The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

Lesson Two

Part One
The Liturgy of the Word

Let us pray.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and kindle in the fire of your love. Send forth Your Spirit and we shall be created and you shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray.

O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit, we may be truly wise and ever rejoice in His consolations. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.

Preparing For The Mass

If we want to get the most out of the Mass we need to prepare for our participation in the Mass. We participate in the Mass by virtue of our baptismal dignity, as members of a common Priesthood. As St Paul reminds us in the letter to the Romans we are made for worship to God and to offer ourselves as a holy living sacrifice to Him. (cf. Rom 12:1) We need to prepare our heart and mind for this great event. God wants to provide us with lots of grace, but we must be open to receive it. We must be ready to join our hearts and minds to the rites, words, and songs of the gathered assembly. Additionally we need to be prepared to externally participate through actions, gestures, postures, prayers, acclamations and song. This external participation in the Mass both expresses and reinforces our internal unity with Christ and with His Church. So before we look at the Liturgy of the Word let's spend some time looking at what we can do to prepare ourselves to get the most out of this great gift God has provided for us.

Right Thinking

If we desire to gain as much grace as possible when we attend Mass we need to have a correct attitude. We can check our attitude by asking ourselves a few questions.

1. Am I going to Mass to be a spectator or to participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass?

2. Am I going out of duty or out of love for God?

3. Do I believe that Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly and entirely present in the Mass?

If you go as a spectator you will be more concerned with what others are doing then fully participating. You will be concerned with what others are wearing or doing, with the priest; is he doing things correctly, or the way I think he should be doing them. What others are doing, or what the priest is doing should not concern us. The only exception to this would be if the priest was doing something that made the mass illicit.
We need to keep in mind that we are at Mass to give:

     Thanksgiving and praise to the Father;

     To participate in the sacrificial memorial of Christ and his Body;

     To be in the presence of Christ by the power of His word and of His Spirit.

If you go out of duty rather than love of God what happens? You not only become a spectator but you become concerned with how soon you can leave, what you are missing at home, or all the other things you could be doing. If you are presently only attending Mass out of duty, then it is my prayer that this course and the course on prayer will help you grow in love of God and that you start to increase your time in prayer and attendance at Mass out of love of God.

If you do not believe that Christ is truly present in the Eucharist then you probably do not understand much of what is going on in the Mass. Pray for faith to help you believe, and study things that will help you intellectually understand the theology of the Eucharist. Later lessons will give you a start.

Right Desires

Sometimes, even though we love God and want to participate in the Mass, we show up with desires that we believe have nothing to do with God. When we do this we spend our time thinking about the treasure, person or activity we brought with us. We spend very little time focused on the Mass. To get our heart right we need to come to the realization that at the very center of our heart is our desire for communion with God. Because of our fallen nature it is hard for us to reach the point where this primary desire of ours is at the top of our list rather than the bottom.

All of our other desires will start to fall into place as our love for God increases. Then when we bring our desires with us to Mass we will recognize how they fit into our life and what God has to say to us about these desires.

To aid in getting our heart and mind prepared for Mass we can start the night before by praying and asking for grace to help us, then after entering the church we can pray to God asking for His help and letting Him know our intentions. Further we can ask Mary, our mother, to pray for us and prepare us to be united with her Son.

Increase Your Understanding

1.What does our external participation express?
2.What should our attitude be when we go to Mass?
3.Why are we attending Mass?
4.When should we start to prepare ourselves for attending Mass?
5.What desires, people, or things are keeping you from putting God first in your life?

Introductory Rites

The Introductory Rites precede the Liturgy of the Word. They are:
         Entrance
         Greeting
         Act of Penitence
         Kyrie
         Gloria
         Collect.

The purpose of these rites is:

     to help us come together as one,

     to dispose ourselves to listen properly to God's word and,

     to worthily celebrate the Eucharist.

The Entrance

The Entrance consists of the procession and the Entrance Chant. The procession consists of those that have an official ministry to perform. Normally the procession will be led by a cross bearer holding high the crucifix followed by two alter servers holding candles on either side. Next will come a deacon or lector carrying the Book of the Gospels overhead. Last comes the presider of the liturgy. Since the purpose of the procession is to allow the presider of the liturgy and the other ministers to enter the church in an orderly fashion the number of participants may vary. At a minimum the procession consists of the presider alone. At other times the procession may be led by a server bearing incense. If there are concelebrants they will also be part of the procession.

During the entrance procession the Entrance Chant is sung. The singing at this time can be done:

1. alternately by the choir and the people,
2. alternately by the cantor and the people,
3. entirely by the people,
4. by the choir alone.

Regardless we should participate in the singing either as an active listener when the choir sings alone or by actively participating in the other three cases. Remember the Mass is a communal prayer and that means we need to always be an active participant.

If there is no singing, which occurs regularly on weekdays, then an antiphon is recited.

The Greeting

When the procession reaches the sanctuary, the priest, the deacon(s) and the ministers reverence the altar with a profound bow. The priest and deacon then venerate the altar with a kiss.

When the entrance chant is concluded the priest stands at the chair and with the congregation makes the sign of the cross.

The priest facing the people says:

In the name of the father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19)

The faithful respond:

Amen

Then the priest offers one of the following greeting, which signifies the presence of the Lord to the faithful gathered for the mass.

1.The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

2.The grace and peace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

3.The Lord be with you.

The faithful respond:

And also with you.

You may have noticed that following most of the words said by the priest and/or the faithful I have indicated bible verses. This is to help you realize that almost all of the Mass consists of words given us by God, not words of man.

After the greeting the priest, deacon, or lay minister may introduce the Mass of the day.

The Act of Penitence

At this point we come to a section of the Mass which can be celebrated in several ways. They all have two things in common. The penitential rite usually starts with the priest calling us to prepare to celebrate the "sacred mysteries.” The “sacred mysteries”, of course, refer to the mass.

The act of penitence is the time for us to call to mind our sins and ask God for forgiveness. These days we do not like to think of sin. We prefer to think of God's love and mercy. This is good but we also need to have an awareness of the effect sin has on our ability to grow in God's love and how much we need His mercy because of our sin. St Gertrude prayed “My Lord amongst the remarkable wonders thou dost work, I consider especially great the fact that this earth supports me, a miserable sinner that I am.” St Teresa of Avila, the great teacher of prayer and of the interior life, said of souls favored by God with special graces said “the more they receive from our God, the greater grows their sorrow for sin.” If these saints considered themselves sinners and in need of God's mercy most of us certainly need to recognize our sin and ask for His mercy.

The second thing they have in common is that at the end of the Penitential Act the priest prays a prayer of absolution. This is a general prayer of absolution and does not have the power to forgive mortal sins.

During Easter time instead of the Penitential Act the priest may from time to time on Sundays substitute giving a blessing and sprinkling holy water as a reminder of our Baptism.

Penitential Act - Option One

The priest then invites the people to recall their sins and to repent of them in silence using the following or similar words.

My brothers and sisters, to prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries, let us call to mind our sins.

A pause for silent reflection follows. Then the congregation says:

I confess to almighty God, and to you, my brothers and sisters, (striking their breast they say) that I have sinned through my own fault in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done, and in what I have failed to do; and 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 priest then says the absolution.

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

The people answer:

Amen

In this option we call upon Mary, the angels and the saints in heaven to pray for us. When we pray this we should be reminded that when we gather to pray as a Church the group that gathers is more than just those of us in the pews. Heaven comes down to this spot and we are joined by all of its inhabitants. This includes Mary and all the angels and saints. Often we ask a friend or relative, or some group to pray for us. They may take a few minutes to pray for us, but usually not much more. When we ask those in heaven to pray for us I believe they take our request seriously. They know the power of prayer. Also note that we are asking our brothers and sisters to pray for us and they are asking us to pray for them. We need to ask God to pray for them not only at that time but on a regular basis.

Penitential Act - Option Two

The priest says:

Lord we have sinned against you: Lord have mercy.

The people then say:

Lord have mercy.

The priest says:

Lord show us your mercy and love.

The people then say:

And grant us your salvation.

The priest then says the absolution:

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

The people say:

Amen

Penitential Act - Option Three

The Priest invites the faithful to make the Penitential Act:

Brethren (brothers and sisters), let us acknowledge our sins,
that we may prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries.

There follows a brief pause for silence.

The Priest, or a deacon or another minister, then says the following or other invocations
with Kyrie, eleison (Lord, have mercy):

You were sent to heal the contrite of heart: (Ps 147:3 and Is 61:1)
Lord, have mercy. Or: Kyrie, eleison.

The people reply:

Lord, have mercy. Or: Kyrie, eleison.

The Priest:

You came to call sinners:11
Christ, have mercy. Or: Christe, eleison.

The people:

Christ, have mercy. Or: Christe, eleison.

The Priest:

You are seated at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us:
Lord, have mercy. Or: Kyrie, eleison.

The people:

Lord, have mercy. Or: Kyrie, eleison.

The absolution by the Priest follows:

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

The people reply:

Amen.

Option three of the Penitential Rite remains the same in the revised Order of the Mass with the exception of the absolution. The words used above are one of many versions that the priest can use when option three is said.

The Kyrie Eleison

The Kyrie (Lord, have mercy) invocations follow, unless they have just occurred
during the Penitential Act. This prayer is a prayer to Jesus asking for His mercy and His forgiveness. It can be said either in English or Greek.The priest, cantor,or choir will will alternate with the people in saying the Kyrie.

V. Lord, have mercy. R. Lord, have mercy.
V. Christ, have mercy. R. Christ, have mercy.
V. Lord, have mercy. R. Lord, have mercy.
Or:

V. Kyrie, eleison. R. Kyrie, eleison
V. Christe, eleison. R. Christe, eleison.
V. Kyrie, eleison. R. Kyrie, eleison.

Gloria in Excelsis

The Gloria, often referred to as the great doxology, is an ancient prayer that can be traced back to the second century. It is a prayer in which the church gathered together in the Holy Spirit give praise to God. The opening line comes from the gospel of Luke when the angels proclaimed the birth of Jesus. The following lines echo the angels praises of God's power.

The Gloria is said or sung on Sundays outside the seasons of Advent and Lent, on solemnities and feasts, and at special celebrations of a more solemn character. We do not sing or say the Gloria during Advent. By omitting it during advent it gives us reason to stop and think about what is missing. Christ is missing. During Advent we are awaiting the coming of the Lord. We are put back in time to when the people were still awaiting the coming of the Christ.

During Lent the absence of the Gloria reminds us that Christ has come and lets us meditate on what God has done for us in sending His only begotten Son to suffer and die for our sins.

Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to His people on earth.
Lord God heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory,
Lord Jesus Christ,
only son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,
with the holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the father.
Amen

Collect

When this hymn is concluded, the Priest, with hands joined, says:

Let us pray.

Then all pray in silence with the Priest for a moment. This is a time to ask God to help us in all our needs, or to ask Him to help those around us that are in need. We are asking these things together as the Body of Christ.

Then the Priest, with hands extended, says the Collect prayer. This is called the opening prayer. It is not the first prayer that has been said, but it takes all of the prayers that we have said thus far and formally presents them to the father. The Priest offers this prayer in the person of Christ. So God hears His Son asking.

The prayer differs at every Mass, but you will notice that it essentially consists of four elements.

1.The calling upon God.
2.The recalling of some deed God has done.
3.A request.
4.The prayer is concluded through the mediation of God the Son.

At the conclusion of the Collect the people say

Amen

Throughout the Mass the participants respond with “Amen.” This is an important part of our participations in the Mass. It is our seal of approval. It is our way of agreeing with the prayer of the presider, and that it is our prayer also. The literal meaning of the word “Amen” is “so be it.” When we say “Amen” we are saying we accept God's will be done. We should not take our saying “Amen” lightly. Remember when you say “Amen” you are not just saying the word because everybody else is, but because you are expressing a desire for God's will to be fulfilled.

With the “Amen” the Introductory Rites are completed and we are ready to move to the Liturgy of the Word.

Increase your understanding.

1.What is the purpose of the Introductory Rites?
2.What are the six Introductory Rites?
3.Which of these are usually not included as part of week day Masses?
4.What two things are common to all of the variations of the Penitential Rites.
5.During the Easter season the Penitential Rite is sometime replaced by the Priest sprinkling the congregation with Holy Water. What does this sprinkling represent?
6.Does the absolution the Priest gives at the end of the Penitential Rite absolve us of our Moral sins?
7.During Lent and Advent the Gloria is omitted. What should this remind us of?
8.What is the purpose of the silence after the Priest says “Let us Pray” at the start of the Collect?
9.When we acclaim “Amen” what are we saying?