The Beauty of Mass & the Eucharist

24/8/2020

When I was younger, I used to question why we had to go for Mass every Sunday when I just couldn't understand what the priest was doing at the altar. Catechism class didn't really explain much, except that it was the "highest form of worship" and "the source and summit of our faith". Although I found a place to explore the faith with the youth ministry, there was only so much I could gain from it. Over the course of my teenage years, I tried to pay more attention to the prayers and rites so that I could be more involved with it. The Mass became something really beautiful for me during my college days when I went for a particular youth camp, where the priest took the time to explain each part of the Mass and what it symbolizes. I was filled with awe at how much beauty and meaning the Mass could contain. It really is the most beautiful place to be at, where one could participate in the sacrifice and be united with the whole Church in the presence of our Lord.

Active Participation in Mass
The Mass is not just something we attend or watch, but we are called to involve ourselves in it as well. We participate in the mass through both the interior and the exterior self. It means engaging the mind and heart to be awake and alert, as well as the actions of doing and saying things. There is a relationship between the soul and body in liturgical prayer. By participating in the Mass, we are becoming a part of and partaking in then meal of the original banquet where we are right with God, the sacrifice of Christ on Good Friday, and the real presence of God. In this, we experience a life changing encounter.

Signs and Symbols during Mass
In order to convey the mysteries of our salvation, the sacred liturgy uses signs and symbols which are visible revelations of the invisible realities of the mysteries which are being experienced and presented to us. Everything we experience in Church during mass, such as art, architecture, music, and prayer, are meant to unite us all in worship to our God. The actions of Christ in the sacred liturgy take up human acts common to all cultures in order to draw all into union with him. These sacred signs are recognizable to all people, so through these universal and everyday sacramental signs, Jesus can be perceived and understood by all humanity. (Fr. Philip-Michael Tangorra, 2019)

The liturgical rites of the mass can be broken down into five parts namely preparation, introductory rites, liturgy of the Word, liturgy of the Eucharist, and the concluding rites. I will attempt to briefly go through some parts of the mass and hopefully give an explanation that makes sense to you.

1. Preparation

• Blessing with the Sign of the Cross — We are reaffirming our baptism in Jesus (through the holy water when we enter into Church), and being reminded of our core belief of our faith, the Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In this way, we bring ourselves to God and respond to His invitation of coming into a communion with Him.
• Genuflecting before the Blessed Sacrament in the Tabernacle — It is our disposition before God that declares that He is Saviour and King. Why not just bowing? There's a traditional distinction that's very useful using three Greek words: latria (adoration), hyperdulia (special reverence), dulia (reverence). These three categories indicate different grades of reverence due to God and the saints.
• Personal prayer — We are encouraged to pray a prayer of thanksgiving, contrition and/or petitions before the start of the Mass.

2. Introductory Rites

• Entrance procession — It is first led by the cross since Jesus is meant to lead all Christians through life. If incense is used during Mass, it prepares the way for Jesus by going before him. The two candles flanking the cross symbolizes Christ as the light of the world.
• Greeting — This is inspired by the greetings in Paul's letters and our response which is meant to acknowledge the priest as in persona Christi (in the person of Christ).
• Penitential Rite — To make us worthy to celebrate the Eucharist, we then recite the penitential act for the times we have fallen short of God's love. After that, the priest gives an absolution to forgive our venial sins.
• Kyrie — The repetition of "Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy." represents our prayer to the Trinity.
• Gloria — This hymn echoes the hymn sung by the angels after the birth of Christ was announced to the shepherds (Luke 2:14).
• Collect — This moment of silence is our chance to all bring our intentions and prayers to mind which the priest will then offer it up to God.

3. Liturgy of the Word

• First Reading, Psalm, Second Reading — The first reading is taken from the Old Testament while the second reading is taken from the New Testament, specifically from the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles, or the book of Revelation.
• Gospel — We stand to sing the Gospel Acclamation to welcome the Gospel and remain standing in honour of the Gospel reading, which is akin to Christ's words. The priest prays quietly, "Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty God, that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel." Together with the priest, we also sign ourselves on the forehead, lips and heart before the reading starts. It is a beautiful action, one with deep biblical roots (cf. Is 6, Heb 4:12). Some would even pray these words silently as they make the sign: "May the Word of the Lord be on my mind, on my lips, and in my heart."
• Creed — The purpose of the Creed/Profession of Faith is that the congregation may respond to the Word of God proclaimed in the readings and explained in the Homily, and that they may also honor and confess the great mysteries of the faith (GIRM). The common creed used is the Nicene Creed, with the occasional use of the Apostles' Creed.
• Prayer of the Faithful — Unites the Church as one as we pray for the community and the world.

4. Liturgy of the Eucharist

• Preparation of the Gifts and Altar/Offertory — We offer not just our material goods but our whole lives in thanksgiving and petition as often sung during the offertory song. As for the symbol of bread and wine, in biblical times, the Jewish people ate everything from the same plate. Sharing food in this way increased the sense of solidarity and fellowship among those eating it. They became, in a sense, one body. The bread, which is a combination of many grains, also symbolizes the great multitude of humanity who come to offer themselves in the sacrifice of the new and eternal covenant in Christ.
  If you have been attentive at Mass, you will also see the priest washing his hands with water while praying quietly, "Wash me, O Lord, from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin" (cf. Ps 26:6). The lavabo ("I shall wash" in Latin) is a rite done to express the desire for interior purification. Hence, it is not so much about the physical cleansing but the interior dimension of the priest so that he may be purified.
• Santus/Holy, Holy — During this part of the Mass, when we sing this hymn, we are joined with the Mystical Body of the Church, existing in three states: Church militant (us on earth), Church suffering (souls in purgatory), and Church triumphant (angels and saints in heaven). This tiny little glimpse of Heaven that we have during the Mass is meant to be our home forever.
• Invocation of the Holy Spirit — From the ancient times, the 'laying on of hands' was a sign of calling down the Holy Spirit (cf. 2 Chron 7:1). The priest stretches his hands over the bread and wine to call upon the Holy Spirit to consecrate these gifts into the body and blood of Christ through the process of transubstantiation. "There takes place a change of the whole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord and of the whole substance of the wine into the substance of his blood." (CCC 1376)
• Institution of the Eucharist — The double/twofold consecration of the Eucharist symbolizes the separation of the blood from the body—the "shedding" of blood, which was the very atoning sacrificial cause of our redemption (cf. Rom 3:24-25; 5:9). The bread and wine, when consecrated, are no longer two things but are then one and the same Person in two forms or appearances. If you notice, the priest then breaks the body into three pieces (the small part is placed into the cup). This symbolizes Christ's resurrection.
• Invitation to Communion — Here is a formal invitation to receive the body and blood of Christ in which we respond with "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed" (cf. Matt 8:9). We come with a sense of humility and also worthiness rooted in baptism. The congregation is invited to look at the Eucharistic bread and to express reverence, confidence, and faith.

5. Concluding Rites

• Blessing and Dismissal — Following the end of Mass, we are called to go forth and proclaim the good news to others. It is a commissioning to carry out His works throughout our day and week.