Education in Faith

First Eucharist 2025

Last week we celebrated another Sacrament at St Anthony's, with five of our Year Four students making their First Eucharist in a dedicated and reverent manner.

The Sacrament

The Eucharist is a central part of each Catholic Mass and can be traced back to the Gospel. At the Last Supper, Jesus gathered his disciples, broke bread, and shared wine, explaining how these would become part of him.

During Mass, priests and celebrants say the very same words that Jesus spoke:

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in memory of me.

We call this part of the Mass the consecration. Catholics believe that what takes place here is transubstantiation. Two quite tricky words! Through the actions of the priest, we come to understand that the bread and wine are consecrated and truly become the Body and Blood of Jesus.

Our students did a wonderful job exploring this in their learning before the Sacrament. They came to see that the Eucharist is an important way we are filled with the spirit and message of the Lord.

Walking out of Mass

Equally important, our students developed their understanding of what the Eucharist means for us once Mass has ended.

We recognise that we see Jesus in many ways during Mass:

In the prayers and songs we share together.
In the words of the Gospel, which retell the life of Jesus.
In the imagery that fills the church.
In the people around us—friends, family, and our wider community who encourage and inspire us.
And in the Eucharist itself, which strengthens us to leave the church and live our lives in line with the teachings of Jesus.

We understand that we are not capable of performing the miracles of the Lord, but that does not mean that we cannot live a life trying to emulate him. Students did a thorough job reflecting on this before their Eucharist, and it is a good activity for all of us to consider!

What can we do with Jesus? Can we be more patient? Can we try to ask others how they are going more? Can we find more time to pray and reflect on the things we have?

First Eucharist Mass

We need to thank a number of wonderful people who contributed to this Sacrament.

We thank Miss Veronica Blair for guiding the students in their preparation, and for leading her choir in making the Mass such a beautiful occasion.

We thank Miss Norton, Mrs Di Camillo and Mrs Carlei for their support and for teaching our students so well in the lead-up to the Sacrament.

We thank all of our parents and family members—not only for encouraging and cheering on the students on the day, but also for setting such brilliant examples for them to follow.

We thank Bishop Tomlinson, Father Leenus and Deacon John for supporting our students and leading such a reflective and welcoming Mass.

Finally, we send a big congratulations to our five Year Four students who received their Sacrament!

Congratulations to Max, Christelle, Anna, Jacqui and Joseph!

Please enjoy some photos of the Sacrament below. May we all be inspired by these students to continue following Jesus as best we can.