This lesson starts with some fun attention-getter questions that then lead into the meat of the lesson: just what is a rite and why are there different ones within our one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church? You’ll learn a little history, a little geography, and a lot about the essentials that unite Catholics around the world!
If you’re in the St. Paul/Minneapolis metro area there are four parishes that are in communion with the Universal Catholic Church:
- St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church
- St. Maron Maronite Catholic Church
- St. Constantine Ukrainian Catholic Church
- Holy Family Maronite Catholic Church
But how do you tell which eastern rite churches will fulfill your Sunday obligation and which will not? The best place to start is on your own diocesan web site; they’re likely to have the parishes specially noted in some way. You can also just do a web search and then look for clues on the parish site. You’ll specifically want to see things like “in full communion with the Holy See and recognize the pope as the successor of Peter” as St. Constantine’s does, or St. John the Baptist which says, “We are an Eastern Church in communion with Pope Francis of Rome who presides in primacy and charity.” Even a picture of the Pope or a link to the Vatican’s site is a positive indication.
And why do we tell you this? Because a family field trip (virtual or actual) to an Eastern Rite parish would be the absolute best way to solidify this lesson. Going together will give you a shared experience of the beauty and reverence and can be a treasured family memory. Try it!
