Posted on 12/30/2002 12:04:21 PM PST by NYer
Firstly, Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is a term rarely heard today. Why use
that term? Before Modernism greatly influenced the Church, that was the term
understood for hundreds of years by every Catholic. This title explains fully
what the Mass really is - the very same Holy Sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the
Cross made present to us today in time. Absolutely nothing on earth could
possibly be even remotely more important. Once you understand this, then the
importance of a proper Holy Sacrifice of the Mass will become clearer. Vatican
II Sacrosanctum
Concilium explains in detail:
#2: For it is the liturgy through which, especially in the divine sacrifice of the
Eucharist, "the work of our redemption is accomplished," and it is through
the liturgy, especially, that the faithful are enabled to express in their lives and
manifest to others the mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church.
#7. To accomplish so great a work Christ is always present
in his Church, especially in her liturgical celebrations. He is present in the
sacrifice of the Mass not only in the person of his minister, "the same now
offering, through the ministry of priests, who formerly offered himself on the
cross, " but especially in the eucharistic species. by his power he is
present in the sacraments so that when anybody baptizes it is really Christ
himself who baptizes. He is present in his word since it is he himself who
speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church. Lastly, he is
present when the Church prays and sings, for he has promised "where two or
three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them"
(Mt. 18:20).
Christ, indeed, always associates the Church with himself
in this great work in which God is perfectly glorified and men are sanctified.
the Church is his beloved Bride who calls to her Lord, and through him offers
worship to the eternal Father.
The liturgy, then, is rightly seen as an exercise of the
priestly office of Jesus Christ. It involves the presentation of man's
sanctification under the guise of signs perceptible by the senses and its
accomplishment in ways appropriate to each of these signs. In it full public
worship is performed by the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, that is, by the Head
and his members.
From this it follows that every liturgical celebration,
because it is an action of Christ the Priest and of his Body, which is the
Church, is a sacred action surpassing all others. No other action of the Church
can equal its efficacy by the same title and to the same degree.
#8. In the earthly liturgy we take part in a foretaste
of that heavenly liturgy which is celebrated in the Holy City of Jerusalem
toward which we journey as pilgrims, where Christ is sitting at the right hand
of God, Minister of the holies and of the true tabernacle. With all the
warriors of the heavenly army we sing a hymn of glory to the Lord; venerating
the memory of the saints, we hope for some part and fellowship with them; we
eagerly await the Saviour, Our Lord Jesus Christ, until he our life shall
appear and we too will appear with him in glory.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church further explains:
#1330 "The memorial of the Lord's Passion and
Resurrection. The Holy Sacrifice, because it makes present the one sacrifice of
Christ the Savior and includes the Church's offering. The terms holy
sacrifice of the Mass, 'sacrifice of praise,' spiritual sacrifice, pure and holy
sacrifice are also used, since it completes and surpasses all the sacrifices of
the Old Covenant."
#1366 "The Eucharist is thus a sacrifice because it re-presents
(makes present) the sacrifice of the cross, because it is its memorial and because it applies its fruit:
[Christ], our Lord and God, was once and for all to offer himself to God the Father by his death on the altar of the cross, to accomplish there an everlasting redemption.
But because his priesthood was not to end with his death, at the Last Supper
'on the night when he was betrayed,' [he wanted] to leave to his beloved spouse the Church a visible sacrifice (as the nature of man demands) by which the bloody sacrifice which he was to accomplish once for all on the cross would be re-presented,
its memory perpetuated until the end of the world, and its salutary power be applied to the forgiveness of the sins we daily
commit."
#1367 "The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are
one single sacrifice: 'The victim is one and the same: the same now offers through the ministry of priests, who then offered himself on
the cross; only the manner of offering is different.' 'In this divine sacrifice which is celebrated in the Mass, the same Christ who
offered himself once in a bloody manner on the altar of the cross is contained and is offered in an unbloody
manner.'"
#1368 "The Eucharist is also the sacrifice of the Church. The Church
which is the Body of Christ participates in the offering of her Head. With him, she herself is offered whole and entire. She unites herself
to his intercession with the Father for all men. In the Eucharist the sacrifice of Christ becomes also the sacrifice of the members of his
Body. The lives of the faithful, their praise, sufferings, prayer, and work, are united with those of Christ and with his total offering, and
so acquire a new value. Christ's sacrifice present on the altar makes it possible for all generations of Christians to be united with his offering."
Canon Law reconfirms the truth:
"The most venerable sacrament is the blessed Eucharist, in which Christ the
Lord himself is contained, offered and received, and by which the Church continually lives
and grows. The eucharistic Sacrifice, the memorial of the death and resurrection of the
Lord, in which the Sacrifice of the cross is forever perpetuated, is the summit and the
source of all worship and Christian life. By means of it the unity of God's people is
signified and brought about, and the building up of the body of Christ is perfected. The
other sacraments and all the apostolic works of Christ are bound up with, and directed to,
the blessed Eucharist."
Clearly then, the Mass is not a "meal." - it is a Sacrifice. This
is dogma.
<> I appreciate the question and especially the opening. I don't think you do intend disrespect.
I do think you did the right thing to leave the Catholic Church if you think that we Re-Crucify Him Daily. But that is not what Christian Doctrine about the Mass is.
Instead of a link, or a long post, suffice it to say that the Mass is the action of Jesus Himself, acting through the Priesthood He established, offering Himself to God as a sacrifice of propitiation on our behalf. His action makes present in time the Once-for-all Sacrifice of Calavry for our spiritual revification. We are quickened by His superabundant Grace. It is His way of distributing His Grace and Christians merely follow His commandment in celebrating the Eucharist.
Jesus came for our Salvation;He became our Kin to ransom us from Slavery to Sin/Devil; and He Himself established the Way we are to offer Worship to Him. It was His idea, not ours<>
Your "education" notwithstanding, I believe you are.
What is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass?
”This title explains fully what the Mass really is - the very same Holy Sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross made present to us today in time.”
”#2: For it is the liturgy through which, especially in the divine sacrifice of the Eucharist, ‘the work of our redemption is accomplished,’”
The Word says that my redemption was made at Calvary … one time.
”The Catechism of the Catholic Church further explains:
#1330 ’The memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection. The Holy Sacrifice, because it makes present the one sacrifice of Christ the Savior …”
Which is it … Memorial? Or Actual Sacrifice of Christ made present? If the latter, then according to your doctrine my dear Lord is still suffering on that cruel cross :(
”#1366 ‘The Eucharist is thus a sacrifice because it re-presents (makes present) the sacrifice of the cross, because it is its memorial and because it applies its fruit: …”
”#1367 ‘The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one single sacrifice: 'The victim is one and the same: the same now offers through the ministry of priests, who then offered himself on the cross; only the manner of offering is different.' 'In this divine sacrifice which is celebrated in the Mass, the same Christ who offered himself once in a bloody manner on the altar of the cross is contained and is offered in an unbloody manner.'"
I could go on, but frankly, it is not edifying for me to continually strive in this manner. The Word of God plainly instructs the reader/hearer on this in Hebrews Chapter 12.
Of course, you will accuse me of YOPIOS. So be it. The word of God is true. Even a child who is sincerely hungry for the truth can understand it. Traditions and Catechisms, on the other hand, take men to devise. Thus setting up and perpetuating an “official” teaching authority to “certify” true meaning.
I thank my God, through Jesus Christ, for sending his believers the Holy Ghost to lead and to guide them in all righteousness and truth. Nicodemus was also part of the “teaching authority” and yet even he couldn’t come to grips with what Jesus was saying to him about the need to be born again.
LOL....Nicodemus was the first catholic? :)
BigMack
<> Jesus sent the Holy Spirit upon His Church to Teach it all truth and Jesus said His Church is the Pillar and Ground of Truth. That Christian Catholic Church has always celebrated the Mass - that is what "ministering to the Lord" means.
As I see it, you are stuck on the horns of a dilemma having to reconcile Jesus' words with yours. It is an impossibility. I will follow Jesus' words and those that have kept them since Pentecost.<>
Huh? I'm only trying to point out what I have come to know through the enlightenment of the Holy Ghost. If you don't want to accept my first-hand testimony it still doesn't change it. You simply don't believe (nor did I when I was RC). Neither did Saul of Tarsus.
If you have experienced Pentecost you would hear and understand and agree with what it is I am saying. There is a difference between "religion" and "reality" when it comes to a saving relationship with God Almighty.
There is no necessary difference twixt religion and reality. In fact, just the opposite is the case. Religion - Latin for "Bond with God" - is the solitary basis of reality<>
LOL. Yeah, I hear you. Nevertheless, we are to worship in spirit and truth.
Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.(James 1:27)
My group of believers is not "the only church" but we are few. There are others around the world that are led by Him also. Those that fear God and keep His commandments. They are our brothers and sisters. Together with the saints that have gone before us is the correct interpretation of the Body of Christ, His Church. We anxiously await his return to catch us, His Bride, away with Him. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Until then, we are in the world, but not of it.
Roman Catholic Christians share with most Christians the faith that Jesus Christ, on the night he was betrayed, ate a final or last supper with his Apostles. This final meal was also the celebration of the Jewish Passover or Feast of the Unleavened Bread which commemorated the passing over of the Jews from the death in slavery to the Egyptians to life in the Promised Land.
Christians differ in the meaning this Last Supper has to them and the Church today. Catholic Christians together with other historical Christian Churches (e.g., Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Christians, Lutherans, Anglicans and some Episcopalians, etc.) believe the literal words of Jesus - that the bread and wine are truly his body and blood. Other later Christian Churches profess a mere symbolic meaning to the words of Jesus.
The faith of the Catholic Church is based on both a fundamental principle of hermeneutics and the constant faith of the Church from Apostolic times.
The Catholic Church teaches that the first principle of hermeneutics--the science of the translation and interpretation of the Bible--is the literal meaning of the text.
The first writer of the New Testament was the apostle Paul. His Letter to the Corinthians was written as early as 56 AD, earlier than the first Gospel, Mark's, written about 64 AD. Paul was also not an eyewitness to what he wrote but testifies to his source.
The next New Testament text in chronological order would have been Mark's Gospel. Written about 64 AD, in Rome, Mark, not an eyewitness, probably heard the account of the Last Supper he recorded from the Apostle Peter.
The third account of the Last Supper could be Matthew's. Matthew, the tax collector Levi, was an eyewitness to the meal. He was one of the twelve Apostles. Matthew probably wrote his Gospel in the 70's.
Luke's account of the Last Supper, written from the standpoint of a Gentile convert and a non-eyewitness, probably heard the details of the Last Supper from Paul. Luke was a traveling companion of Paul. Luke also wrote in the 70's.
The beloved disciple, John, the last of the New Testament writers, wrote his Gospel in the 90's. John was an eyewitness to the events of the Last Supper (Jn 6:30-68).
Hence Catholic Christian belief in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the eucharist rests upon the literal meaning of the words of the Last Supper as recorded by the Evangelists and Paul.
The uniformity of expression across the four authors affirms the literalness. Belief in the real presence demands faith--the basis of new life as called for by Christ throughout scripture. But faith in signs conferring what they signify is the basis also for the Incarnation--appearances belying true meaning. The true significance of the real presence is sealed in John's gospel. Five times in different expressions, Jesus confirmed the reality of what he means.
The best way a person can make a clear literal point is repetition of the same message in different ways. Jesus did this. Those around him clearly understood what he was saying--cannibalism and the drinking of blood--both forbidden by Mosaic Law.
Had these disciples mistaken the meaning of Jesus' words, Jesus would surely have known and corrected them. He didn't. They had clearly understood his meaning--Jesus' flesh was to be really eaten; his blood to be really drunk.
Non believers often respond that even at the Last Supper, the apostles did not sense that they had flesh in their hands and blood in their cup. But Jesus is God. The creative literalness of the words: "This is my body; this is my blood" must be believed. God cannot lie. And God can turn bread into flesh and wine into blood without the appearances of bread and wine changing.
Medieval philosophers and theologians called this expression of Divine Truth and Creative Power "transubstantiation". Yes, God can change the substance of any created matter while the appearances remain unchanged. And this demands faith.
Paul confirms elsewhere in his letters the reality of the real presence.
The persuasion of the Church from Apostolic times about the objective reality of these words of Christ is clear from many documents.
Irenaeus (Asia Minor, 140 - 202), Tertullian (Rome, 160 - 220), Cyprian (Carthage, 200 - 258) are just a few of the earliest who attest to the objective reality of the words of Christ.
In the Church in Alexandria, Athanasius (293 - 373) and Cyril (376 - 444) equally attest to the literal meaning of the words of Christ at the Last Supper.
In the Church in Palestine, Cyril (Jerusalem, 315 - 387) and Epiphanius (Salamis, 367 - 403) also affirm in their teaching the same reality.
Unanimity is found across the universal church until the 11th century. Berengar (Tours, France, 1000 - 1088) was one of the first to deny the real presence by arguing that Christ is not physically present, but only symbolically.
The Council of Rome (a local council), 1079, taught against Berengar that the Eucharist is truly the body and blood of Christ.
By the 16th century, some Reformers (excluding Luther) also taught that Christ's presence in the Eucharist was only figurative or metaphorical. Since there were other opinions being taught as truth (figurative presence and metaphorical presence) a teaching authority (see Chapter 5) had to be appealed to discern error from the truth. The way of the Church was to follow the model of Acts 15.
The Council of Trent (1545 - 1563) defined the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, and the Eucharist as both the continuing sacrifice of Christ and a real sacrament. The institution of the Eucharist as sacrament was contained in the words "Do this in remembrance of me."
Roman Catholic Christians celebrate the Eucharist in the liturgical act called the Mass. The word Mass comes from the Latin missa ("sent"). It was taken from the formula for dismissing the congregation: Ite missa est ("Go, the Eucharist has been sent forth") referring to the ancient custom of sending consecrated bread from the bishop's Mass to the sick and to the other churches.
The Mass contains two parts: the liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. The Liturgy of the Word is a copy of the Jewish synagogue service of the first century: readings from Scripture followed by responses from the congregation often from the Book of Psalms. The Liturgy of the Eucharist is a reenactment of the Last Supper. A celebrant does what Christ did: take bread and wine and say the same words Christ said and then share the now consecrated bread and wine with the congregation.
Roman Catholics believe that the bread and wine become the physical Body and Blood of Jesus Christ and remain such until the elements are entirely consumed. The Body and Blood not consumed at one Eucharist are reserved for the next celebration of the Eucharist and venerated as the Body and Blood of Jesus.
Roman Catholic Christians take the word of God seriously and seek to remember Christ in the Last Supper "as often as" possible. And in doing this proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
Catholic Christians also believe that there is only one sacrifice, Jesus', but following the command "as often as" to proclaim the death of the Lord, the sacrifice of Christ is made physically present to every Christian in all places in every age. The Eucharist makes the atemporal aphysical actions of Christ's redeeming action truly present to us always and everywhere. This is incarnational.
Following the word of God, Catholics also know that Christ is not and cannot be resacrificed. This has never been the teaching of the Catholic Church.
The constant faith of the Church from the Apostolic Fathers attests to the fact that the Mass was the one Sacrifice of Calvary made present to the faithful.
The 1994 Catechism of the Catholic Church makes this statement explicitly.
The Roman Catholic Church through history approached her faith life with the clarification of language. That is, she translated the essentials of revealed faith into the vocabulary of living language.
Transubstantiation reflects Roman Catholic faith in the literalness of the words of the Bible.
Jesus (omnipotent God) said: "This is my body; this is my blood." And again Jesus said: "I am the bread of life;" "My flesh is true food; my blood is true drink;" "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood ...;" etc.
Roman Catholics take Jesus at His word: the bread is his body; the wine is his blood.
From the Apostles at the Last Supper until today, the bread and wine of Eucharist looks and feels and tastes like bread and wine in the eating and drinking.
Similar to all of God's Word, faith is essential. Faith in what? In the words of Jesus even though the bread does not look, feel, taste like flesh; even though the wine does not look, feel, taste like blood.
Medieval philosophers and theologians sought simply to label this simple biblical faith: Jesus said that bread is his body and wine is his blood even though it did not appear to change into visible flesh and blood.
Transubstantiation means the substance part of the bread and wine elements changes; but the accidental parts--sight, taste, smell, touch--do not. Catholics believe that since Jesus said it and He is God, he can do it. They believe! "Transubstantiation" merely labels it.
In everyday life, it is not at all uncommon to believe in things man cannot perceive by the senses: wind, electricity, love, peace, etc. All the more when Jesus says it.
At the very end when Armegeddon comes, the Jews will recognize that they are surrounded by the world's powers and know that their situation is hopeless. Jesus will come with the saints and fight. They will look upon Him and say "where did you get those awful wounds?" Jesus will then say "I received them in the house of my friends". And so many of the Jews will then have their hearts and understanding opened and will accept Jesus as their Messiah.
Gotta go now. I'll be on my knees at midnight praying in the new year. May all of His saints be with Him in 2003!
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