our celebrations of the Eucharist as our brothers and sisters. We pray that our common Baptism and the action of the Holy Spirit will draw us closer to one another and begin to dispel the sad divisions which separate us, “that they may all be one” (Jn17:21). Because Catholics believe that the celebration of the Eucharist is a sign of the reality of the oneness of faith, life, and worship, members of those churches with whom we are not yet fully united are not ordinarily admitted to Holy Communion. Eucharistic sharing in exceptional circumstances by other Christians requires permission according to the directives of the diocesan bishop and the provisions of canon law (canon 844 4). Members of the Orthodox Churches, the Assyrian church of the East, and the Polish National Church are urged to respect the disciplines of their own Churches. According to Roman Catholic discipline, the Code of Canon Law does not object to the reception of communion by Christians of these Churches (Canon 844 3). Guidelines issued at The Cathedral of St. Patrick, New York City