Catholic Mass For Dummies

John Trigilio, Kenneth Brighenti, James Cafone

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2011
• ISBN:
  9781118036679
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Denominations

An unintimidating guide to understanding the Catholic Mass

Throughout the centuries, the liturgy of the Church has taken a variety of regional and historical forms, but one thing has remained constant: the Mass has always been the central form of Catholic worship.

Catholic Mass For Dummies gives you a step-by-step overview of the Catholic Mass, as well as a close look at the history and meaning of the Mass as a central form of Catholic worship. You'll find information on the order of a Mass and coverage of major Masses.

• Covers standard Sunday Mass, weddings, funerals, holiday services, and holy days of obligation
• Provides insight on the events, symbols, themes, history, and language of the Mass
• Translations of a Mass in Castilian and Latin American Spanish

If you're a Catholic looking to enhance your knowledge of your faith, an adult studying to convert to Catholicism, a CCD instructor, or a non-Catholic who wants to understand the many nuances of the Catholic Mass, this hands-on, friendly guide has you covered.

Part I

The Lord Be with You: Welcome to Mass

In this part . . .

We discuss the origin and foundations of the Mass, from Jewish roots found in the Passover Seder meal to the rituals in the Temple of Jerusalem, culminating in the Last Supper of Jesus with his 12 Apostles in the upper room.

Chapter 1

Understanding the Mass

In This Chapter

Understanding the basic meaning of the Mass

Getting to know the different forms of the Mass around the world

Chronicling the changes to the Mass

Participating in the Mass

What Catholic Christians believe and how they worship are integrally connected. Those beliefs are efficiently expressed in the worship service known as the Holy Mass, also sometimes called Divine Liturgy and Sacred Worship. In this chapter we look at how the keystone of Catholic doctrine is celebrated in Mass around the world.

Introducing the Catholic Mass

Catholicism is a Christian religion. It professes the belief that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, and therefore we are to worship him with the same adoration given to God.

With its roots in Judaism, Catholicism shares many steadfast beliefs and traditions with that religion; most prominently, the belief in one God (monotheism) and the use of sacred texts divinely inspired by God. Both faiths perform certain rituals, such as praying, giving blessings, reading the texts from God, and offering some sort of sacrificial offering. In ancient times an animal was sacrificed as a symbolic rite for the purification of sins.

Christian worship, and Catholic Mass in particular, is rooted in both word and ritual. Its followers consider Mass to be the ritual reenactment of the Last Supper and the unbloody reenactment of the Sacrifice of Calvary when Jesus died on the cross.

The Mass is the heart and soul of Catholic worship and belief. It is rooted in the Bible, and this sacred text is read aloud during Mass. The Church has foundations in both parts of the Bible, the Old Testament (the Hebrew Scriptures) and the New Testament. Both testaments show the enormous value of ritual sacrifice as signs of covenant. The Old Testament is the covenant between God and his Chosen People, the Jews; the New Testament is the covenant between God and the whole human race, which is at the core of Catholicism.

The Hebrew word for covenant is berit, in Greek it is diatheke, and in Latin it is testamentum. All three biblical and ancient translations refer to a sacred oath and agreement, much more permanent, personal, and profound than a mere legal contract. Covenants are not temporary and cannot be dissolved. Covenants can be broken insofar as one party may neglect to fulfill its obligations, but even that neglect doesn’t destroy the relationship it created. Catholicism believes in and celebrates in Mass the covenant between God and his faithful followers.

Honoring God every week on a special day is very important to Catholics. Jews have observed the Sabbath day, Saturday, since the time of Moses and the giving of the Ten Commandments, but Christians worship on Sundays. The Church didn’t change the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, as some people claim; rather, it considers itself bound by the New Law of the New Testament, not the Old Law of the Old Testament, so the day of worship became the day of Resurrection, which was Sunday.

Christian Churches, including the Catholic Church, remember the Last Supper on Holy Thursday when Jesus celebrated the Passover (the annual Jewish sacred feast) with his Apostles. Bread and wine are used during the Mass, and the words Christ spoke at that event are repeated by the ordained priest: “this is my body” (over the bread) and “this is my blood” (over the wine).

What Mass Means to Catholics

Latin, or Western, Catholics are familiar with the word Mass, from the Latin word missa, which is said by the priest or deacon at the end of the liturgy. Ite missa est has been inaccurately translated over the years as “Go, the Mass is ended.” Literally, however, it should read “Go, [the congregation] is sent.” In other words, the command is to go, because the people are now sent (missa est) into the world.

These last words of the Mass, missa est, were used to describe the entire sacred liturgy that is the heart and soul of Catholic divine worship. Why the last and not the first words? Well, every Catholic prayer and sacrament begins with the same words: in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Each sacrament and prayer have different endings. Latin is also a language where the verb and/or the most important word of the sentence appears at the end and not the beginning.

A Communion service is not the same as a Mass. Only a priest or bishop can celebrate Mass, but any deacon or designated layperson (called an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion) may preside at the distribution of Holy Communion outside Mass. A Communion service has Scripture readings, meditation, prayers, the Our Father (Lord’s Prayer), and concludes with Holy Communion. These services are common in places where no priest is available for weekly Mass but the faithful are in need of the sacraments.

Holy Mass, on the other hand, is more than the giving of Holy Communion. It is foremost a sacrifice (of Jesus to his heavenly Father) and then a sacrament (a source of divine grace) and sacred banquet (spiritual food for the soul). The Sacred Liturgy is the worship of God, so the focus is on the Lord and not on mankind.

In Catholicism, Holy Communion (also called the Holy Eucharist) is not only believed to be the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ, but also the intimate union of God and believer. Simultaneously, it is also the union of all the members who partake of the same Body and Blood of Christ. The analogy used by St. Paul is that the Church is like a human body with many parts but is one whole, unified being. Each part is distinct but connected to the whole.

People often refer to the Mass using other terms. Here are a few examples:

Breaking of Bread: The breaking of bread is the first reference to the unique form of Christian worship rooted in the Last Supper, commemorating the moment Jesus took the loaf of bread, broke it into pieces, and handed it to the apostles.

Liturgy: Celebrating the liturgy, a phrase common in Apostolic times, is what Latin or Western Catholics call the Holy Mass. Liturgy is a public service or ministry, and the Divine Liturgy was the public worship of God. Catholicism used the term liturgy to refer to the Mass and the other sacraments as well as the Divine Office or Breviary (also known as t...