Just as the Word of God came to John the Baptist during the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, it comes to us today during the seventh year of the papacy of Francis, bishop of Rome. We heard John the Baptist tell his listeners to “prepare the way of the Lord.” One way we can do that is to worship God by celebrating the Mass. Since the pandemic began, many have not gathered to do so but as of this Wednesday, when we celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, we are again being obligated to do so provided we are in good health. I thought a refresher course on the Mass would be helpful.
From its earliest days, the Mass has been the primary manner of worship for Catholics. Jesus celebrated the first Mass at the Last Supper when he took bread and wine and told the disciples, “This is my body…this is my blood.”
On the first Easter Sunday, the day he rose from the dead, Jesus journeyed from Jerusalem to Emmaus with two sad disciples who were mourning about what had happened there. Not until he broke bread in their home did they recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread.
Since then Catholics worldwide have gathered to be fed, not just the Eucharist but also the Word of God. Our worship is called the Mass; its name is derived from the Latin directive given at the end to go forth and serve the Lord.
The Mass is divided into two parts: Liturgy of the Word and Liturgy of the Eucharist. Both are relevant to our worship of God. Think of the Mass as a multi-course meal and that every course matters.
The Liturgy of the Word begins with a greeting from the celebrant, followed by the penitential rite, when we acknowledge our sins, seek God’s forgiveness and prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mystery of the Mass. Usually, the Kyrie is said, but sometimes, a sprinkling rite is substituted to remind us of our baptism.
On Sundays outside of Lent and Advent and on solemnities the Gloria is then said; our moment for praising God. Following the Gloria comes the collect, the opening prayer assigned to the Mass of the day. Every celebrant at every English speaking Mass said the same collect which you heard moments ago.
Then we sat down to listen to the Word of God. Unlike in some other denominations, the readings you just heard were not arbitrarily chosen. Since the Council of Trent, readings were assigned to each Mass. Until Vatican II changed our manner of celebrating the Mass, the readings would be repeated every year. In the decade following Vatican II, the Church along with other mainline Protestant denominations created the Lectionary to be repeated every three years; this allowed for more scripture passages to be heard. Each year focuses on one of the gospels; Matthew, Mark or Luke. In all three cycles, John is proclaimed from time to time. For daily Mass, there is a two year cycle that contains some passages not heard on Sundays.
The words of this book are our food and drink. We listened as the lector nourished us with the Word of the Lord. At Sunday Masses, three scripture passages are read. The first is from the Hebrew testament, except during the Easter season; the second is always from the New Testament; and the third is from the gospels. Oftentimes the first reading gives us a word or an image that is reflected in the Gospel. At daily Mass, there are two readings; the first from either the old or the New Testament and the second from a Gospel. At every Mass, there is a responsorial psalm.
Ideally this is a time for us to listen to God. If you use a missal, read the passages before Mass so that they are familiar as you listen to the lector. Listen to hear a word you have not let into your mind and heart before. Listen as you would to the voice and words of someone who loves you. Be open to hearing what God is saying to you. The person doing the reading, called the lector, supposedly has spent time preparing for this important task.
Following the Gospel comes the homily, usually the effort of someone who has pondered the readings to see what they might mean in the life of the Church. That pondering is both lonely and social. The homilist has to wrestle with these scriptures and also be in touch with the life that the Church lives. The Gospel and world bang together in the homily, sometimes to the consternation of those listening. In these few minutes the homilist endeavors to enable those listening to better understand God’s will for building a finer world.
Following the homily, the celebrant leads the congregation with the profession of faith, one of the ancient creeds that summarizes the belief of the Church.
The liturgy of the Word then concludes with the prayers of the faithful. It is a litany of intercessions to which every one listening responds with the plea, “Lord hear our prayer.” After hearing and taking to heart the word of God, we pray to God for all that this world and the Church longs for. We are telling God to remember the oppressed, the suffering, the sick, the victims of injustice, the dying, the leaders, both religious and civil, and many others that come to mind. The Church is an assembly of believers that will not let God forget. We are filled with joy, knowing that the Lord has done great things for us and will continue to do so.