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The Mass Series · Part One

The Mass of the Catechumens

Sacred instruction in the Word of God, in both forms of the Roman Rite. The 1962 Mass of the Catechumens and the Introductory Rites and Liturgy of the Word of the Missal of Paul VI, set side by side and read through one feast: the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Serious study: about 30–40 minutes · GIRM 46–72, 175–177 · Roman Missal, The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus · Missale Romanum (1962), Sacratissimi Cordis Jesu · ST I, q. 1 · CCC 1345–1349

Before the Church offers the Sacrifice, she listens. Every Mass, in either form of the Roman Rite, opens with a school of the Word. God speaks, the people hear, and the soul is disposed to offer and to receive. The older books call this first half the Mass of the Catechumens, because in the ancient Church those preparing for Baptism stayed for it and were then dismissed. The Missal of Paul VI calls the corresponding parts the Introductory Rites and the Liturgy of the Word. The names differ, the ceremonies differ, and the arrangement of readings differs, but the purpose is the same. Christ the Teacher instructs His Bride before Christ the Priest offers Himself through her hands. This lesson walks through both forms, part by part, on the same day: the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. On that day the Gospel of the pierced side (Jn 19:31–37) can be heard in both missals. We are not here to rank the two forms. We are here to learn from each how the Word prepares the heart for the Heart that was opened for us.

1. What the “Mass of the Catechumens” is

The Mass of the Catechumens is the instructional and preparatory half of the Mass. It contains prayer for purification, praise, the collect, the proclamation of Scripture, preaching, and the profession of faith. Historically, catechumens (adults preparing for Baptism) took part in it. After the Word they were dismissed, and only the baptized remained for the Missa Fidelium, the Mass of the Faithful. That dismissal was bound up with the disciplina arcani, the “discipline of the secret,” which kept the Eucharistic mysteries for the initiated.

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) describes the same reality from inside the reformed rite. It deserves to be heard in its own words:

“The main part of the Liturgy of the Word is made up of the readings from Sacred Scripture together with the chants occurring between them. The homily, Profession of Faith, and Prayer of the Faithful, however, develop and conclude this part of the Mass. For in the readings, as explained by the homily, God speaks to his people, opening up to them the mystery of redemption and salvation, and offering them spiritual nourishment; and Christ himself is present in the midst of the faithful through his word.” — GIRM 55

Here the two forms agree. God speaks; Christ is present through His word; the people make that word their own and answer it in faith.

Thomistic foundation — why the Word comes first

St. Thomas teaches that it was necessary for man’s salvation that certain truths exceeding human reason be made known to him by divine revelation (ST I, q. 1, a. 1). The Mass of the Catechumens serves that revelation liturgically. The intellect must be informed by revealed truth so that the will may be moved to love and to offer. Grace does not destroy nature but perfects it (ST I, q. 1, a. 8, ad 2). The rite therefore does not bypass our rational nature; it teaches it. Hearing comes before offering, as faith comes before charity in the order of generation, though charity is the form of the virtues.

2. Why the Sacred Heart serves both forms

Most days on the two calendars do not line up, and the reformed Lectionary spreads its readings over a three-year Sunday cycle and a two-year weekday cycle. The Sacred Heart is an unusually clear meeting point:

• Same day. The Roman Missal places the solemnity on the “Friday after the Second Sunday after Pentecost.” The 1962 hand missal heads the feast “Third Friday after Pentecost” (p. 763) and ranks it 1 Cl. in white vestments. Both reckonings name the same Friday. Counting the Fridays from Pentecost Sunday, it is the third. Counting by Sundays, it is the Friday after the Second Sunday after Pentecost, which in the older calendar was the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi. The hand missal’s introduction connects the feast to Our Lord’s revelations to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque “during the Octave of Corpus Christi” (p. 763).
• Same entrance text. The 1962 Introit Cogitationes Cordis ejus and the Paul VI Entrance Antiphon are the same verse of Psalm 33 (32), verses 11 and 19.
• Same collect, in one option. The second collect in the Paul VI Missal is a translation of the 1962 collect.
• Same Scripture in Year B. In Year B of the reformed Lectionary (2027 is next), the second reading is Eph 3:8–12, 14–19, the same passage as the 1962 Epistle, and the Gospel is Jn 19:31–37, the 1962 Gospel (Missal pp. 1717–1719).
• Related prayer over the offerings and Communion antiphon. The Paul VI Prayer over the Offerings closely follows the 1962 Secret, and the 1962 Communion verse (Jn 19:34) is the second Communion antiphon of the reformed Missal. Both belong to the Mass of the Faithful and are noted here only to show the continuity.

Because the feast is shared, the comparison below is a fair one. The two forms are not reading different Bibles on different days. They are the same Church praying the same mystery with two ordered patterns.

3. The parts in order — side by side

Read across each row. Where one form has a part the other lacks, the empty side says so in italics. On a phone the two columns stack, and each cell is labeled.

1962 Missal · Mass of the Catechumens

Missal of Paul VI · Introductory Rites & Liturgy of the Word

I. Approach and entrance

Prayers at the Foot of the Altar. Sign of the Cross; Psalm 42 Judica me; Confiteor of priest, then servers; absolution; the priest ascends with Aufer a nobis and kisses the altar (Oramus te).

Entrance. Entrance chant or Entrance Antiphon; the priest venerates the altar with a kiss (and may incense it); Sign of the Cross and Greeting. These belong to the Introductory Rites, not yet to the Liturgy of the Word.

Introit — Cogitationes Cordis ejus… (Ps 32:11, 19 Vulg.), verse Ps 32:1, Gloria Patri, antiphon repeated. Read by the priest at the Epistle side even when sung.

Entrance Antiphon — “The designs of his Heart are from age to age, to rescue their souls from death, and to keep them alive in famine.” (Ps 33 (32):11, 19). The same antiphon as the 1962 Introit.

(No separate act here; the penitential preparation was already made at the foot of the altar.)

Penitential Act (or, on Sundays, the optional sprinkling rite), concluded by the priest’s absolution (a prayer for pardon, not the Sacrament of Penance).

Kyrie — nine-fold, alternating, in Greek.

Kyrie — ordinarily each acclamation sung or said twice (GIRM 52; may be more, by the nature of the language, the music, or circumstances); omitted if already included in a form of the Penitential Act.

Gloria in excelsis — said (first-class feast).

Gloria — Missal: “The Gloria in excelsis (Glory to God in the highest) is said.”

Collect — Deus, qui nobis in Corde Filii tui, nostris vulnerato peccatis… (text below).

Collect — two options in the Missal; the second is a translation of the 1962 collect (text below). “There is always only one collect used in a Mass” (GIRM 54).

II. The Word proclaimed

(No Old Testament lesson on this feast.)

First Reading — Old Testament, by year: A Dt 7:6–11 · B Hos 11:1, 3–4, 8c–9 · C Ez 34:11–16 (Missal pp. 1715–1721). Read from the ambo by a lector (GIRM 58–59). Brief silence may follow (GIRM 56).

Gradual — Dulcis et rectus Dominus… (Ps 24:8–9 Vulg.).

Responsorial Psalm — A Ps 103 · B Is 12 (“You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation”) · C Ps 23. “An integral part of the Liturgy of the Word” (GIRM 61), preferably sung, from the ambo or another suitable place.

Epistle — Eph 3:8–12, 14–19 (“…to know also the charity of Christ which surpasseth all knowledge…”, hand missal p. 765). Chanted or read at the Epistle side.

Second Reading — A 1 Jn 4:7–16 · B Eph 3:8–12, 14–19, the same passage as the 1962 Epistle · C Rom 5:5b–11.

Alleluia — Tollite jugum meum super vos… (Mt 11:29) — “Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, because I am meek and humble of Heart” (hand missal p. 765)

Alleluia / Acclamation before the Gospel — Mt 11:29ab in every year (“Take my yoke upon you, says the Lord; and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart”), or, as a second option, 1 Jn 4:10b (B) or Jn 10:14 (C). “A rite or act in itself” by which the assembly “welcomes and greets the Lord who is about to speak to it” (GIRM 62). Sung by all, standing.

Munda cor meum — the priest (or, at Solemn Mass, the deacon, after blessing) prays at the middle of the altar for cleansing of heart and lips.

Preparation of the Gospel — the priest prays quietly for a pure heart; a deacon asks the blessing: Iube, domne, benedicere and receives: Dominus sit in corde tuo (GIRM 175).

Gospel — Jn 19:31–37, the piercing of the side. At the Gospel side (north); at Solemn Mass, sung by the deacon with lights and incense.

Gospel — A Mt 11:25–30 · B Jn 19:31–37, the same Gospel as 1962 · C Lk 15:3–7; proclaimed from the ambo by deacon or priest, with lights and incense where used (GIRM 59–60, 175).

III. The Word expounded and answered

Sermon — customarily preached after the Gospel; it stands outside the printed Ordo, yet the Church has long required pastors to preach on Sundays and feasts.

Homily — “part of the Liturgy” (GIRM 65); required on Sundays and holy days of obligation at all Masses with a congregation (GIRM 66). Silence may follow (GIRM 66, 56).

Credo — said on this feast (Nicene-Constantinopolitan, kneeling at Et incarnatus est).

Profession of Faith — Missal: “The Creed is said.” Sung or said on Sundays and solemnities (GIRM 68); all bow at the words of the Incarnation.

(No Prayer of the Faithful in this form. After the Creed the priest greets the people, says Oremus, and the Offertory begins: the “Mass of the Faithful.”)

Universal Prayer (Prayer of the Faithful) — directed by the priest from the chair; intentions announced from the ambo by deacon, cantor, lector, or one of the lay faithful (GIRM 69–71, 177). Then the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Paul VI column: Roman Missal, The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Solemnity), pp. 502–504, and Votive Mass of the Most Sacred Heart, pp. 2161–2163 (hand-missal edition); GIRM 52, 54–72, 175–177 (section numbers 46–53 cited for structure only). 1962 column: user’s 1962 hand missal, pp. 763–768, 882.

Where the boundary falls

The two forms divide the first half of Mass differently, and the comparison only works once you see this. In the 1962 Missal the “Mass of the Catechumens” runs from the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar through the Creed. In the Missal of Paul VI, the Entrance, Greeting, Penitential Act, Kyrie, Gloria, and Collect make up the Introductory Rites. The Liturgy of the Word proper begins with the first reading and ends with the Prayer of the Faithful. So the true counterpart of the old Mass of the Catechumens is Introductory Rites + Liturgy of the Word together. That is why the table includes both.

4. The Sacred Heart propers, text by text

Entrance: the designs of His Heart

1962 Introit (Ps 32:11, 19; v. Ps 32:1)

Cogitatiónes Cordis ejus in generatióne et generatiónem: ut éruat a morte ánimas eórum et alat eos in fame. ℣. Exsultáte, justi, in Dómino: rectos decet collaudátio.

“The thoughts of His Heart are from generation to generation: To deliver their souls from death, and feed them in famine. Ps. ibid. 1. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye just: praise becometh the upright. Glory be to the Father … —The thoughts …”

English: user’s 1962 hand missal, p. 764. Latin: same page (as also in Divinum Officium).

Paul VI Entrance Antiphon (Ps 33 (32):11, 19)

Cogitatiónes Cordis eius in generatióne et generatiónem, ut éruat a morte ánimas eórum et alat eos in fame.

“The designs of his Heart are from age to age, to rescue their souls from death, and to keep them alive in famine.”

Roman Missal p. 502 (English); Latin as printed on p. 2161.

The word cogitationes, “thoughts” or “designs,” teaches that the Heart of Christ is not mere sentiment. It is the seat of the eternal counsel of salvation, made flesh. Thomas teaches that the Word expresses both the Father and every creature the Father makes (cf. ST I, q. 34, a. 3). In the Incarnate Word that eternal plan has a human heart. “To deliver them from death” names the end of the Passion, and “to preserve them in famine” points ahead to the Eucharist.

Collect: one prayer, two translations

1962 Collect

Deus, qui nobis in Corde Fílii tui, nostris vulneráto peccátis, infinítos dilectiónis thesáuros misericórditer largíri dignáris: concéde, quǽsumus; ut, illi devótum pietátis nostræ præstántes obséquium, dignæ quoque satisfactiónis exhibeámus offícium.

“O God, who in the Heart of Thy Son, wounded by our sins, dost mercifully bestow on us infinite treasures of love: grant, we beseech Thee, that whilst we render It the devout homage of our affection, we may also fulfil our duty of worthy satisfaction. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son …”

User’s 1962 hand missal, p. 764.

Paul VI Collect (second option)

“O God, who in the Heart of your Son, wounded by our sins, bestow on us in mercy the boundless treasures of your love, grant, we pray, that, in paying him the homage of our devotion, we may also offer worthy reparation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.”

Roman Missal p. 502.

The first option in the reformed Missal is newer and gives a complementary emphasis: “Grant, we pray, almighty God, that we, who glory in the Heart of your beloved Son and recall the wonders of his love for us, may be made worthy to receive an overflowing measure of grace from that fount of heavenly gifts” (Roman Missal p. 502). The first option speaks of grace received from a fount; the second, shared with 1962, speaks of reparation offered to a Heart wounded by our sins. Taken together they make one Thomistic whole. Charity both receives the gift and makes return to the Giver, and satisfaction offered in Christ is itself a fruit of grace (cf. ST III, q. 48, a. 2). The votive Mass (p. 2161) has a third collect: “Clothe us, Lord God, with the virtues of the Heart of your Son and set us aflame with his love, that, conformed to his image, we may merit a share in eternal redemption.”

Readings: one Epistle and Gospel, many options

1962. One fixed set every year (user’s 1962 hand missal, pp. 764–767):

The 1962 propers of the Sacred Heart (1 Cl., white)

• Epistle, Eph 3:8–12, 14–19 (p. 764 f.): “…that, being rooted and grounded in charity, you may be able to comprehend with all the Saints, what is the breadth and length, and height and depth; to know also the charity of Christ which surpasseth all knowledge, that you may be filled unto all the fullness of God.”
• Gradual, Ps 24:8–9 (p. 765): “The Lord is sweet and righteous: therefore He will give a law to sinners in the way. He will guide the mild in judgment: He will teach the meek His ways.”
• Alleluia, Mt 11:29 (p. 765): “Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, because I am meek and humble of Heart: and you shall find rest to your souls. Alleluia.”
• Tract, Ps 102:8–10, used “in Votive Masses from Septuagesima to Easter” in place of the Alleluia (p. 765): “The Lord is merciful and compassionate: long-suffering and plenteous in mercy…”
• In Eastertide, instead of the Gradual and Tract (p. 766): Alleluia, alleluia, Mt 11:29, then (Ibid. 28) “Come to Me, all you that labour and are burdened, and I will refresh you. Alleluia.”
• Gospel, Jn 19:31–37 (p. 766): “But one of the soldiers with a spear opened His side, and immediately there came out blood and water.” —Creed.
• Mass of the Faithful, for continuity: Offertory, Ps 68:21, “My Heart hath expected reproach and misery: and I looked for one that would grieve together with Me, but there was none…” (in Eastertide votive Masses, Ps 39:7–9); Secret, “Have regard, we beseech Thee, O Lord, to the inexpressible love of the Heart of Thy beloved Son…”; Preface of the Sacred Heart, p. 882; Communion, Jn 19:34 (p. 767; in Eastertide votive Masses, “If any man thirst, let him come to Me and drink, alleluia, alleluia”); Postcommunion, “May Thy holy Mysteries, O Lord Jesus, impart to us divine fervour…” (p. 768).

In the Dominican Rite

The Order of Preachers kept its own rite. Its Mass of the Sacred Heart shares the Roman Postcommunion, Præbeant nobis, Domine Jesu, divinum tua sancta fervorem, but differs elsewhere:

• Gospel: John 15, not John 19. Sicut dilexit me Pater, et ego dilexi vos. (Our gloss: “As the Father hath loved me, I also have loved you.”) The Alleluia is Mt 11, Discite a me, quia mitis sum, et humilis corde.
• Other chants: the Offertory comes from 1 Paralipomenon (Chronicles) 29, and the Communion from Ps 33, Gustate, et videte quoniam suavis est Dominus (our gloss: “Taste and see that the Lord is sweet”). The Secret asks that the Holy Spirit set us on fire: Illo nos igne, quæsumus Domine, Spiritus Sanctus inflammet…
• An octave, with the Nativity preface: Præfatio de Nativitate Domini dicitur per totam Octavam (our gloss: “The Preface of the Nativity of the Lord is said through the whole Octave”). The Heart is honored through the mystery of the Incarnation.
• Sunday within the Octave: Introit Ps 24, Respice in me, et miserere mei Domine (our gloss: “Look upon me, and have mercy on me, O Lord”); Collect Protector in te sperantium Deus; Epistle 1 Pet 5; Gospel Lk 15, the lost sheep and the lost drachma. That is the parable the Paul VI Lectionary reads in Year C (Lk 15:3–7).

Dominican Altar Missal (reprint), pp. 264–266. The English glosses are ours, not the missal’s.

Paul VI. The solemnity has its own readings for each year of the three-year cycle (Roman Missal, Lectionary section, pp. 1715–1721). Each year opens with an excerpt from the Catechism:

Year · Lectionary no. · Missal pp.

Readings

Year A [170] · 2026, 2029, 2032 · pp. 1715–1717 · CCC 478

Dt 7:6–11 (“The Lord set his heart on you and chose you”) · Ps 103:1–2, 3–4, 8, 10, ℟ “The Lord’s kindness is everlasting to those who fear him” · 1 Jn 4:7–16 · Alleluia Mt 11:29ab · Gospel Mt 11:25–30

Year B [171] · 2027, 2030, 2033 · pp. 1717–1719 · CCC 766

Hos 11:1, 3–4, 8c–9 · Is 12, ℟ “You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation” · Eph 3:8–12, 14–19 · Alleluia Mt 11:29ab or 1 Jn 4:10b · Gospel Jn 19:31–37

Year C [172] · 2028, 2031, 2034 · pp. 1719–1721 · CCC 2669

Ez 34:11–16 (“I myself will pasture my sheep”) · Ps 23, ℟ “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want” · Rom 5:5b–11 · Alleluia Mt 11:29ab or Jn 10:14 · Gospel Lk 15:3–7

The match with 1962 is exact in Year B. The Paul VI second reading, Eph 3:8–12, 14–19, is the same passage as the 1962 Epistle, and the Year B Gospel, Jn 19:31–37, is the 1962 Gospel. In those years both forms proclaim the same Epistle and Gospel on the same Friday. The reformed Lectionary adds a prophecy and a psalm in front of them. (This year, 2026, was Year A.)

For a votive Mass of the Sacred Heart, the Missal (p. 2163) offers a wider list, given here by citation only. Old Testament: Ex 34:4–6, 8–9 · Dt 7:6–11 · Dt 10:12–22 · Is 49:13–15 · Jer 31:1–4 · Ez 34:11–16 · Hos 11:1, 3–4, 8c–9; in Easter Time, Rev 3:14b, 20–22 or Rev 5:6–12. Psalms: Is 12 · Ps 23 · Ps 25 · Ps 33 · Ps 34 · Ps 103. New Testament: Rom 5:5–11 · Eph 1:3–10 · Eph 3:8–12 · Eph 3:14–19 · Phil 1:8–11 · 1 Jn 4:7–16. Alleluia: cf. Mt 11:25 · Mt 11:28 · Mt 11:29ab · Jn 10:14 · 1 Jn 4:10b · Jn 15:9. Gospels: Mt 11:25–30 · Lk 15:1–10 · Lk 15:1–3, 11–32 · Jn 10:11–18 · Jn 15:1–8 · Jn 15:9–17 · Jn 17:20–26 · Jn 19:31–37.

Both arrangements work typologically. In 1962, the Epistle and the Gospel stand in the direct relation of doctrine and event. Paul prays that we may know the love of Christ “which surpasses knowledge,” and John shows that love poured out from the opened side. In Year B the reformed rite lets the prophet speak first. Through Hosea the Lord says, “I drew them with human cords, with bands of love,” and “My heart is overwhelmed, my pity is stirred” (Hos 11:4, 8, Missal p. 1717). The heart of God revealed in prophecy becomes, in the Gospel, a human Heart pierced: “one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out” (Jn 19:34, Missal p. 1719). The Gospel itself then cites the Old Testament twice: “Not a bone of it will be broken” and “They will look upon him whom they have pierced” (Jn 19:36–37, Missal p. 1719).

The Preface, which looks ahead to the Mass of the Faithful

The Preface belongs to the Eucharistic Prayer, not to the first half of Mass. Still, it is the clearest sign that the Word heard in the Gospel is the Mystery about to be offered. Both prefaces take up Jn 19:34:

1962 Preface of the Sacred Heart (excerpt)

“…Whose will it was that Thine only-begotten Son, while hanging on the Cross, should be pierced by the soldier’s lance: that the Heart thus opened should, as from a well of divine bounty, pour over us streams of mercy and of grace: and that the Heart which never ceased to burn with love for us, should be for the devout a haven of rest and for the penitent an open refuge of salvation.”

User’s 1962 hand missal, p. 882 (Latin facing: ut apértum Cor, divínæ largitátis sacrárium…).

Paul VI Preface: The boundless charity of Christ (excerpt)

“For raised up high on the Cross, he gave himself up for us with a wonderful love and poured out blood and water from his pierced side, the wellspring of the Church’s Sacraments, so that, won over to the open heart of the Savior, all might draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.”

Roman Missal p. 504.

5. What the GIRM asks of the Liturgy of the Word

The Paul VI column is not a matter of local taste. The GIRM sets out how the Liturgy of the Word is to be celebrated. Its main norms, quoted from the Instruction:

• Silence (GIRM 56). “The Liturgy of the Word is to be celebrated in such a way as to promote meditation, and so any sort of haste that hinders recollection must clearly be avoided.” Brief silences may be observed “before the Liturgy of the Word itself begins, after the first and second reading, and lastly at the conclusion of the homily.”
• The readings (GIRM 57). “In the readings, the table of God’s word is prepared for the faithful, and the riches of the Bible are opened to them.” It is “unlawful to substitute other, non-biblical texts for the readings and responsorial Psalm.”
• Ambo and ministers (GIRM 58–59). With a congregation, “the readings are always proclaimed from the ambo.” The function of proclaiming the readings “is ministerial, not presidential”: a lector reads, and a deacon or, in his absence, a priest other than the celebrant reads the Gospel.
• The Gospel (GIRM 60). “The reading of the Gospel is the high point of the Liturgy of the Word.” The liturgy marks it with “special marks of honor,” and the faithful “stand as they listen to it being read.”
• The Psalm (GIRM 61). The responsorial Psalm “is an integral part of the Liturgy of the Word and holds great liturgical and pastoral importance, because it fosters meditation on the word of God.” It “should correspond to each reading and should, as a rule, be taken from the Lectionary.”
• The acclamation (GIRM 62–63). The Alleluia “constitutes a rite or act in itself, by which the assembly of the faithful welcomes and greets the Lord who is about to speak to it in the Gospel and professes its faith by means of the chant.”
• The homily (GIRM 65–66). “The homily is part of the Liturgy and is strongly recommended, for it is necessary for the nurturing of the Christian life.” It is to be given by the priest celebrant or a deacon, “but never to a lay person.” On Sundays and holy days of obligation, “it may not be omitted without a serious reason.”
• The Creed (GIRM 67–68). Its purpose is “that the whole gathered people may respond to the word of God proclaimed in the readings taken from Sacred Scripture and explained in the homily.”
• The Prayer of the Faithful (GIRM 69–71). In it “the people respond in a certain way to the word of God which they have welcomed in faith and, exercising the office of their baptismal priesthood, offer prayers to God for the salvation of all.” The intentions are to be “sober,” “composed freely but prudently,” and “succinct,” and they “should express the prayer of the entire community.”
• The deacon (GIRM 175–177). He asks the priest’s blessing (Iube, domne, benedicere), carries the Book of the Gospels “slightly elevated,” greets the people, incenses the book, proclaims the Gospel, and kisses the book, saying privately Per evangelica dicta. If no other suitable lector is present, he reads the other readings as well, and he “normally announces the intentions of the Prayer of the Faithful, from the ambo.”

Notice how closely these norms track the instincts of the older rite. The Gospel is honored above the other readings. The chants between readings are Scripture, not filler. The homily belongs to the ordained, and the Creed answers the Word. A parish that keeps the GIRM faithfully will find more continuity with 1962 than either side sometimes expects.

6. Differences, understood charitably

Real differences remain. The aim is to understand what each one is for, not to score points.

• Penitence before the altar versus penitence in the assembly. In 1962 the priest and ministers confess at the foot of the altar before ascending it, and Psalm 42 dramatizes the going up to the altar of God. In the Paul VI Missal the Penitential Act is made by the whole assembly together, after the Greeting. The first stresses the priest’s ascent in the person of Christ. The second stresses the people’s shared need of mercy. Both are true.
• One lesson or two. On this feast 1962 has a single Epistle. The reformed Lectionary normally gives solemnities an Old Testament reading, a Psalm, and a New Testament reading. The older rite gains concentration; the newer gains breadth, and it shows the Old Testament–New Testament typology inside the rite itself.
• Gradual and Responsorial Psalm. The Gradual is a proper chant of the day, usually sung by the choir. The Responsorial Psalm invites the people to sing a refrain. GIRM 61 also allows the Psalm to be sung straight through without a response, and in the United States it allows the Gradual from the Roman Gradual in its place. The two traditions can meet in practice.
• The Prayer of the Faithful. It is absent from the 1962 Ordo but present in the Paul VI Missal (GIRM 69). It recovers an ancient prayer of the baptized and lets the Word bear fruit in intercession, which is an exercise of the baptismal priesthood.
• Language and orientation. The 1962 rite is in Latin, with the readings often repeated in the vernacular. The Paul VI rite is usually in the vernacular, though its Latin text is the typical edition. These are matters of discipline and pastoral judgment, and the same Word is proclaimed in both.

Thomistic note — one end, more than one fitting means

Thomas teaches that ceremonies are ordered to the worship of God and to the instruction and devotion of the faithful (cf. ST II-II, q. 81, a. 7; ST III, q. 83, a. 4, on the parts of the Mass). Different ordered means can be fitting to one end. The Church has the authority to arrange the rites, and the faithful have the duty to receive them with docility. In the Liturgy of the Word that end is a soul formed by revealed truth and set aflame to offer itself. Judge each form first by whether it is celebrated as its own books require.

7. Who is the Teacher?

In both forms the summit of the first half is the Gospel, because there Christ Himself speaks (GIRM 60). On this feast the Gospel shows us not first a sermon of Christ but His silence: the Lord already dead, His side opened, blood and water flowing out. The Teacher teaches most eloquently from the Cross. The Fathers saw in the blood and water the sacraments of the Church, the Eucharist and Baptism, and the reformed Preface puts it the same way: the pierced side is “the wellspring of the Church’s Sacraments.” That is why the Mass of the Catechumens leads to the Mass of the Faithful. The Word that reveals the opened Heart sends us to the altar where that Heart’s sacrifice is made present.

For the catechumen, this is the whole program of initiation in one image: hear the Word, believe, be washed in the water, and come to the Blood. For the baptized, it is a weekly examen. Have I heard the Word so that I can offer myself with Christ? See OCIA (RCIA) and the Catechumenate.

8. Taking part well, in either form

• Prepare the propers. Read the Introit or Entrance Antiphon and the Collect beforehand. On the Sacred Heart they are a short catechism in themselves.
• Keep the silences. GIRM 56 asks for them, and the low Mass of 1962 is full of them. Use them to take in the Word.
• Stand for the Gospel as for the Lord. The posture is a confession of faith (GIRM 60).
• Receive the homily as instruction. Listen for the doctrine and for the call to conversion.
• Make the Creed your own. It answers the Word just heard (GIRM 67). For the Creed itself, see The Nicene Creed.
• Pray the intentions for real in the Paul VI form, or, in the 1962 form, bring your own petitions silently to the Offertory.

Sources and verification

• Roman Missal (Missal of Paul VI, English translation): The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Solemnity, pp. 502–504 (Entrance Antiphon, both Collects, rubrics for Gloria and Creed, Prayer over the Offerings, Preface “The boundless charity of Christ,” Communion antiphons, Prayer after Communion). Transcribed from photographs of the user’s copy.
• Roman Missal, Votive Mass of the Most Sacred Heart, pp. 2161–2163 (hand-missal edition with Latin antiphons and Lectionary cross-references). Collect and reading options transcribed from photographs.
• Roman Missal, Lectionary section for the solemnity, pp. 1715–1721: Year A [170] pp. 1715–1717, Year B [171] pp. 1717–1719, Year C [172] pp. 1719–1721, each headed by a CCC excerpt (478, 766, 2669). Citations and short excerpts transcribed from photographs; p. 1722 confirms the shared propers.
• General Instruction of the Roman Missal, §§54–72 and §§175–177 (U.S. edition text as printed in the user’s copy). Quotations transcribed from photographs. §§46–53 are referred to by structure only, without quotation.
• 1962 propers and Preface: the user’s 1962 hand missal, “Third Friday after Pentecost — Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” 1 Cl., white, pp. 763–768; Preface for the Feast of the Sacred Heart, p. 882. English transcribed from photographs; the publisher is not visible on the pages photographed. The Latin was cross-checked against the Divinum Officium source files (github.com/DivinumOfficium), which serve as a secondary source only.
• Dominican Rite: Dominican Altar Missal (reprint), pp. 264–266.
• ST references: Summa Theologiae I, q. 1, aa. 1, 8; I, q. 34, a. 3; II-II, q. 81, a. 7; III, q. 48, a. 2; III, q. 83, a. 4 (cited, not quoted).

Study Questions

1. The 1962 “Mass of the Catechumens” runs through the Creed. The Paul VI “Liturgy of the Word” begins only with the first reading. Map the parts of each onto the other, and explain why the true counterpart of the old Mass of the Catechumens is the Introductory Rites and the Liturgy of the Word together.
2. GIRM 55 says that in the readings “Christ himself is present in the midst of the faithful through his word.” How does this mode of presence differ from His substantial presence in the Eucharist, and why does the first rightly lead to the second?
3. Compare the 1962 Collect with the second Paul VI Collect phrase by phrase. What does “wounded by our sins” teach about the cause of the Passion? How can reparation be offered to a Heart now glorified (cf. ST III, q. 48, a. 2)?
4. The first Paul VI Collect speaks of grace received from a “fount”; the shared Collect speaks of reparation offered. Using the order of grace and charity, show why these two are not rival spiritualities.
5. The Prayers at the Foot of the Altar are made by priest and ministers; the Penitential Act is made by the whole assembly. What truth does each stress? What would be lost if either form forgot what the other emphasizes?
6. The Gradual and the Responsorial Psalm differ in who sings and how. Using GIRM 61, explain what both are for, and what liturgical practice would honor that purpose in either form.
7. On the Sacred Heart in Year B (Missal pp. 1717–1719), the Paul VI Mass adds Hosea 11 and Isaiah 12 before Ephesians 3 and John 19. How does that Old Testament reading change the typological “shape” of the day, compared with the single Epistle of 1962?
8. Why does GIRM 59 call the proclamation of readings “ministerial, not presidential”? How do the 1962 rubrics, with subdeacon and deacon at Solemn Mass, express the same principle?
9. GIRM 69 links the Prayer of the Faithful to the “baptismal priesthood.” The 1962 Ordo has no such prayer here. Where, in the older rite, does the baptized person exercise that priesthood, and how?
10. On this feast the Gospel shows the Teacher dead and silent on the Cross. Why is Jn 19:31–37 a fitting summit for the whole Mass of the Catechumens, and how does it lead into the Mass of the Faithful?

Continue in the Mass series: ← The Mass: A Brief Explanation · The Mass of the Faithful — Part 1 →
Related: Sacred Scripture in the Liturgy · OCIA (RCIA) and the Catechumenate · The Nicene Creed