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August 11, 2022I’m sure everyone reading this will remember back in the PC (Pre-COVID) the offertory procession where members of the congregation would bring up the Bread and Wine to be consecrated by the priest. This practice was an addition to the liturgy made after the Second Vatican Council and while it had many sincere and devout explanations, it never really seemed to fit well in the flow of Holy Mass. An unfortunate consequence that comes from the academic work of Theology is that many people substitute theological thinking for feelings based “logic.” A common argument is “this feels/looks/sounds good so it must be true/permissible.” To help solve these 50+ year old choices that, while made with the best of intentions, distract from the liturgical action, we go back to the basics and learn what is supposed to be done.
As we transition from the Liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the liturgy provides an Offertory Verse (often a hymn sung by the choir/cantor and congregation) that helps with the spiritual and physical offertory the people are called to make at this point of the Mass. Yes, bread and wine are offered by the priest as he prays the Barakah Prayers (see below), but the people are called to make a spiritual and monetary offering in gratitude for the gifts God has given them. Let’s start with the priest and the Barakah Prayers that he prays after the Altar Servers and/or Deacon has prepared the Altar. It’s good to know that these prayers come directly from the Passover Meal (Seder) celebrated by Jews at the time of Jesus and still today:
The priest says holding the paten with bread on it: “Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you: fruit of the earth and work of human hands, it will become for us the bread of life.
The people respond (if the priest says the above out loud): Blessed be God forever.
The priest then says the following while holding the chalice with wine: Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received this wine we offer you: fruit of the vine and work of human hands, it will become our spiritual drink.
The people respond (if the priest says the above out loud): Blessed be God forever.
During this exchange, no matter if the priest prays out loud for all to hear or not, the congregation is called to make a spiritual offering of their own lifting up their hearts (which they will say next in the preface dialogue) to the Lord. On Sundays and special solemnities, a collection is taken up to give the congregation an opportunity to physically give an offering to the Lord in thanksgiving for the many gifts God has given them. The offering of money is an act of worship. We’re called as intentional disciples to give back (tithe) 10% to the Lord in gratitude for all the good things God has given us. Our offering to God should be prioritized, planned, and as we see in the Scriptures, a certain percentage of our income. We don’t expect God to look in his almighty pocket for spare grace when we bring Him our desires and prayers. We shouldn’t treat God the same way when it comes to what we can give back. Obviously, if you’re only giving the Lord 2% of your income, jumping to 10% will be near impossible. Start today working on getting to that goal of 10% by raising your gift each year by 1-2%. I’d also suggest giving St. Edward half of your tithe (5%) and the other half to charities that are near to your heart. Giving is an act of worship because it shows God how grateful we are for the gifts we’ve received from Him.
I hope you can see that this part of Holy Mass is about more than walking up bread and wine. We’re called to lift up our hearts to the Lord and worship Him because it is right and just. We’re called to be grateful for everything God has given us and to be just as generous in return.
It's always important to remember that Holy Mass is a sacrifice offered to God by the priest on behalf of the people. To offer sacrifice is the main and most important job of any priest (we see this in the Old Testament and among pagans). Jesus Christ is the High Priest and has an eternal priesthood shared among the Baptized, and in a special way, among those ordained into His (Jesus’) priesthood. Jesus offered Himself as the best and most pure sacrifice on the Cross. Jesus is both the priest who offers the sacrifice and the victim being sacrificed on behalf of the people.
When we celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we’re re-living the supreme sacrifice of Christ on Calvary. It’s not a “show” or “representation;” we are spiritually removed from space and time and brought back to Calvary watching Christ die on the Cross and simultaneously (because we’re outside space and time) at the empty tomb witnessing the resurrection. All the prayers during the Liturgy of the Eucharist are meant to help us be aware of this spiritual reality that we are witnessing, and many of us are completely unaware of it. All the “smells and bells” are literally meant to hold our attention and keep us focused on this reality we witness every Sunday (or every day for those of us who attend Daily Mass).
During the offertory prayers, the priest and/or deacon prepare the altar for the sacrifice. There are prayers that can be said out loud like the Barakah Prayers, but there are also prayers said privately by the priest or deacon, the first of which are prayed when water and wine are poured into the chalice. We pour a little water into the wine for two symbolic reasons: first, both water and blood poured out of Christ Himself when the soldier pierced his side with a lance to see if He (Jesus) was dead; second, it’s a reminder that Jesus is a Divine Person with two natures, a human nature, and a divine nature. The prayer said by the priest or deacon is this:
“By the mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled Himself to share in our humanity.”
The priest or deacon is praying that all of us who take part in this meal and sacrifice will become like Christ (share in His divinity) and we’re reminded that Jesus is both God and human. Following this prayer and the Barakah Prayers is a silent prayer by the priest/bishop who is offering the sacrifice:
“With humble spirit and contrite heart may we be accepted by you, O Lord, and may our sacrifice in your sight this day be pleasing to you, Lord God.”
This beautiful and short prayer speaks for itself. The priest/bishop desires that this sacrifice will be holy, pure, and pleasing to God so that we (priest and people) receive generous grace for offering the sacrifice.
The final silent prayer by the priest/bishop celebrating is when he washes his hands. This ritual washing comes from a practical history and has spiritual significance. The practical history is that priests’ hands were dirty and just like our souls must be cleansed through the Sacrament of Reconciliation before receiving Holy Communion, the hands of the priest should be clean and worthy to hold the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. The spiritual significance is that the priest wants his sins forgiven (venial only – priests need to go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation like everyone else for mortal sins) before offering the Sacrifice of Christ. The prayer said by the priest/bishop when washing his hands is this:
“Wash me, O Lord, from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.”
At this point, I want to clear up some potential confusion when it comes to the sanctity of the priest celebrating any of the Sacraments. Priests are required to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation in the same way lay people are. Priests cannot forgive their own sins by looking in the mirror. We must find a priest and go to Confession like everyone else. If a priest unfortunately falls into mortal sin and can’t get to confession before celebrating a Sacrament, the Sacrament he is celebrating is still valid. Ordained Priests are always in persona Christi capitis (in the person of Christ the head) when they celebrate a Sacrament. It is not the sinner, Fr. Dom, who is offering the Sacrifice of the Mass; it is Jesus Christ offering the Sacrifice. No ordained priest is worthy to celebrate the mysteries we’re privileged to take part in, but by God’s grace our sins are overlooked for the salvation of the world. No sin is greater than God’s love.
The priest or bishop celebrating Holy Mass has several options to choose from when it comes to the Eucharistic Prayer. There are four main ones and six other optional prayers that are allowed for a specific context (reconciliation, for the Church, vocations, sickness, etc.). Even though there are many options, they all accomplish the same goal: appealing to God to turn bread and wine into the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. into the body and blood of His son, Jesus. All the various Eucharistic Prayers follow the same formula, just in different orders depending on the prayer:
The Preface is the beginning of the Eucharistic Prayer and is always specific to the context. There are prefaces depending on the Saint or Solemnity being celebrated; the liturgical season (Lent, Advent, Easter, Ordinary Time, etc.); the Gospel being read (mostly during Lent); and certain feast days and Solemnities have their own preface. In case you’re not sure where the preface takes place, this is the dialogue of the preface:
Priest: The Lord be with you.
Congregation: And with your spirit.
Priest: Lift up your hearts.
Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
Congregation: it is right and just.
The priest continues with the preface prayer and concludes with the Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts…etc.
Following the preface is the main body of the Eucharistic Prayer that includes:- Epiclesis (calling down the Holy Spirit): This is where the priest prays for the Holy Spirit to come down upon the bread and wine so that they will become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. The priest literally hovers his hands over the bread and wine during this part and bells are traditionally rung by the Altar Servers.
- The words of consecration: this is where the priest says the most important words of Holy Mass, the words that are required for bread and wine to become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ:
“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.”- The people respond to this sacred action in one of three ways:
- “We proclaim your death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection until you come again.”
- “When we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim your death, O Lord, until you come again.”
- “Save us, Savior of the world, for by your Cross and Resurrection you have set us free.”
- We pray for the local church, the faithful departed, the Pope, and the bishop of the diocese that Mass is being celebrated in.
- We call on the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, and all the saints.
- Finally, the Eucharistic Prayer ends by the priest offering the whole Eucharistic Prayer to the Blessed Trinity when he says/chants:
After which the congregation responds: “Amen!”
Following the Eucharistic Prayer is the Communion Rite, which begins with the Our Father and concludes with everyone who is able receiving Holy Communion. During the Communion Rite, we have the communal sign of peace (this part of the Mass is optional) and the fractioning of the Body of Christ and mingling it with the Precious Blood. This is called the Fraction Rite and is done while the priest prays this beautiful prayer in silence:
“May this mingling of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ bring eternal life to us who receive it.”
The congregation then recites or chants the following:
Angus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: miserere nobis. (Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world: have mercy on us)
Angus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: miserere nobis. (Lamb if God, you take away the sins of the world: have mercy on us)
Angus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: dona nobis pacem. (Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world: grant us peace)
Normally while the congregation recites or chants that prayer, the priest is praying privately before the Blessed Sacrament:
“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, who, by the will of the Father and the work of the Holy Spirit, through your death gave life to the world, free me by this, your most holy Body and Blood, from all my sins and from every evil; keep me always faithful to your commandments, and never let me be parted from you.”
Then the priest reveals the Blessed Sacrament to us again in the familiar exchange:
“Behold the Lamb of God..” to which everyone responds: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.”
When it comes to receiving Holy Communion, I want to again remind you of the responsibility and norms we are called to obediently follow as intentional disciples of Jesus Christ:- We must truly be in communion by being in a state of Grace. No one should receive Holy Communion if they are not Baptized Catholic nor been received into the Catholic Church through RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults). No Catholic should receive Holy Communion with mortal sins on their soul. Mortal sins can only be forgiven through the Sacrament of Reconciliation/Confession.
- It is the preferred norm of the Church to receive the Eucharist on the tongue, but the Church does allow us to receive in our hands. For those who desire to receive the Eucharist in their hand, please reflect on the following quote from St. Cyril of Jerusalem:
- “When you approach, take care not to do so with your hand stretched out and your fingers open or apart, but rather place your left hand as a throne beneath your right, as befits one who is about to receive the King. Then receive Him, taking care that nothing is lost.”
- For those who prefer to receive on the tongue, please remember to stick your tongue out of your mouth and even tilt your head back a bit so the minister can safely place our Lord on your tongue without touching your mouth area.
Just as we were given time before the Collect (opening prayer) to call to mind our own personal intentions for the Mass we’re celebrating, this time of silence after the priest says “let us pray” is not to wait for everyone to stand, rather it is meant for us again to call to mind our personal intentions. The priest then gathers those intentions into one with the official Prayer after Communion.
Holy Mass then ends with a final blessing and the sending forth. There are a few options the priest, bishop, or deacon can use to send us on our way:
“Go forth, the Mass is ended”
“Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.”
“Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.”
“Go in peace.”
All of these end with the congregation responding: “Thanks be to God.”
The important thing to remember about the sending forth is that we’re being told to leave and bring what we received at Holy Mass with us into the word! We’re supposed to GO and tell everyone about the miracle that just took place before our eyes: bread and wine became the actual body and blood of God Himself. We’re sent out with hearts on fire to bring God, who is Love, into our homes, workplaces, the Jewel, our baseball games, etc. We’re expected to GO and evangelize!!!! If we leave Holy Mass the same person we were when entering the Church, we did something wrong. We must come to Holy Mass prepared with open hearts to receive the fullness of grace and go out after Holy Mass to set the world on fire with Gods love. Nothing we do during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is meant to stay in the church we celebrated in. We’re always meant to take the grace with us and change the world by inspiring saints to build the kingdom of God with us.
