PJP’s Eucharistic Ministry Team gives selected students the opportunity to serve Christ and His Church specifically by distributing Holy Communion during Mass. Available to rising seniors, these students undergo training to ensure their understanding of Jesus’ true presence in the Eucharist and, in effect, they serve the Church by acting as messengers between Christ and others. Mr. Cossé, moderator of team, and Eucharistic Ministers Lincoln Oertling and Mallory Norton recently shared their experiences as Ministers of Holy Communion with the hopes of encouraging other students to be open to encountering the love of God along with acting as role models for the school community.
Mr. Cossé guides students who are interested in becoming Eucharistic Ministers by reminding them of a Eucharistic Minister’s essential role: “sharing Jesus’ very self with others—His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity ~ both for Catholics and those that are not Catholic. We are inviting them into the liturgy.” This ministry also accepts the responsibilities of working alongside PJP’s Liturgy Team to assist in preparing for Mass, such as helping setup for the liturgy, singing in the choir, or volunteering as a reader, gift-bearer, or banner bearer. However, because these jobs are available to students in any grade at PJP, it makes distributing the Eucharistic at Mass at the forefront of a Eucharistic Minister’s undertakings. Recognizing this privilege makes Mallory note that “the best thing is giving the host… [because] not everyone is able to truly believe in the Eucharistic and give it to everyone”. Furthermore, Mr. Cossé notes that his “goal for [Eucharistic Ministers] is to not just be a job they do once at each mass, but really to be who they are—that they are someone that other students can look up to and who can exemplify their faith lives after.” Lincoln and Mallory acknowledge that one of the ways they try to serve other students is by acting as a positive influence and reliable friend to anyone who may need assistance. For example, Lincoln notes that if other students have faith-related questions, “especially if they aren’t Catholic or aren’t sure what to do or what to pray, I love telling them ways to pray, what I do, … [and sharing] a calling that came from God.” As student Eucharistic Ministers, Lincoln and Mallory have found that their favorite Mass to serve at was their senior Ring Mass. Lincoln explains that it “was our first time that we got to serve [as Eucharistic Ministers]” and Mallory cherished watching her “friends serve and being able to bring up the gifts”. Looking toward the future, Mallory hopes to inspire younger students to become Eucharistic Ministers “because not only am I helping others spiritually, but I also found out a lot about myself and my own spiritual journey.” Lincoln is looking forward to serving at his graduation Mass and in his own church parish after graduation. As a whole, there are nine (9) current Eucharistic ministers, but Mr. Cossé anticipates having twelve to fifteen Eucharistic Ministers next year in order to open up more opportunities for everyone and because it would allow for younger students to have more faces to look to as role models of faith. We appreciate our Eucharistic Ministry team as they magnify PJP’s pillars of faith development and leadership.