THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST

Source & summit of our faith

CONFUSION LEADS TO CHECKING OUT

Like opera, football, or another complex thing, the mass can be confusing.It’s necessary to understand the structure to appreciate it

MY HOPE

By learning the biblical foundations of the mass (references, meaning, connections) you can:

1) Better appreciate what’s going on liturgically

2) Begin to enter into a deeper level of worship and communion with Our Lord

THE INTRODUCTORY RITESThe Sign of the Cross

PRIEST: IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Not a way to begin praying, but itself a powerful prayer

Source of divine power & protection

A ‘badge of the faithful’ and ‘a terror to the devils’ St. John Chrysostom

TERTULLIAN (160-225 AD)

“In all our travels and movements, in all our coming in and going out, in putting on our shoes, at the bath, at the table, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in whatever employment occupies us, we mark our foreheads with the sign of the cross.”

ST. JOHN CHRYSOSTOM (374-407)

Never leave your house without making the sign of the cross. It will be to you a staff, a weapon, an impregnable fortress. Neither man nor demon will dare to attack you, seeing you covered with such powerful armor. Let this sign teach you that you are a soldier, ready to combat against the demons, and ready to fight for the crown of justice. Are you ignorant of what the cross has done? It has vanquished death, destroyed sin, emptied hell, dethroned Satan, and restored the universe. Would you then doubt its power?

WHAT DO THEY SEE THAT WE OFTEN MISS?

Could somebody confuse our sign of the cross for swatting flies?

Two aspects of the Sign The Actual Tracing The words

THE TRACING

Prefiguring of the cross

Ez 9: 4-6 God’s faithful

distinguishing themselves from corrupt culture & seeking divine protection

Rev 9:4 Saints in Heaven

with a similar mark

THE WORDS

To call on the name: denotes worship, prayer, sacrifice, and assistance

Name mysteriously represents the person—invoking their presence and power (e.g. “stop in the name of the king!”)

We are calling God’s presence and consecrating the next hour to him

We should be deliberate about the sign because we are coming in His name, not ours

PRIEST: THE LORD BE WITH YOUPEOPLE: AND WITH YOUR SPIRIT

Not a greeting & response Biblical perspective: a call to do something

amazing, with Israel’s life in the balance Gideon, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, David, Jeremiah,

Mary all addressed with “The Lord is with you.” Calling on Holy Spirit to work through the

priest “Be priest for us now.”

CONFITEOR (NEW TRANSLATION IN BOLD)

I confess to almighty Godand to you, my brothers and sisters,

that I have greatly sinnedin my thoughts and in my words,

in what I have doneand in what I have failed to do,

[All strike their breast]through my fault, through my fault,

through my most grievous fault;therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,

all the Angels and Saints,and you, my brothers and sisters,

to pray for me to the Lord our God.

FEAR AND TREMBLING…

OT response to God was holy fear and awe, throwing themselves down on ground (Gn 17:2; 28:17; Ex 3:6; 19:16)

If given time, Israel would carefully prepare itself

“I confess” Confession of sins a common practice in

ancient Israel & Jesus’ day. Not surprising early Christians kept up practice

AN EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE

Social effects of sin highlighted (God & man) We are told to guard our thoughts (Phil 4:8;

Mt 5:22; Mt 5:27-28; Mt 7:1, etc) Our words can harm (Jas 3:5, 2 Cor 12:20;

Rom 1:30; Mt 5: 22; Col 3:9, etc) Our actions (most common idea of sin) Our failures to do good: very challenging,

Judgment encompasses failures to love as well (Jas 4:17)

Triple Fault: repetition stresses meaning biblically

KRYIE ELEISONLORD, HAVE MERCY

Not crying “uncle!” Biblical mercy: Misericordia “A heart

who gives itself to one who suffers” Why 3x?

JC as brother, redeemer, & God 3 Persons of the Trinity 3 languages on the cross

The Faith came to us Latins from the Greeks –St. Albert

NOT biblical mercy

GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO!

Sudden shift from sorrowful to joyful

A biblical mosaic of titles for God & praise

GLORIA

God is “Almighty” because He is omnipotent

But this is a ‘fatherly omnipotence’ CCC 270

JC’s “Three Acts” 1st Only begotten Son (divine sonship) 2nd Redemption; Lamb’s triumph over

sin/death 3rd Seated at the right hand; Heavenly

reign

We come to Mass conscious of two things: that we stand greatly in need of redemption, and that we have actually been saved. When I think of the first, I recognize my own insignificance; when I realize the second truth, I perceive my strength; in the first I see my weakness and utter poverty, in the other I see my power and greatness. –Pius Parsch 1940

A COUNTER-CULTURAL PRAYER

“Lord” was a title for Caesar

To claim Jesus is Lord could easily be seen as treasonous

THE LITURGY OF THE WORD

THE GREATEST BIBLE STUDY ON EARTH! Sundays hit the high points, but daily mass

takes us through all of Scripture in three years No favorites or running from Scripture

We walk through the life and mission of Jesus through the seasons

We need time to grasp the mystery: Holy Days marked off

The lector isn’t just a reader: they lend God their human voice so that God’s words can be spoken to us in Mass

THE FIRST READING

JC is the last chapter of a great novel; the climactic scene of an epic movie

The twists and turns of the OT make sense of JC “The Word of the Lord.”

A liturgical ‘trumpet blast,’ a ‘great shout’ Reminder of how favored we are to hear God speak to

us directly A moment of silence

Awe & adoration part of heavenly liturgy (Rev 8:1) We become like Mary who ‘kept all these things,

pondering them in her heart’ (Lk 2:18)

THE RESPONSORIAL PSALM

Recitation/Singing helps foster an atmosphere of prayer conducive for meditation

150 sacred hymns Verses sung by two choirs in Temple Antiphony: psalm, mass (The lord be with

you…), liturgy/covenants of the Bible, the angelic choirs

Psalms recited/sung as early as 2nd century

THE SECOND READING

Often selected independently of the first reading and Gospel

One of the epistles, Acts of the Apostles, or Revelations

Reflections on the mystery of Christ, his redemptive mission, or practical applications

A constant exhortation to ‘put on Christ’

THE GOSPEL

Liturgy reflects the preeminence of the Gospel

Preparations taken before Jesus is made present to us in a profound way

Standing: the reverent posture of Judaism Stand for the king; “All rise!” for a judge

• Alleluia: Hebrew expression of joy “Praise the Lord!”

THE HOMILY

Homily “Explanation” in Greek; practice rooted in Judaism

Vatican II: Homily holds ‘pride of place’ in instruction

Homily reserved to the ordained Not about eloquence or charisma A guarantee that the preaching is passing

on the apostolic faith, not private/individual thoughts

THE CREED

Like the Jewish Shema Reminder that our lives are caught up

in a cosmic struggle Creed will not let us be lukewarm

bystanders Profession of faith plants the flag of the

Kingdom of God before the congregation and God Almighty

TWO ASPECTS OF THE CREED “I BELIEVE”

Intellectual: our free assent to the revealed truth of God. I agree I believe 2+2=4

Personal: Adherence to God; entrusting of one’s life to him I trust I believe in you

Not a mere checklist of doctrines to be checked off, but an invitation to surrender more and more of our lives to God every week

A NOTE:

For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.

A bow is prescribed to reverence the incredible mystery of the Word of God taking on human flesh!

THE GOSPEL

Procession: taking the Book of the Gospels, candles, incense, underscore solemnity Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty

God, that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel

Recalls Isaiah’s lips touched by a burning coal: sins forgiven and prophetic ministry begins

Triple Sign of the Cross: Consecrate our thoughts, words, and actions; request for God on our minds, lips, and heart

THE PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL

One of the most ancient parts of the mass: Justin Martyr 155 ad

Here, the laity exercise their priestly function

Intercessory prayer is “characteristic of a heart attuned to God’s mercy” CCC 2635

We’re about to enter the Liturgy of the Eucharist:It’s about to get real up in here!