The Mass - pt2 - A Walkthrough
While this recap is best in person, we’ll make do with what we can in text form. Everything we do at Mass is ordered toward the Eucharist. The consecration of the bread and wine is that miraculous moment when Christ is made truly present on the altar and we are at Calvary. Being a part of this unbloodied presentation of the moment of the world’s salvation is the most important thing we’ll ever do in life. I would recommend Scott Hahn’s The Lamb’s Supper and Ratzinger’s Spirit of the Liturgy in your near future if you have not read them already.
As the first precept of the Church, failing to go to Mass doesn’t just affect one person, it affects the whole Christian faithful. The sacrifice of the Mass is made more perfect (as in, complete) when all the baptized gather for this sacred action. This is a big difference from a protestant perspective, in which the focus is on the individual’s experience within community. As we’ve said routinely in class, while we all must have a personal relationship with Jesus, we are meant to journey to Heaven together.
At the entrance of the church are holy water fonts. We bless ourselves upon entering the sacred space as a way of recalling our baptismal promises, performing a mini-exorcism upon ourselves, renouncing the world’s allurements that we left behind, and recall where we are. The church is an embassy of Heaven, and where our true citizenship lies. Time and space have changed as God is present here in a unique way. We speak, move, act, whisper, kneel, and behave altogether differently in the House of God.
Before entering our pew, we genuflect toward the tabernacle in acknowledgement of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Silence should reign supreme in the church before a liturgy as we prepare for what takes place but throughout the rest of the day out of respect for the sacred area. The bells heard at the beginning recall that we are gathered in the nave (from the word for ship), journeying toward God. Only ordained ministers, those assisting at the altar, or those prompted by the ordained ministers should ever be in a sanctuary. While many parishes no longer have altar rails in place separating the sanctuary from the nave, we should still understand and recognize the distinction between the two areas.
The introit is a psalm or versicle that sets the tone of the particular day, feast, or season. There may be an appropriate hymn after the introit. The procession can recall a penitential journey toward the altar of sacrifice, moving away from the world towards the heavenly realm, Christ’s journey from the pillar of scourging to Calvary, or the gathering of the saints to Heaven. The priest kisses the altar out of reverence for what will soon be there and to reverence the relics housed therein.
We open with the Sign of the Cross, recalling that we are baptized in the name (not names) of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. The Mass is the highest prayer of the Church, and as we are there to pray. This is why the sign of the Cross begins Mass, followed by “The Lord be with you,” and not “Good morning” or similar informal greetings.
We then begin by recalling our sins and seeking mercy to more worthily celebrate the sacred mysteries. The Confiteor is said along with the Kyrie, where the priest requests a remission of our venial sins. The priest is performing his sacred duty in a unique way by virtue of his ministerial priesthood, but we are all there to sacrifice our lives according to our common priesthood we receive in baptism. This is why the ablution applies to us all. Sin truly injures the whole community. All are welcome, but sin is not. We must publicly proclaim our sinfulness and seek forgiveness before moving forward.
At times, the asperges is performed. This is a sprinkling of holy water on the people recalling our baptismal promises and cleansing of sin.
NB: When the Kyrie is said in Greek, and there is some Latin preserved in the rite as directed by Vatican II, then we will hear Greek, Latin, and Hebrew (Alleluia, Amen) in the Mass, the three languages that were written on the Cross.
The gloria is sung or said on solemnities or Sundays. This is the major doxology (as opposed to the minor doxology – Glory be prayer) that is the song of the angels (along with the Sanctus). The collect is then prayed, which is specific and, like the introit, excites the people’s faith for the day/feast/season at hand.
The Liturgy of the Word then begins with a lesson from Old Testament, a responsory psalm, an epistle from the New Testament, and a reading from the Holy Gospel, which we stand to hear out of reverence for the words of Our Lord. At times, there are candles surrounding the ambo when the Gospel is proclaimed, it may be incensed, and the Gospel may be chanted.
A note on the responsory psalm: it is most fitting when the cantor or choir remains in the loft while singing the refrain so that the people’s focus can still be on the tabernacle in the sanctuary. Sometimes, for various reasons, a cantor may come down and sing from the ambo. It can be distracting. Just know that our attention should still be on God. Thus, I recommend not to get into the habit of watching them when they are singing from the ambo. We are all singing praise to God together, not singing to each other.
The priest (or deacon) will preach the homily to expound on the Scriptures, feast day, liturgical season, a combination thereof, or, when the situation warrants, topical points that the faithful need to be instructed over or warned about (as was the case during President Obama’s HHS mandates, the Obergefell or Dobbs decisions, etc.).
The Creed is professed, and is something we should think about often. Many have died over this profession and every line is in there for a reason. During the moment when we recall the Incarnation, we make a profound bow to acknowledge the Presence among us (this used to be a genuflection, and still is on the Feasts of the Annunciation and Christmas).
Simple head nods, such as at the names of Jesus, Mary, The Trinity, or the saint of the day
Moderate bows, like when receiving a blessing
Profound bows, to take the place of genuflecting, such as before receiving Communion (if we are going to receive standing up) or during the Creed
The prayers of the faithful are given, usually following the same format in which we pray for the Church, the government, the sick, and the dead. This is a new part of the Mass, since all of these are mentioned and prayed for in the Roman Canon (first Eucharistic prayer). The Roman Canon was the exclusive Eucharistic prayer for about 14 or 15 centuries before the introduction of new optional prayers in the 1970s.
The Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the Offertory. We give our tithes as a liturgical action as we entrust our whole selves (including finances) to God and fulfill another precept of supporting the Church’s pastors in their ministry. During this time, we are internally offering up our lives, placing ourselves and our families on the altar, preparing our hearts for the Holy Sacrifice.
This is not a time to mindlessly watch the priest set up the altar. We are fortunate to have a large and beautiful crucifix at St. Joseph’s where we can fix our gaze or we can simply bow our heads to pray.
During the offertory, the priest will present the gifts of bread and wine to God, wash his hands seeking forgiveness again for his sins, comingled the water and wine to recall the blood and water from the side of Christ, the divinity and humanity of Christ in his person, and the union of the divinity to our own souls soon enough. There is then a prayer over the offerings after a brief dialog with the people in which we are asked to pray that the communal sacrifice will be pleasing to God. This prayer is called the Preface and is specific to the season/day.
The traditional hand gesture of the people of God when praying in the liturgy is hands folded with the right thumb over the left in the shape of a cross. The priest places his hands in the “orans posture.” It is not appropriate to mimic the priest, raise our hands, or perform other gestures that could distract those around us from praying.
The Sanctus follows, which is the moment that Heaven truly opens up as we join our voices with the angels and saints. We immediately kneel afterward. During the eucharistic prayer, our hearts are open as we unite our prayer to the priest’s. This part was distinguishingly silent for the majority of the Western Church’s history so the people of God could also pray mentally, meditate on the prayers, etc., but this is unfortunately not the case currently.
The epiklesis is the moment that the Holy Spirit is called down upon the altar. You’ll notice it when the priest extends his hands over the gifts and the bells are rung the first time. There is then an institution narrative before the words of consecration are spoken over the bread and wine, thus transubstantiating them into the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ. This is, it goes without saying, the most solemn and sacred part of the Mass.
The mysterium fidei is acclaimed, then the “anamnesis” (memorial prayers), oblations, and further intercessions, followed by the Doxology (glorification), whereby we ratify that what has been said and done is true and worthy of praise. This “Great Amen” is considered by the Church Fathers to be the most solemn part of the Mass after the consecration itself. (Again, our focus should be what’s in the priest’s hands and above him, not on the priest himself. You may find it best to continue looking up at the cross or even further up at the depiction of the Holy Spirit.)
We then pray the Our Father, as taught by Christ. The missal does not instruct the faithful to hold or raise their hands. Around 50 years ago, the general instructions allowed the priest or deacon, “if appropriate,” to encourage the people to exchange a sign of peace with those nearest them. This was meant to be an extension of the peace of Christ that the priest assured us of which comes from God alone. Due to several abuses that reigned over the previous generation, many parishes have done away with this. However, even though the priest no longer instructs the people to offer a sign of peace, old habits die hard and you may see people doing it anyway. If a priest does instruct us to do so, an appropriate gesture could be a handshake or modest wave with the greeting “Peace be with you.” (“Flashing a peace sign” is inappropriate.)
The Agnus Dei is prayed, recalling the words of John the Baptist, especially after we kneel again and the priest proclaims “Behold the Lamb of God” in which we respond with the words of the centurion “Lord I am not worthy…”. This underscores the sacrificial nature of Christ’s offering of himself, coupled with the fracturing of the host and dropping a piece into the chalice.
Many texts have been published recently attempting to stop the unfortunate mindset in the West that just because we are at Mass means we should receive Communion. Assisting at Mass is highly meritorious and spiritually beneficial even without receiving the Eucharist. Receiving worthily is a great grace, but being distracted, receiving ill-prepared, or (worst of all) receiving unworthily can be damaging if not altogether damning. Receiving implies having fasted for an hour, assenting to all teachings of the Church, harboring no ill will towards one’s neighbors, being free from all attachment to sin, and having confessed any mortal sins. It is recommended that preparation for receiving communion should begin the night before one receives and be center focus all morning leading up to the reception.
The ordinary form, according to the general instruction, for receiving communion in the US is standing and on the tongue (head back, eyes closed, tongue out). When allowed, by the discretion of a recipient, they may receive in the hand provided that there is proper catechesis to ensure they understand the realities of what they are receiving (left hand extended, right hand under the left, right hand takes the host and consumes immediately). If we are unable to use both of our hands (such as holding a child), we must receive on the tongue as it is irreverent to attempt to receive one-handed.
If we kneel to receive, we should be mindful of the person behind us when standing back up. If we stand to receive, we should make a profound bow before presenting ourselves to the minister. We must receive in front of the minister and not carrying the host away from him. Receiving on the tongue has been standard practice for most of the Church’s history, is the only form allowed in many diocese outside the US (including Rome), and is more conducive to the sense of the faith in the real presence. In good conscience, I cannot personally recommend receiving any other way.
Receiving in the hand has an unfortunate backstory, as it began with a liturgical abuse in the late 1960s, was rejected as a possibility by Pope St. Paul VI, who years later granted a provisional approval in parts of the world where it already existed provided that receiving on the tongue was not discouraged. Altar rails soon were jettisoned from parishes and standing became the norm. You can go down a rabbit hole online and read about how the Western liturgy suffered greatly in the 1970s from abuses. We praise God for the courageous faithful who stuck it out and passed on the faith to the next generation in spite of Satan’s attempts to discourage them. I have seen hosts wind up in bathrooms, parking lots, under pews, you name it. It also gets dropped not infrequently, which is a sad occurrence to see. Satanic cults often attempt to steal hosts this way by receiving in the hand. While Christ will never suffer more than he did on Calvary, if what we say about the Eucharist is true, then Christian piety forbids us from doing anything but taking the utmost care of it.
Regardless of whether we receive on the tongue or in the hand, it is not possible to receive worthily by consuming the host and immediately leaving Mass. If we are unable to stay for the full Mass and pray in thanksgiving afterward, it is advisable to reap the spiritual benefits of assisting at the Mass that we were able to be a part of for a moment and praying for spiritual communion thereafter. You’ll notice after the distribution that the priest will wash his fingers and clean the sacred vessels so that no crumb or speck is abused (again calling into question the practice of receiving in the hand). An appropriate period of silence follows, perhaps a eucharistic hymn, and then the final prayer thanking God for so wondrous a gift, ending in a final blessing. From here we get the word Mass when the priest says, “Ite, missa est.” (Go, you’re sent.) It is customary to pray an act of thanksgiving after Mass, including the St. Michael prayer and a prayer to Our Lady and whatever other saints we have devotion to. This act of thanksgiving can be a wonderful testament to the true presence. If someone were to hand you a million dollars and you turned to your neighbor, immediately talking about sports, an outside observer would be right in assuming you either weren’t thankful for the gift or didn’t believe in it altogether.
Finally, it is important in a Catholic parish to stick around for a while after Mass and congregate outside the church building. While it is not appropriate to talk to one another inside (for the same reasons we do not talk to one another before Mass), we should certainly move outside, greet one another, and establish holy friendships this way.