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Catholic Mass

Revision as of 01:25, 23 September 2023 by Bromley (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Parts of the Mass == "Holy Mass" == * "Missa" for "sending forth" or "mission" ** CCC 1332: the Mass is for "sending forth (missio) of the faithful, so that they may fulfill God's will in their daily lives" === Liturgies === * Catholic Mass consists of four (4) parts or "liturgies" ** there are 23 different variations of the Mass across orthodox churches ** they all come from the Apostolic traditions as introduced by Jesus * see ** [https://www.usccb.org/offices/public...")
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Parts of the Mass

"Holy Mass"

  • "Missa" for "sending forth" or "mission"
    • CCC 1332: the Mass is for "sending forth (missio) of the faithful, so that they may fulfill God's will in their daily lives"

Liturgies

Introductory Rites

Procession

  • Mass begins with the entrance song (or chant)
    • during which the celebrant and ministers enter in procession
    • the song/ chant is to gather all present to celebrate in unity with Christ and with each other in faith
    • here Christ comes to us in Word and Sacrament
    • the congregation stands in respect
  • celebrants approach the altar show and reverence to it as symbol of Christ with a bow or a kiss upon it
    • the altar is in the sanctuary which recollects the Holy Temple at Jerusalem
    • the kiss of the altar also shows reverence for relics of the saints that it may contain
    • many early Christians celebrated Mass in the catacombs,
  • if there is no song, the antiphon is read by the Celebrant or Deacon
    • the congregants may recite the antiphon as well
    • "antiphon" from Latin anti- (in return, responding, ) + phon (voice)
    • the antiphon is thematically related to the Liturgy of the Word

Sign of the Cross

  • the celebrant greets the congregation with the Sign of the Cross
    • "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit"
    • the people respond, "Amen"

The Greeting

  • forms of the Greeting:

A) The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all

B) Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ

C) if a Priest: "The Lord be with you" or if a Bishop: "Peace be with you"

  • the Greeting is from John 20:19-23: Jesus appears in the upper room and says, "Peace be with you," then breathes on them, saying, "Receive the Holy Spirit"
    • (then delivers the "the Great Commission")
  • the Greeting is a prayer that recognizes the presence of Christ
  • "the Lord be with you" is also reminiscent of the Angel Gabriel's greeting to Mary (Lk 1:28)

Introduction of the Mass and/or Intention

  • the Celebrant may offer introductory words about the readings or a feast day being celebrated
  • and also announce any "intentions for the Mass," i.e. "intended" for someone

Penitential Act

Sprinkling of Water

  • called "Rite for the blessing and sprinkling of water"
  • = reminder of Baptism

Penitential Act

  • the purpose is for the faithful recall their sins and place their trust in God's mercy
  • starts with the "Invitation to Repent" by the priest
Brethren, let us acknowledge our sins, and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries
  • the Penitential Act has four parts:
    1. invitation to the faithful by the Priest
    2. a pause for silence
    3. the prayer
    4. absolution by the Priest.
  • the prayer may be led by the Priest ("God have mercy") or recited in full by the faithful
    • called the Confiteor:
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
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
  • the Penitential Act prepares us to received the Eucharist
  • Confiteor it is a prayer for and act of turning our focus from our sins (repent) to God
  • "striking the breast" three times is a gesture of sorrow, humility and responsibility for our sins
  • the repentance is done in communion with the entire congregation (coming together)
  • it absolves venial and not mortal sins, and also reminds us to avoid future sin

Kyrie Eleison

  • if the Confiteor is not recited, the Priest will speak Kyrie Eleison as part of the Penitential Act
  • otherwise, the congregants will sing or recite:
    • Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy
    • Kyrie Eleison, Christe Eleison, Kyrie Eleison
      • note that this is the only use of Greek in the Mass

Absolution

* the priest prays for absolution of our sins 

May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life

Response: Amen

Glory to God ("Gloria")

  • to be sung with joy in exultation of God
  • Gloria in Excelsis = "Glory to God in the highest"
    • recognizes God’s presence
    • the faithful may use this time to call to mind their intentions
  • the first verse address God the Father
  • the second verse praises and petitions Jesus the Son
  • the third verse recognizes the Holy Trinity

Collect

  • after the "Gloria" the priest calls the congregation to pray
    • and observes a moment of silence
  • then recites "the Collect"
    • sometimes referred to as the "opening prayer", although it closes the first part of the Introductory Rites
  • the Collect is a prayer for reaching eternal life
  • the Collect has five parts:
    1. Invocation: to one of the persons of the Trinity
    2. Acknowledgement: of the divine attributes of that person of the Trinity
    3. Petition: for a specific purpose
    4. Aspiration: a call for the result or purpose of the petition
    5. Pleading:
      • Conclusion invoking the mediation of Christ
      • Amen: response by the faithful

Liturgy of the Word

  • the Readings address not just Old and New Testament scripture but purposefully bring us closer to Life in Christ
  1. First Reading (Old Testament): thematically connects to fulfillment in the Gospel reading
    • during Easter season, the First Reading is from the Book of Acts
  2. Responsorial Psalm: from the "Book of prayers", teaches us to pray to and listen to God
  3. Second Reading (Epistles):
  4. Alleluia: praise the Lord
  5. Gospel: the life and words of the Lord Jesus Christ as written by the Evangelists who were inspired by the Holy Spirit

First Reading

  • may be conducted a "lector" (lay reader)
  • upon completion, the lector says, "The word of the Lord"
  • the people response, "Thanks be to God"
    • "thanks" because it is a gift from the Lord

Second Reading

  • may be conducted a "lector" (lay reader)
  • same conclusion and responses from lector and the people as for the FIrst Reading

Alleluia

  • maybe spoken by the priest or sung by a cantor or choir
  • the assembled stand during the "Praise [for] the Lord" in preparation
  • during Lent, the response to Alleluia will offer "Glory and praise" or another form recognizing the greatness and glory of God and his works

Gospel Reading

  • may be read only by a priest or deacon, who stand for Christ while reading the Gospel
    • if by the deacon, he will ask the priest, "Your blessing Father" to which the priest will offer a blessing and prayer that "The Lord may be in [the deacon's] heart" and that he "proclaim [the] Gospel worthily and well"
    • the deacon responds, or if the reading is by the priest, he will say to himself, "Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty God, that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel"
  • the priest or deacon will tell the people, "The Lord be with you" to which the people respond, "And with your spirit"
    • as in the Introductory Rite, the exchange affirms the presence of God and invokes the Priest's ordination
  • the priest or deacon then says, "A reading from the holy Gospel according to ___"
  • the people say, "Glor to you, O Lord,"
  • and all make the Sign of the Cross to show our desire that the Word of God be on our
    • forehead (for focus, attention, and thoughts of Word of God)
    • lips (that our word may proclaim the Word of God)
    • heart (that we embrace the Word of God with sincerity, purity, and courage)
  • on completion, the priest or deacon will say, "The Gospel of the Lord"
    • to which the people respond, "Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ"
    • the priest or deacon will then kiss the Bible and say inaudibly, "Through the words of the Gospel may our sins be wiped away."

Homily

  • through the Holy Spirit, the priest or deacon will offer a teaching about the Readings and ask the people to respond to Christ in their lives

Profession of Faith (the Creed)

  • after the homily, the priest will sit for a moment in silence to lead the people in reflection
  • then all will stand to recite the Nicene Creed or the Apostle's Creed
  • the Nicene Creed is derived from language adopted by the Councils of Nicea (325 AD) and Constantinople (381)
    • the Councils were instrumental is affirming the Christian faith, especially against the heresies that distorted or denied the nature of God and Jesus, including:
      • the Father is "maker of heaven and earth, all things visible and invisible"
        • heretics claimed that only heaven is divine and the earth is impure and of a god of darkness
        • known as "dualism" which divides the divine from the earthly
      • that the Lord Jesus Christ is "born of the Father before all ages... begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father... and was incarnate of the Virgin Mary"
        • heretics claimed that Jesus the man was not divine, or that he was not actually human, and that he was not born of the Virgin Mary
  • the Creeds represent the essence of the Catholic faith

Universal Prayer

* the priest will invite the people to join in prayer and the deacon or lay minister lead prayers for the needs of the Church and teh world

  • the people will respond to each prayer, "Lord, hear our prayer"
  • note that God wants us to pray together, such as we see in Mt 18:19-20 ("Where two or three are gathered")

Liturgy of the Eucharist

The Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the preparation of the gifts and the altar. As the ministers prepare the altar, representatives of the people bring forward the bread and wine that will become the Body and Blood of Christ. The celebrant blesses and praises God for these gifts and places them on the altar. In addition to the bread and wine, monetary gifts for the support of the Church and the care of the poor may be brought forward. 

After the gifts and altar are prepared, the Eucharistic Prayer begins. This prayer of thanksgiving is the heart of the Liturgy of the Eucharist. In this prayer, the celebrant acts in the person of Christ as head of his body, the Church. He gathers not only the bread and the wine, but the substance of our lives and joins them to Christ's perfect sacrifice, offering them to the Father.

Sacrament of the Eucharist

  • "The holy Eucharist completes Christian initiation. Those who have been raised to the dignity of the royal priesthood by Baptism and configured more deeply to Christ by Confirmation participate with the whole community in the Lord's own sacrifice by means of the Eucharist." (CCC 1322)

the Eucharist

  • the “work of human hands,” “fruit of the vine” = gifts of the Creator (CCC 1333)
  • "It is the very action of Christ at the Last Supper - 'taking the bread and a cup'" (CCC 1350)

Presentation and Preparation of the Gifts

  • after the Liturgy of the Word, the Priest invites the faithful to join the sacrifice
    • since we join it, the "sacrifice" is us
  • a collection may be made during the "preparation", which may be carried to the priest who recieves it before the altar along with the bread and wine (together with the collection, "the gifts")
  • the priest will then commence his "Eucharistic prayers" as he lifts the bread and wine which will become the body and blood of Christ
  • the priest may say the prayers inaudibly, or, he may speak the first prayer to the people
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.
  • to which the people will respond, "Blessed be God for ever"
  • the second prayer may also be spoken audibly, and, if so , the people will respond "Blessed be God for ever":
Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the wine we offer you: fruit of the vine and work of human hands, it will become our spiritual drink.
  • the priest then says inaudibly the "secret prayer,"
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.”
  • he then washes his hands, stating, "Wash me, O Lord, from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin"
    • from Psalm 51

Invitation to Prayer

  • the priest then addresses the people:
Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters), that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.
  • the people respond:
May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of his name, for our good, and the good of all his holy Church.
  • note: the "sacrifice" is not just the bread and wine and/or the collection
    • the "sacrifice" is all of us
    • the Eucharist is presented "in memory" of the Lord, but as a living act, memorializing act, not in recognition of some past event
    • thus Christ's sacrifice is real at every Mass and we are part of it

THE EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

  • a prayer of praise and thanksgiving
  • an invitation to join together with Christ

Preface Dialogue & Thanksgiving

Priest: The Lord be with you.
People: And with your spirit.
Priest: Lift up your hearts.
People: We lift them up to the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God
People: It is right and just.
  • "Lift up your hearts
    • see "And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself" (Jn 12:32)
  • "It is right and just" [to give thanks to the Lord"]
    • "It is right and just to entrust oneself wholly to God and to believe absolutely what he says. It would be futile and false to place such faith in a creature" (CCC 150)
      • "right" as in it is the correct, necessary thing to do ("Give thanks to the Lord our God")
        • "just" as in "owed" or "duty fulfilled"
        • we owe it to God to "give thanks"

Preface

  • the priest reads the "preface" (before), which celebrates the feast, if any, and the "mystery" of the Eucharist

Sanctus

  • the priest then extends his hands as if on the Cross and leads the faithful in the "Sanctus"
  • "Holy holy holy" as the cherubin sing in constant praise of God
    • we are joining the angels and saints in praise of God

Epiclesis

  • all kneel, while the priest extends his hands over the offering
    • asking the Father to bless and accept these gifts
    • and calls down the Holy Spirit to consecrate the bread and wine
  • "epiclesis" means invocation

Institution Narrative

  • when the priest holds up the chalice and says new and everlasting covenant - brings us to holy communion w/ God to bridge the gap that was lost w/ fall of Adam/Eve
  • epiclesis

Eucharistic prayer

  • Words of the Last Supper
  • Mystery of faith
    • the three proclamations of faith
  • Concluding doxology
  • Great Amen

Our Father

  • oratio Dominica
  • > see CCC 2761

Sources

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