When the pandemic first hit, life changed significantly for us. Our routine was interrupted. Dining out, shopping, traveling, schooling, and worship were altered. The obligation to attend Mass was suspended. In due time, we increased our seating but far fewer attend Mass than was the norm two years ago.
Last week the obligation to attend Mass was restored. So instead of reflecting on the readings, perhaps a refresher course on the Mass will be helpful, especially if you have been away. Today I will touch on the liturgy of the Eucharist.
From their earliest days of the church, Christians have celebrated the Mass as their primary manner of worship. The name, Eucharist, comes from the Greek, for giving thanks. This prayer is our opportunity to really thank God.
Once the liturgy of the Word is done, the altar is prepared. The collection is taken up; it’s the congregation’s opportunity to thank God by supporting the ministries of the parish. After receiving the collection along with the bread and wine, which was the practice before the pandemic, the celebrant offers the congregation’s gifts of bread and wine as the fruit of the earth and the work of human hands.
This first phase of the liturgy is often called the offertory. The celebrant first blesses God for the bread being offered, which will become for us the bread of life. This prayer is derived from the ancient Jewish benediction said before the family meal.Blessed are you Lord, God of all creation. Through your goodness, we have this bread to offer. Then some drops of water are poured into the chalice. That practice is also derived from a Jewish ritual. Then he blesses God for the wine that is about to be offered. Once the bread and wine have been offered, the celebrant washes his hands symbolically, asking the Lord to cleanse him of his sins. Doing so, he is observing a Jewish penitential rite based on Psalm26: I wash my hands in innocence as I go around your altar O Lord.
Now we move on to the preface. The celebrant invites you to stand and lift up your hearts and to give thanks to the Lord our God. There are more than 50 different prefaces, some designated to specific feasts, others for a season or a purpose, such as a Mass for the dead.
At the end of every preface comes the Sanctus, when together we acclaim that God is holy. The congregation then kneels for the Eucharistic Prayer. There are nine altogether. The first is known as the Roman Canon, which I use on solemn feasts such as Easter and Christmas.
The Eucharistic Prayer continues with the epiclesis when the celebrant asks God the Father to send down the Holy Spirit upon our gifts of bread and wine so that they become the body and blood of Jesus Christ, resonating our belief in what Jesus said at the Last Supper.
The consecration, the highlight of our worship, then takes place. The bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of our Lord. The bread and wine do not symbolize Jesus; they become his real presence. Surveys show that many Catholics question this belief and even dismiss this as being impossible. How can something that still taste and look the same as bread and wine be anything else?
I’m not a theologian but the simplest insight I can offer is this. If out of nothing, God has created all that exists, who are we to limit what God can do? I marvel at the vastness of God’s creation from the wildlife that lives here to distant galaxies. I marvel at how life is woven together. How, for example, all the parts of the body work together: breathing, eating, thinking, sleeping, moving, and creating new life.
We believe that God is everywhere. God is present to change our gifts of bread and wine into his Son. Yes, they still taste and look like bread and wine but the substance has been transformed. Jesus has taken on the substance of bread and wine just as he said he would at the Last Supper.
Following the consecration, we join the cantor in reaffirming our belief in what happened with the mystery of faith. The Eucharistic Prayer concludes with the doxology. Holding up Jesus, the celebrant proclaims that all glory and honor belongs to God. You join the cantor with the great Amen.
We then stand for the communion rite that begins with the Lord’s Prayer, followed by a plea that God delivers us from every evil. This leads to another prayer for peace. Before the pandemic, we exchanged a sign of peace. When the time is right, that gesture will be restored. Then comes the Agnus Dei, Lamb of God…grant us peace. Then you kneel once more as the celebrant acclaims, “Behold the Lamb of God” and you respond, “Lord, I am not worthy to receive you.”
Not only is the act of receiving communion a private encounter with Jesus, it also joins us as a single body, a community of believers united by our faith in God. Ask yourself, “Do I believe that this is the Christ?” When you hear the words, “Body of Christ,” your reply is, “Amen,” which means “I believe this is Jesus the Christ, not bread.”
When the communion is done, there is silence, a time for us to again thank the Lord for what we have received. We then stand as the rite concludes with a prayer, a blessing, and then a recessional song. We then go forth to love God!