The Mass of the Faithful - Part 2
The Mass of the Faithful - Part 2
Completing our journey through the sacred liturgy as we receive the Body and Blood of Christ and are sent forth as living witnesses to transform the world with His love.
🍞 From Sacrifice to Sacrament
Having witnessed the miracle of transubstantiation in Part 1, we now approach the culmination of the Mass: receiving Christ Himself in Holy Communion and being sent forth as His ambassadors. This is where sacrifice becomes sacrament, where divine gift becomes human mission.
📜 Thomistic Foundation: The Fruits of Communion
According to St. Thomas Aquinas, the Eucharist is both sacrifice and sacrament, both gift and food. In the Summa Theologica, Aquinas explains that "this sacrament has a three-fold significance: one with regard to the past, insofar as it is commemorative of our Lord's Passion... another with regard to the present, namely ecclesiastical unity... the third with regard to the future, insofar as this sacrament prefigures the Divine fruition which we shall have in heaven" (ST III, q.60, a.3). The Mass connects past, present, and future in one eternal moment.
The Our Father: The Perfect Prayer
🔍 The Transition from Sacrifice to Communion
The Pater Noster marks the end of the sacrificial portion of the Mass and the beginning of the communion rite. Having offered the perfect sacrifice, we now prepare to receive its fruits. Christ gave us this prayer not merely to recite, but as the model for all Christian prayer.
✝️ The Seven Petitions
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
🏛️ The Perfect Structure of Prayer
First Three Petitions: Give glory and honor to God (His name, kingdom, will)
Last Four Petitions: Ask for our needs (daily bread, forgiveness, protection, deliverance)
Daily Bread: In the context of Mass, this refers especially to the Eucharistic bread we are about to receive
Perfect Order: God's glory comes first, our needs second—the proper hierarchy of prayer
🛡️ Preparing for Communion
By praying the Our Father before Communion, we acknowledge our complete dependence on God and our need for His grace. We ask for our "daily bread"—both material sustenance and the Bread of Life we are about to receive.
The Breaking of the Bread: Recognition and Resurrection
🔍 The Symbolism of the Fraction
The breaking of the consecrated Host serves both practical and symbolic purposes:
🍞 The Comixture: Symbol of Resurrection
After breaking the Host, the priest places a small particle into the chalice, mixing the Body and Blood of Christ. This comixture symbolizes the Resurrection—the reunion of Christ's Body and Blood after they were separated in death. The living Christ, Body and Blood united, is what we receive in Communion.
Agnus Dei: Behold the Lamb of God
✝️ The Lamb of God
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem."
"Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace."
🔍 The Threefold Invocation
The Agnus Dei shifts our focus directly to Christ as the sacrificial Lamb. Unlike previous prayers addressed to the Trinity as a whole, here we address Christ specifically as the Lamb who takes away the world's sins. The threefold repetition emphasizes the completeness of His redemptive work.
🏛️ Old and New Covenant Lambs
Passover Lamb: Protected the firstborn from death in Egypt (Exodus 12:13)
Daily Sacrifice: Lambs offered morning and evening in the Temple (Numbers 28:3-4)
Christ the Lamb: Takes away the sins of the world once and for all (John 1:29)
Revelation's Lamb: The slain Lamb who is worthy to open the sealed book (Revelation 5:6-12)
🛡️ From Mercy to Peace
The progression from "have mercy" to "grant us peace" reflects the spiritual journey of every Mass: we begin acknowledging our sinfulness and need for mercy, and conclude with the peace that comes from forgiveness and union with God.
Prayers Before Communion: Acknowledging Our Unworthiness
✝️ The Centurion's Faith
"Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my roof; but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed."
🔍 The Paradox of Worthiness
Before receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, we declare our unworthiness—yet Christ comes to us anyway. This paradox reveals that Communion is pure gift, not reward for our merit. Like the centurion, we trust not in our worthiness but in Christ's power to heal and transform us.
⚔️ Against Presumption and Despair
The prayer before Communion avoids two extremes: presumption (thinking we deserve Communion) and despair (thinking we're too sinful to receive it). We acknowledge our unworthiness while trusting in Christ's mercy and healing power.
🛡️ Interior Preparation
These prayers remind us that receiving Communion requires proper interior disposition: we must be in a state of grace, have fasted as required, and approach with faith, reverence, and humility.
Holy Communion: Receiving the Lord
🔍 The Communion of Priest and People
The priest first receives both species (Body and Blood) before distributing Communion to the faithful. This order reflects the priest's role as mediator and his special consecration to handle the sacred species. The faithful receive the complete Christ under either species due to concomitance.
✝️ Requirements for Reception
🛡️ The Sacred Handling
Only the priest's consecrated hands touch the Host because at ordination, his hands are specially blessed for handling the sacred species. This reverence acknowledges that Christ is truly present even in the smallest particle of the consecrated Host.
🍞 The Moment of Union
In Holy Communion, heaven and earth meet within our very being. We receive the same Body that was born of Mary, died on Calvary, rose from the dead, and now reigns in glory. This intimate union with Christ transforms us and makes us "living monstrances" carrying His presence into the world.
⚔️ Against Protestant Errors on Communion
Protestant traditions often allow open communion to all baptized Christians, regardless of beliefs about the Eucharist. Catholic practice restricts Communion to Catholics because receiving the Eucharist expresses full faith in transubstantiation and unity with the Church's teaching. To commune is to affirm complete agreement with Catholic doctrine.
Ablutions and Thanksgiving: Reverence and Gratitude
🔍 The Sacred Ablutions
After distributing Communion, the priest performs ablutions—washing his thumb and forefinger with wine and water to consume any remaining particles of the Host. This meticulous care acknowledges that Christ is truly present in even the smallest fragment and prevents any desecration of the sacred species.
🛡️ Liturgical Precision
From the moment of consecration until the ablutions are complete, the priest keeps his thumb and forefinger together to prevent any particles from falling. This careful handling reflects the Church's absolute belief in the Real Presence—every fragment is the complete Christ.
✝️ Post-Communion Prayers
The post-communion prayers vary with each Mass but always express thanksgiving for the gift received and petition for the grace to live worthily. We thank the Trinity for the immense privilege of receiving the Body and Blood of Christ and ask for the strength to carry this grace into daily life.
🏛️ The Three-Fold Thanksgiving
For God's Presence: We thank God for coming to us in the Eucharist
For Christ's Sacrifice: We thank Christ for His redemptive death and resurrection
For the Miracle: We thank the Holy Spirit for the miracle of transubstantiation
Complete Gratitude: Our thanksgiving encompasses the entire work of the Trinity in our salvation
Dismissal and Mission: Go and Make Disciples
✝️ The Dismissal
🔍 The True Meaning of "Thanks Be to God"
Our response "Thanks be to God" is not relief that Mass is over, but profound gratitude for what we have received. As St. Jean Vianney said: "If we truly understood the Mass, we would die of joy." We thank God for His Word, His Body and Blood, and the privilege of participating in the heavenly liturgy.
🌍 From Worship to Mission
The dismissal "Ite, missa est" literally means "Go, it is sent"—referring to both the Mass being completed and us being sent forth. Having received Christ in the Eucharist, we become living tabernacles carrying His presence into the world. Our mission is to fulfill Christ's command: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19).
🛡️ Living Monstrances
After receiving Communion, we become like walking monstrances—vessels carrying the Real Presence of Christ. Every interaction becomes an opportunity to radiate Christ's light and love. This is why the Church encourages a time of thanksgiving after Mass, allowing Christ's presence to transform us more deeply.
The Final Blessing: Strengthened for Mission
✝️ The Trinitarian Blessing
"May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit"
Response: "Amen"
🔍 Empowerment for Apostolic Work
The final blessing is not merely a farewell but an empowerment. God strengthens us with His blessing to carry out the mission of evangelization. The Trinitarian formula reminds us that our apostolic work is supported by the full power of the Godhead.
🛡️ Grace for Daily Life
The blessing prepares us to face the challenges of living as Catholics in a secular world. Armed with Christ's presence and the Trinity's blessing, we can witness to the Gospel in our families, workplaces, and communities.
The Last Gospel: The Word Made Flesh
✝️ The Prologue of St. John
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth."
—John 1:1-14
🔍 The Perfect Conclusion
The Last Gospel (John 1:1-14) provides the perfect theological conclusion to the Mass. Having just received the Word made flesh in the Eucharist, we hear again the mystery of the Incarnation. The same Word who was with God from the beginning has just united Himself to us in Communion.
🏛️ The Incarnation Connection
In the Beginning: The Word existed eternally with the Father
In Time: The Word became flesh and dwelt among us
In the Mass: The Word continues to dwell among us in the Eucharist
In Us: Having received the Word, we carry Him forth to the world
🛡️ Final Instruction
The Last Gospel serves as our final instruction before departing. It reminds us that the Christ we have received is the eternal Word of God, the Creator of all things, the Light of the world. This magnificent truth should fill us with awe and strengthen our resolve to share this Light with others.
🍞 From Word to Flesh to Eucharist
The Last Gospel completes the cycle of revelation: the eternal Word became flesh in the Incarnation, becomes present again in the Eucharist, and now dwells within us who have received Communion. We are living witnesses to the ongoing mystery of the Word made flesh.
The Complete Mass: Heaven on Earth
🏛️ The Perfect Structure
Mass of the Catechumens: God speaks to us through His Word
Mass of the Faithful - Part 1: We offer our gifts; God transforms them into Christ
Mass of the Faithful - Part 2: We receive the transformed gift and are sent forth
Perfect Exchange: We give bread and wine; God gives us His Son. We give ourselves; God gives us eternal life.
🔍 The Four-fold Presence of Christ
The Mass manifests Christ's presence in four ways:
🌍 The Mass and the World
Every Mass transforms not only the bread and wine, but the world itself. Each celebration makes present the sacrifice that redeemed all creation. The Mass is the source and summit of Christian life—the wellspring from which all apostolic activity flows and the goal toward which it tends.
🛡️ Living the Mass
The Mass does not end when we leave the church; it extends into our daily lives. Having been fed with the Word and the Eucharist, we are called to be living sacrifices, offering every moment to God. Our homes become domestic churches, our work becomes prayer, our relationships become evangelization.
📝 Study Questions for Reflection
- How does the Our Father serve as a bridge between the sacrificial and communion portions of the Mass? What does "daily bread" mean in this context?
- Explain the symbolism of breaking the bread and the comixture. How do these actions connect to biblical events and the mystery of the Resurrection?
- Why does the Agnus Dei address Christ directly rather than the Trinity as a whole? What does this teach us about Christ's role as the Lamb of God?
- How does the prayer "Lord, I am not worthy" balance humility with confidence in approaching Communion?
- What are the requirements for receiving Holy Communion, and why does the Church maintain these standards?
- Explain the careful handling of the Eucharistic species (keeping fingers together, ablutions). What does this teach about the Real Presence?
- How does the dismissal "Ite, missa est" connect the Mass to evangelization? What does it mean to be a "living monstrance"?
- Why is the Last Gospel (John 1:1-14) the perfect conclusion to the Mass? How does it summarize the entire mystery we have celebrated?
- Describe the four-fold presence of Christ in the Mass. How do these different modes of presence work together?
- How should participation in the Mass transform our daily lives? What does it mean to "live the Mass"?
🕊️ Deo Gratias - Thanks Be to God
We conclude our journey through the Mass with the same words that end every liturgy: "Deo Gratias"—Thanks be to God. We thank God for the privilege of participating in heaven's eternal liturgy, for receiving the Body and Blood of His Son, and for being sent forth as witnesses to His love. May every Mass deepen our understanding of this supreme mystery and strengthen our resolve to live as worthy recipients of so great a gift.
"O Sacred Banquet, in which Christ is received, the memory of His Passion is renewed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us!"
—St. Thomas Aquinas
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