St. Michael Catholic Church located in Fernandina Beach Florida

Liturgy

Saints Peter and Paul

It is known that Peter eventually went to Rome, became its first bishop and died there in 67 A.D. by being hanged upside down on a cross. Paul was converted about the year 34 A.D. and spent the better part of his Christian life as a missionary to Cyprus and Asia Minor and then

founded a number of churches. In 60 A.D. he came as a prisoner to Rome, was released two years later, once again did some missionary work (possibly going to Spain), and was again taken prisoner in Rome, and was beheaded in 67 A.D. toward the endo of Nero’s rule.

Living the Paschal Mystery

Like John, our lives too are about proclaiming that the savior Jesus has come. Because we have been plunged into the mystery of Christ by our baptism, our whole lives are to be heralds of Christ’s presence and announce to whom we belong: the savior Jesus. Also like John, we will pay a price for the truth we proclaim. For us, the heralding Christ may be taking time for prayer to get to know Christ better; preparing well for liturgy so our participation in Christ’s saving mystery is full, conscious, and active; reaching out to those in need. We can do this because the hand of the Lord is with us, and we, too, are strong in the Spirit.

Appreciating the Responsorial Psalm

In just five short verses, Psalm 100 expresses the whole of the Israelites’ covenant relationship with God. God brought them into being and continues to pasture them and grace them with steadfast love. To this God the Israelites come, shouting with joy and thanksgiving. They know who they are to God, and this fills them with gladness.

The first reading relates the historical foundation of this covenant: God’s deliverance of this people from Egypt and invitation to them to become “my special possession, dearer to me than all other people.” The gospel reveals the steadfastness of God’s side of the bargain, for when Jesus sees that the people need to be re-gathered, re-healed, re-liberated, he is deeply moved and sends his apostles to bring the people home again.

We, too, have this covenant relationship with God. We, too, are God’s flock, and we, too, remain God’s even when we stray. For God’s desire for us never dies; the divine Shepherd will continually seek us out to bring us home.

Altar as table: Today our altars are to be square or nearly square in shape (as in the early church.) This shape favors the symbolism of the action of a single priest and the community gathered around the table of the Lord. This shape also emphasizes the meal paradigm we have been so fond of using since the Council. This being said, the Eucharist isn’t just any meal, but a paschal and messianic meal.

Daniel 3:52-56 is an addition to the story of the three men thrown into the fiery furnace because they would not worship the Babylonian gods. The verses are part of a lengthy song of praise sung by the men as they moved about in the furnace, untouched by the flames. When King Nebuchadnezzar peered inside, he was amazed to see that they were alive and unharmed, and that a fourth “person” walked among them. He immediately released them and declared their God mighty above all others.

Ascension: On Thursday or Sunday? In many dioceses in the United States, Ascension Thursday is transferred to (and replaces) the Seventh Sunday of Easter. This decision is made for practical reasons. Since this is not a civil holiday, it is a pastoral decision to celebrate the solemnity on Sunday so more Catholics can celebrate this liturgy. This decision underscores the importance of Ascension in this Easter unfolding of saving events. Since all Sundays within the great octave of Easter are considered Easter solemnities, celebrating on Sunday is not only faithful to the Johannine tradition but also links Easter, Ascension and Pentecost and underscores the importance o each Sunday’s liturgical celebration.

The gospel for this Sunday reminds us that God is merciful and always forgives; we need only seek God. Celebrating the Sacrament of Penance is another concrete way to demonstrate that we seek God and have God as a priority in our lives. Taking time to acknowledge our sinfulness and need for God is a way we can help ourselves stay other-centered.

THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY
The Assumption of Mary is the oldest feast day of Our lady, but we don’t know how it first came to be celebrated. The place where Mary was buried was known as the “Tomb of Mary”and the “Memory of Mary” was celebrated. Later it became the feast of the Assumptionand soon changed to the “Assumption of Mary,” since there was more to the feast than her dying. It proclaimed that she had been taken up, body and soul, into heaven. The Assumption completes God’s work in her since it was not fitting that the flesh that had given life to God himself should ever undergo corruption. The Assumption is God’s crowning of His work as Mary ends her earthly life and enters eternity and looks to eternity and gives us hope that we, too, will follow our lady when our life is ended. In 1950, Pope Pius XII proclaimed the Assumption of Mary a dogma of the Catholic Church in these words: “The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven.”

Seventh Sunday of Easter readings: In all of Canada and most U.S. dioceses, Ascension Thursday is transferred to the following Sunday. This Sunday - surely preparing for the celebration of the coming of the Spirit on Pentecost - reminds us that the paschal mystery is not only Jesus’ way of living, dying and rising but also our hand.. Although ascended, Jesus is still present in us and through us.

Living the Paschal Mystery: We are able to love as Jesus did only because of the power and grace which come from our first being loved by God. God’s dwelling is now “with the human race”. God transforms us into those who love as the divine Son loved. Our “paschal transformation” is our passing from keeping the old commandment to keeping the new, from loving as ourselves to loving as Jesus did, from dying to the old self-centered, sinful self to rising to a new life in Christ. The “new” measure of love is Jesus. He has been raised to glory and lives forever. So will we by loving!

Serving others: During this joyous time of celebrating Easter’s new life, we might be fooled into thinking that discipleship is easy since the risen Jesus is always with us. Even during our Easter celebration, the Lectionary begins to move us toward the cost of discipleship which we can take up only because we have received the Holy Spirit to strengthen and enlighten us.
Serving others is hardly something we do only during Lent or at other specific times. Jesus has modeled for us that serving others is what he came to teach us. Liturgical ministers model for us serving others so that we can be dismissed from Mass to go and do likewise. Easter life is: dying to self in order to serve others.

Name for Palm Sunday: Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion already indicates something of a contrast between triumph and dying, between the gospel proclaimed before the procession with palms begins and the proclamation of the Passion gospel during the Liturgy of the Word. In the popular mind, the core of this Sunday’s liturgy is the blessing of palms and taking them home. In fact, the core of this liturgy is the proclamation of the Passion.

We are a full four weeks into our Lenten journey. Sometimes we get so caught up during Lent with doing “penance” that we forget that Lent is ultimately about encountering Jesus and coming to a deeper union with him. As we discipline ourselves, we learn new priorities and what’s important as we keep Christ at the center of our lives. Now is a good time to assess how well our Lenten penance has helped us overcome sin and come closer to Jesus.

Eucharistic celebration is not preparation for ministry, but intrinsic to ministry as a sacrament of the divine Spirit’s creative action that occurs through the community’s service to its world. Reprinted from Liturgical Ministry 15 (Fall,2006)

As a church always reforming itself, all ecclesial ministers must encourage the faith community to grow more deeply in Christian spirituality and an ever stronger commitment to mission, so that we may truly become more perfectly Christ’s Body given over for our world.

Reprinted from Liturgical Ministry 15 (Fall,2006)

As church we form a community of disciples sent in mission and who are in communion with God, with each other, and with the world. Ministry within the church exercised by clergy and lay ecclesial ministers is secondary to and in service of this ministering community of the baptized with a world to serve.
Reprinted from Liturgical Ministry 15 (Fall, 2006)

The starting point for understanding ministry is not holy orders, but the community of the baptized consecrated to share a common mission to worship God, proclaim the Gospel, and bring about the coming reign of God. The foundation for our common mission rests in the mission of Christ and the charisms of the Holy Spirit.
Reprinted from Liturgical Ministry 15 (fall, 2006)

Whether it aids the world or whether it benefits from it, the church has but one sole purpose - that the kingdom of God may come and the salvation of the human race may be accomplished. Ultimately, this is the sole purpose of all church ministry as well. We are about cooperating with Jesus Christ in establishing the reign of God.
Reprinted from Liturgical Ministry 15 (fall, 2006)

Our baptism into Christ and the church means, most basically, that we are baptized into the church’s mission. This mission is not something accessory to the church, but rather the true nature of the church can only be actualized in mission.
From Liturgical Ministry 15 (Fall, 2006)

Vatican II highlighted in living color two fundamental expressions of church reform: (1) the priority of the ministering community of the baptized, and (2) the centrality of social justice ministry in the mission of the church. The first expression reminds us that our identity is in Christ; the second reminds us that we are ever turned, as church, outward toward the good of others.
From Liturgical Ministry 15 (Fall, 2006)

Today, ministry in the church is reflected by a wider and more diverse and colorful collection of people, including clergy and religious, and women and men from various lifestyles and professional backgrounds who may well have children to rear and mortgage payments to make. This new brand of lay ministers may devote their lives to the church on a part-time or full-time basis, for a limited number of years or for a lifetime. In this new reality, the laity is the church - the ministering community of the baptized with a world to serve.
From Liturgical Ministry, 15 (Fall, 2006)

Within the church, there is a diversity of ministries. At Baptism, when we receive the Holy Spirit, each of us also receives a chrism - a gift - to build up the Body of Christ. Part of our baptismal fidelity is to use this gift for the good of others. Thus all the baptized are called to minister to God’s people in some way.
From Liturgical Ministry 15 (Fall, 2006).

Where the gospel journey leads: This is the second to the last Sunday of the liturgical year and is an important one for understanding where our gospel journey has brought us. This is a good time to assess our individual and collective growth: are we liturgically more “advanced” than we were last year at this time? Where are our areas of growth? What are the areas of need we will need to address if we are to continue worshiping well?

Liturgy, beauty, and dress: Cultural mores often dictate items and behavior very similar to some of the scribes’ in this Sunday’s gospel - nice clothes (long robes), places of honor, lengthy prayers. While fitting worship of God may and should include beauty and fine things, the core of right worship is the interior, total self-sacrifice of the community. The challenge is always to move from exterior “fineries” to the extravagant surrendering modeled by the widow in this Sunday’s gospel.
Having said this, we also want to pay attention to our dress and deportment, that they convey the splendor and dignity of the celebration in which we participate. Our North American society in general has become very informal in dress and deportment. Not too many decades ago gentlemen went visiting and even shopping in suits and ties; it was not problem for them to dress up for Sunday Mass. Ladies wore hats and gloves shopping, let alone to Church. Although requirements today may not be so formal, neither is Sunday Mass the same activity as a ball game or shopping. Perhaps we might want to reflect on the relationship of dress and deportment to our ability to surrender at Mass.

Living the Paschal Mystery: Love is not self-absorbed but other-centered, not transient but the enduring hallmark of all Christian faith and living. The paschal mystery’s dying that leads to rising does not refer to physical death, but to the whole-hearted giving of self in unselfish love. Loving is a dying (to selfishness) and rising (to life in profound communion.) The link between keeping the commandments and the nearness of God’s kingdom is love of God, neighbor, self. Only then can we offer fitting sacrifice to God. No one draws near to God’s kingdom by simply quoting the commandments. Instead, the way into the kingdom is through love of God and neighbor. When we live these commandments rather than simply quote them, we, too, hear Jesus say to each of us, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

Receiving sight and baptism: Two pericopes of blind men frame Mark’s account of who Jesus is and what it means to be his disciples; they shed light on the demands of our baptismal commitment. We might parallel this Sunday’s gospel with that of the Second Sunday of Lent, year A (John 9:1-41). The Johannine account is also about a blind man to whom Jesus gives sight. We see there the same pattern of what it means to be baptized, to be a disciple: persistence (asking, praying, recognizing), faith (encountering), following Jesus. These various miracles in which Jesus gives sight are important reflections for the catechumens and candidates participating in the RCIA process.

Parish bulletins and catechesis: Our Bulletin each Sunday contains information necessary for the good order of the parish; Mass intentions, parish meeting schedules, and other announcements. It also includes catechesis on various topics and the good works being done. While loving one’s neighbor seems such a simple thing and we hear about it often, in fact it’s something we need to be reminded about often.

Appreciating the Responsorial Psalm: Over and over in the refrain of this responsorial psalm we beg God for mercy. On the one hand we need God’s mercy because of our persistent failure to understand the servant demands of discipleship (gospel). On the other, we need God’s mercy once we have accepted these demands, for they guarantee our death (first reading, gospel). Our call as disciples is to serve as Christ served to the point of laying down our lives for the sake of others. We must “drink the cup” Christ offers. While we waver in our response, hoping to gain the glory promised without paying its price, God remains steadfast toward us at all times, in every situation, to the ends of the earth (psalm). God will deliver those who “drink this cup.” In this we can “place our trust” (psalm response).

Silence during liturgy: Silence during liturgies are not just “empty” or rest times. They allow us to hear and respond better to the good news of God’s words and sacramental deeds and deepen our relationship with God and each other. Sometimes we can best hear God’s good news and word of forgiveness in the pauses for silence between words, not in a multiplicity of words themselves. Silence gives us the time to recollect ourselves, meditate on God’s word and actions, and give God praise and thanksgiving in a most personal way.

Christ as one who suffers and dies: Christ will be portrayed in the gospels these next Sundays as one who suffers but who also will be brought to glory, an image which culminates in the Christ-who-comes of Advent. This Sunday’s gospel marks a turning point in St. Mark’s account of Jesus. He hints of what is in store for Jesus and his disciples as they journey closer to Jerusalem and the cross. For us, we are moving closer to the end of the liturgical year, closer to Advent

Laying on of hands: Often, Jesus heals or forgives by touching or laying on hands, a personal and intimate means of communications. It is a liturgical gesture found in all of our sacraments and is especially expressive in the Eucharistic liturgy.
The presider extends (“lays”) his hands over the gifts of bread and wine during the Eucharistic prayer in a gesture known as the epiclesis, a liturgical term for extending the hands and calling down the Holy Spirit. The liturgical sign reminds us that, as the Spirit comes “upon these gifts to make them holy, so that they may become for us the body and blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ.” so, too, does the Spirit come upon the assembly and make them holy.

It is easy to get caught up in definitions and interpretations of the Eucharistic mystery. The sublime simplicity and beauty of this gospel text reminds us that Jesus takes the ordinary human act of eating and shows us that this familiar action is the very way we can come to eternal life. The act - eating - is the same; the food differs. The food Jesus offers is from heaven and that upon which we feast is no less than Jesus himself.
Jesus is the source of our life. At the same time we can never forget that our communion with Jesus nourishes us to share that life with others. The real scandal of this gospel is that we ourselves become he bread of life for others by eating and remaining in Jesus. Our intimacy with Jesus calls us to the same intimacy with others. This kind of intimacy does not end but continues to everlasting life.

Liturgy of the Word: If the Word is truly “bread from heaven,” then we ought not hurry the Liturgy of the Word. It is not simply a preamble to the Liturgy of the Eucharist, but they are “two parts so closely connected that they form but one single act of worship.” During the Liturgy of the Word we hear of God’s mighty deeds on behalf of our salvation through the proclamation of the Scriptures and are challenged to live so that we might attain eternal life. We again remember God’s mighty deeds, and this time are called forth to God’s banquet table to receive the Food that sustains us on our journey.

Transfiguration gospel: Twice during the liturgical year we hear proclaimed the transfiguration event: on the Second Sunday of Lent and on this Sunday’s Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. The two different seasonal contexts provide different avenues for interpretation.
During Lent this gospel stands in contrast to the First Sunday of Lent on which we proclaim Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. The contrast is between temptation and human weakness, on the one hand, and victory and glory, on the other hand. On August 6 this gospel stands in contrast to our journey during the Ordinary Time. The contrast is between our awakening to discipleship and its costs, on the one hand, and the victory and glory, on the other hand. This feast is a splendid embodiment of the rhythm of the paschal mystery, a rhythm of dying and rising, of abasement and glory.
The Origins of this feastday date to about the fifth century in the Eastern Church and to the tenth century in the west. It was added to the calendar of the universal Church in the sixteenth century to mark the victory of St. John Capistrano and John Hunyadi over the Turks.

John 6: During these next five Sundays, we will be hearing from the sixth chapter of John’s gospel. This “Bread of Life Discourse” is John’s theological commentary on the multiplication of the loaves that makes explicit connection to Jesus’ giving us the Eucharist.
This important sequence of gospels begins at a difficult time of year (end of July, August) when our minds are turned to other things: getting in a last-minute vacation, preparing for the beginning of the school year, etc. We must be careful not to slacken in our Sunday preparations. This Sunday’s gospel selection makes explicit three of the four-fold traditional Eucharistic actions: take, bless (give thanks), break, and give (distribute). This is a wonderful time for us to reflect on the reality of the paschal journey (walking with Jesus toward Jerusalem), and that no one is ever alone on this journey. Jesus gives signs along the way to intensify belief in him and the most sublime Food to sustain those on the journey.

Sunday rest: Jesus’ sensitivity to the apostles’ need for rest after returning from the missionary activities provides an opportunity for us to reflect on our own need for rest. Sunday is still to be considered a day of rest but for all too many of us Sunday is just another workday. One of the purposes of the Sunday observance as a day of rest is a practical one. If we take time out from work to renew ourselves both spiritually and physically we can begin our work week on Monday more refreshed and able to work more productively.
Another purpose of the Sunday observance as a day of rest is to remind us that all we have is truly a gift from God. When we rest - refrain from any productive activity - we remind ourselves that ultimately we are dependent upon God for everything. Thus Sunday rest is one way to demonstrate the centrality of God in our lives.
If we observe Sunday as a day of rest, we might also have the time to spend in pondering the gospel or reading a good spiritual book, allowing Jesus to teach us more about our relationship to God and how to grow in our Christian journey of discipleship.

Singing the Holy, Holy, Holy: The Eucharistic prayer, the “center and summit” of the entire celebration of the Mass is punctuated by three assembly acclamations. The first of these is the Holy, Holy, Holy. Scholars believe this acclamation is based on a text taken from the Jewish morning synagogue service: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of host; the whole earth is full of his glory” (Isa 6:30) The Book of Revelation describes the four living creatures who surround God’s throne praying in similar fashion: “Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come” (Rev. 4:8). Every time we sing this acclamation, then, we unite with believers past, present, and future in acclaiming the sovereignty of God over all creation and over all time. We acclaim that heaven, earth, and history are in God’s hands.

What is the mercy for which we plead in this responsorial psalm refrain? Are we prophets like Ezekiel and Jesus who need God’s support to remain faithful to our mission despite intense opposition from those closest to us? Or are we the ones who reject the words of Jesus because he is too familiar to us? Chances are, the answer is sometimes one and sometimes the other. The good news is that in either case, God hears our cry for mercy and responds. On the strength of God’s response we can do whatever is necessary, be it to persevere in speaking God’s word or to convert our hearts to a new way of hearing. What stand without equivocation is God’s mercy; we have only to fix our eyes in its direction.

4th of July: Tuesday is the 4th of July and it is tempting to turn both Sunday’s and Tuesday’s masses into patriotic festivals, but it would not be liturgically appropriate to do so. The reason for this norm is that the symbols and music at liturgy must always fit the requirements of the ritual. Furthermore, because the Church is universal and does not belong to any particular culture or country it is generally inappropriate to display flags in the sanctuary (although this is permitted on special occasions such as holidays.)
Praying for one’s country is a different matter, however; the second of the general intercessions intentions - for the world, nations, leaders, etc. - indicated that such prayer is always fitting (see GIRM, no. 70.) On Tuesday it would be appropriate to use the presidential prayers from the Sacramentary.

Boat as image of Church: In biblical culture people depended on the sea for commerce and travel much more than we do. It is not surprising, then, that the boat became an image for the Church, especially during times of trials and persecutions. The Church as a boat also reminded the early Christians that their life was a journey; they would encounter both storms and calm seas, but with trust in God they steadily and safely traveled toward their final destination - the peace and security of everlasting life.
This boat image was so powerful in the early Church that at a time when they began to build buildings in which to gather for worship, they would often build them in the shape of a ship. Today we still call the main body of a church where the assembly is seated a “nave,” coming from the Latin word for boat, navis.

“Singing is the sign of the heart’s joy” (General Instruction of the Roman Missal 39). When we praise God at Mass each Sunday, we come with a joyful heart. We are grateful for the gift of life and all our many blessings. We leave the comfort of our homes and bring ourselves to church, where we gather with others who have made the same sacrifice. There we do something we may not normally do. We sing.
Singing has been a part of Mass ever since the Last Supper (Mt. 26:30). The first Christians sang psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Col. 3:16). We echo them.
“Great importance should therefore be attached to the use of singing in the celebration of the Mass” (GIRM 40). Our songs are formed by the rhythms and melodies of old traditions and contemporary cultures. They help us express the joy in our hearts - as well as our sadness, our wonderment, and our hope.
Everyone is invited to sing at every Mass. “Every care should be taken that singing by the ministers and the people is not absent in celebrations that occur on Sundays and on holy days of obligation” (40). Some parishes have a Sunday Mass at which no singing occurs, but the church asks us to avoid this. Music belongs at every Mass. It helps us participate with body, soul, mind, and strength.
One of the purposes of the opening hymn is to “foster the unity of those who have been gathered” (47). When you arrive at church, heart filled with joy, you express your faith in God and your unity with others in a beautiful way. You open your mouth. And sing.GREAT AMEN

“Amen” means “So be it.” It means “I believe.” It means ”The truth has been spoken.” It’s a little like clicking the “Send” button after you’ve written an email. It gives your prayers the wings it uses to fly toward God in heaven. We conclude many prayers at Mass with an Amen. The Glory to God, the opening prayer, the Creed, the prayer over the gifts, the doxology after the Lord’s Prayer, and the prayer after communion all end with the word “Amen.” When you receive the Body and Blood of the Lord at communion, you answer “Amen.”
But amid all these Amens, one is traditionally called “great” - the one that concludes the eucharistic prayer. The Great Amen is great because of what it says Amen to. Throughout the eucharistic prayer, we have been praying in thanksgiving for the wonderful things God does for us, and we have been praying in petition for the living and the dead. Most importantly, we have been praying that the Holy Spirit would change the bread and wine on the altar into the Body and Blood of Christ. This prayer, the most powerful prayer in human history, concludes with an Amen that can only be called “great.”
Because of the significance of this Amen, it is one of the acclamations that we are encouraged to sing at mass (General Instruction of the Roman Missal 40). Usually the priest will sing the preceding words, which refer to Christ: “Through him, with him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, almighty Father, for ever and ever.” To those words, all we can say and all we must say is “Amen.”

Pentecost and liturgical renewal: The renewal of liturgy in parishes often feels like an up-hill journey. This Sunday of “strong driving wind” and “tongues as of fire” reminds us to pray to the Spirit for guidance in our efforts. We are asked to pray well during the liturgy itself, but the demands of liturgy also are demands on the way we live. We receive the Spirit in order to be strengthened to take up Jesus’ mission, die to ourselves, and further God’s reign. This mission/discipleship motif is what occupies us during these many weeks of Ordinary Time. Pentecost completes the Easter season. The Monday after Pentecost returns us to weekdays of the tenth week in Ordinary Time. Therefore the solemnities the Church celebrates on the next two Sundays are solemnities in Ordinary Time; these solemnities are connected to the Easter mystery, but not to the Easter season.
The ultimate purpose of liturgical renewal is to help us enter more deeply into the mystery of Christ being celebrated and made present during liturgy. Entering in, we take it up as disciples. We must continually renew our liturgy as we must continually renew ourselves as disciples.

In today’s responsorial psalm we sing about a God enthroned in heaven whose power is made known on earth through the kindness and forgiveness God showers upon humankind. Christ sends you into the world to make God’s kingdom known (gospel). How this week can you show God’s kindness? How this week can you reveal God’s forgiveness?

Ascension Thursday: In Canada and most dioceses in the United States, Ascension Thursday is transferred to the Seventh Sunday of Easter. The responsorial psalm for this Sunday is an acclamation of joy that God’s saving power has been revealed to all peoples. How does your manner of living - at home, at work, on the street - continue this revelation?

Paschal Candle: Throughout the fifty days of Easter the paschal candle is lit as a reminder of the presence of the risen Christ who lives and is present in the Church. It is as large and prominent in the sanctuary space as the resurrection is large and prominent in the life and belief of Christians. During the Easter season the paschal candle is the primary focus in the environment because it speaks so eloquently of Jesus’ risen life. When the Easter candle is used outside of the Easter season - especially at baptisms and funerals - it is in order to remind the assembly how intimately connected their life is with Christ’s and that we all share in his risen life. Indeed, all candles used at liturgy are symbolic and are really smaller replicas of the Easter candle. This is especially true of the baptismal candle. Lit candles are reminders that Christ is the light of the world that dispels the darkness of sin and calls everyone to risen life.

Mystagogy: Especially Easter Sunday and its octave were privileged times in the early Church for mystagogy, those marvelous sermons that explained the meaning of the initiation sacraments by exploring their rituals, symbols, and imagery. However, all of the Easter season might be considered “Mystagogical,” for during this time we are plumbing the meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection. As we go through the Easter season and reflect on Jesus’ resurrection and presence among us, his promise of continued love, and his handing on his saving mission to us his disciples, we are reminded again and again that all sacraments and all Christian living is directed to embracing the paschal mystery. In this way do we conform ourselves to Christ, the purpose and end of baptism.

Historical origins: “Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion” already alerts us to the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem amidst jubilation and the waving of palm branches, and then the proclamation of the Passion. A procession with psalms is attested to as early as the fifth century in Jerusalem and from about the eighth century in the Western Church.

Use of the crucifix: The crucifixes used in the Western Church include a corpus of a suffering Christ (a ‘crucifix” is a cross with a corpus, body.) GIRM requires a crucifix on or near the altar Today’s gospel so eloquently says we can never separate death and life. At the celebration of Eucharist - always a celebration of resurrection - the inclusion of a crucifix reminds us that we must die in order to rise to glory. And is a reminder of the Christian mystery. A practice to be encouraged is that our Christian families have a crucifix hanging in a prominent place in their homes. This would serve as a reminder to all those who live and visit that home that good relationships are build upon the willingness to die to self for the sake of others. Christ is our model.

Penance in a positive light: That penance is something to be endured rather than something joyfully embraced is an outgrowth of medieval and later spirituality which concentrated heavily on the sinfulness of humanity. The earlier understanding of penance had a much more positive context. Penance was considered a sacramental; a tangible reality (prayer, fasting and alsmgiving) that helped people grasp a spiritual reality (conversion and a new relationship with God.). Early Christians fasted much more often than Christians today tend to do because, rather than merely burdensome, penance was directed to participating in the paschal mystery.
The Fourth Sunday of Lent had traditionally been called laetare (rejoice, be joyful) Sunday; taken from the introductory verse; rose vestments were worn (they are still permitted) because they are more joyful than the Lenten violet. This Sunday marks the halfway point and encourages people in their penitential practices. Since we now understand penance in a more positive light, it is preferable not to separate this Sunday from the other Sundays of Lent by color or more festivity

Scrutinies and paschal mystery: At the mass for the catechumens and candidates in the R.C.I.A., the readings from year A are recommended because of the baptismal imagery and symbolism. We are reminded that we are temples of the Holy Spirit and through baptism are united with Christ in both dying and rising. This is the heart of what we celebrate each time we gather for liturgy.

Lenten fasting: Traditionally, Christian penance has unfolded in three interrelated practices: alsmgiving, prayer; and fasting. Each of these practices is aimed at a key relationship in our lives: to others (alsmgiving), to God (prayer), and to ourselves (fasting.) We are reminded that Lent is a time to look at our whole selves and all our relationships. Fullness can best be appreciated by a prior experience of emptiness. Such is the intent behind the Lenten fast - to empty ourselves so that we hunger only for God and are filled by God’s presence; an opportunity for us to sincerely hunger for God and reflect on the grace of our own self-emptying. Fasting is a form of disciplining ourselves to that we set our sights on who truly brings us satisfaction: God.

Lenten Lectionary overview: In all three years of the Lectionary cycle, the first two Sundays of Lent proclaim the gospels of Jesus’ temptation in the desert and the transfiguration. These two Sundays lay out the task of Lent: to enter more fully into Christ’s death (resisting temptation) and resurrection (the glory of the transfiguration). Thus Lent opens with a paschal mystery motif which also helps the Christian community identify with those who will be plunged into the death-dealing waters of baptism at Easter so that they might rise with Christ to new life.

Fasting and the Bridegroom’s presence: Fridays have traditionally been a day of fasting in the Catholic community as a way to commemorate the cross. And are still recommended as days of fasting and penance. Therefore, the requirement to fast when the Bridegroom is “absent” remains. We observe Friday as a day of penance - and especially fast - because we commemorate the day Jesus died. It is also helpful to relate the Friday fast to participation in the Bridegroom’s messianic banquet at the Sunday Eucharist when we celebrate resurrection, the Bridegroom’s presence. The Friday fast is related to Sunday as Good Friday is to Easter. The one hour Communion fast has a similar purpose: to empty ourselves and prepare ourselves for being fed on such lavish food as we receive at the Bridegroom’s table of word and sacrament.

Forgiveness and community: Forgiveness only makes sense when we care about a relationship. If the other means nothing to us, then the self-emptying required for forgiveness would hardly be taken up. The reality of Christianity is that we are never alone; we are baptized into a community, the body of Christ. Therefore, everything we do affects others in the community: our good actions build up, our hurtful actions tear down. Genuine community living requires that we seek the forgiveness both of the individual whom we have offended as well as the whole community, all the members of which are affected by our acts. Because we are a community and affect the community, the Church has given us the Sacrament of Penance. We are always a community seeking to help one another come closer to God and each other.

Role of the responsorial psalm: One of the functions of the responsorial psalm is to act as a bridge from the first reading to encounter with Christ in the gospel. This Sunday’s psalm easily exemplifies this role. The first reading ends with disease and alienation. The gospel takes us to the healing and reconciling response of Jesus to the leper who seeks his help. In between stands the psalm which already sings of the salvation God grants those who ask for it.

The Church’s ministry to the sick: The strength of God is especially needed at times of illness. The Church is well aware of the need for God at this time and has a ministry to those who are ill. The Sacrament of the Sick not only brings comfort and healing to the ill, but also the prayers of the whole Church. Taking Communion to the ill and homebound is another expression of Jesus’ healing ministry through the work of the Church.

Liturgical words and deeds: Sometimes liturgies are flooded with words, words, words. We must be careful that the words of the ritual are carefully balanced with the ritual actions. It is not enough simply to respond during liturgy, nor is it enough to put ourselves on “automatic pilot” during liturgy so that we stand when others stand, sit when others sit, etc. Because liturgy is always a communal experience, it’s too easy to allow the crowd to carry us. Liturgy, then, demands of us conscious surrender to the ritual action so that our words and deeds truly portray a dynamic relationship we have with God.
Morever, the words and actions of the ritual itself cannot stay with the hour or so we are at Mass on Sunday. They demand of us that our lives witness to the integrity of word and action. In a sense, liturgy only begins with the dismissal - if we have heard the words spoken with authority and internalized the actions, then our own integrity as members of the body of Christ demands that we live as faithful disciples

“Ordinary” Time: These 34 weeks of non-festal time are named, “Sundays in Ordinary Time” first, because they derive not from a feastday but from the mystery of Jesus Christ. These Sundays, then, rather than celebrating a particular saving event (such as Christmas, Annunciation, Pentecost) actually celebrate the whole mystery of Christ. For this reason every Sunday might also be called a “dominical” feastday - a day celebrating the Lord (from the Latin Dominus, Lord.) “Ordinary Time” is numbered or “counted time”. We must not think these Sundays are prosaic or unimportant. In fact, they make up the longest liturgical season of the year, the Church’s teaching time. This is the time when, Sunday after Sunday, we walk with Jesus through a gospel and learn what it means to be his followers.

Baptism of the Lord and Ordinary Time: Usually the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord falls on the Sunday after we celebrate Epiphany; because Epiphany is later this year, the Baptism of the Lord takes place on the Monday after Epiphany. We might miss an important reminder: baptism is the “foundation” for Ordinary Time: Jesus’ baptism was the source for his ministry and so it is for Christians. During these next few Sundays we are reminded that we are baptized into Christ, share in his death and resurrection, and take up his mission to bring salvation to all people.

Christian living is characterized by expectation: Christ continually comes in the most unexpected ways, Jesus’ birth so long ago unleashed a new and startling presence of God in our midst. Since that time our expectation never ceases: we live for Christ’s comings.

“The Lord is with you.” That phrase which is used in both the first reading and gospel for this Sunday only occurs two other times in English translations of the Scriptures: in Judges 6:12 (the angel’s greeting to Gideon) and in 2 Chronicles 15:2 (Azariah assures King Asa of God’s abiding presence so long as he opens himself to God.) The similar phrase, “The Lord be with you,” only occurs in the English Scriptures five times (Ruth 2:4; 1 Sam. 17-37;20:13; 1 Chron 22:11, 16.)

Gaudete Sunday: This third Sunday of Advent has traditionally been called “gaudete”, latin for “rejoice.” “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice! The Lord is near” (Phil 4:4-5.) Many presiders wear rose vestments as a sign of rejoicing, “the Lord is near.” It’s also a reminder that Advent season, of longing and waiting is half over. We not look to the Christ who was born in Bethlehem long ago as One who is still among us. Christ is present in us and in his body, the Church. For this we “rejoice always.”

Ongoing catechesis: The marvelous rhythm of the liturgical year is that we have completed one liturgical year and immediately begin another to grow in our understanding and living of the paschal mystery, ever coming closer to the Christ whose disciples we are. We can always learn more, and the more we learn the deeper we learn about Christ’s mystery. Perhaps thinking back over the past year, we can consider what we have learned when we ask, “Has this helped me to celebrate better? Live better?” The real goal of liturgy is to be transformed continually so that we are ever more perfect members of the body of Christ.

Liturgical ministries and increase of “talents”: The average parish has a great many people involved actively in the various “visible” liturgical ministries - hospitality ministers, music ministers, altar ministers, lectors, extraordinary ministers, etc. In all cases these ministries require some “talent” in order to fulfill them properly. In addition to learning the “job” what is also required is growth in a spirituality of the ministry that moves the “doing” toward real service to the community - herein lies the real demand for “talent.” Realizing liturgical ministry is a commitment they have made, they choose to be faithful, do the preparation, and come with a ready attitude to serve. Often this is a time when the “increase of talents” the gospel speaks about becomes so evident - perhaps a special grace is given during Mass in terms of a particularly effective presence of Christ to the minister or a real sense of joy in the celebration because they have more fully participated and allowed God to work in and through them. Continued reflection helps all of us see how Christ is increasing our own “talents” when we remain faithful disciples.

Second reading and Second Coming: In year A in the 5 Sundays preceding the Solemnity of Christ the King, the second reading is taken from St. Paul=s First Letter to the Thessalonians. This is most likely the earliest of our New Testament writings and as such it reflects the expectation of the early Christian community that Christ would return soon to gather all things back to God. This Second Coming of Christ, accompanied by the end of the world as we know it, final judgment, general resurrection, and eschatological fulfillment is a predominant motif as we concluded one liturgical year and begin another. It is fitting, therefore, that we pay attention to these second readings which help us also to interpret the gospel and first reading.

Parish bulletins and catechesis: Our Bulletin each Sunday contains information necessary for the good order of the parish: Mass intentions, parish meeting schedules and other announcements. It also includes catechesis on various topics and the good works being done. While loving one’s neighbor seems such a simple thing and we hear about it often, in fact it’s something we need to be reminded about often.

Worship and self-offering: If there is anything we can learn from the prophets of the Old Testament and from the religious leaders of the New Testament, is that worship cannot be empty. Worship is the praise of God that is borne out by caring for others who are the beloved of God; caring for others is caring for God. Worship that stays within the four walls of a building is empty; even the very structure of liturgy itself bears this out and reminds us that God changes us during liturgy so that we can live better for the good of others.
Every liturgy ends with some sort of mission - we are sent to love and serve the Lord in each other. Our “thanks be to God.” is more than words - it requires of us to give thanks to God for all God has given us by our taking care of others and creation as God’s gifts to us. We are to go and live the transformation of liturgy and the deepening of God’s presence within. This is the self-offering: giving ourselves to others that is our ultimate praise and thanksgiving to God.

About Liturgy
End of liturgical year and eschatology: Matthew’s gospel offers us much content for reflecting on the end times. During Year A almost one-forth of the liturgical year prompts us to think about the general judgment and final resurrection and glory that will take place at Christ’s Second Coming. Even more, the vineyard and banquet imagery lead us to appreciate more fully the Eucharistic banquet that is already ours to share and the messianic banquet that awaits our future glory.

Fruit of the vine: God has already given us the fruit of the vine and with this the strength we need to produce even more abundant fruit. This image can have many meanings, one of them being the good works we perform for others in our daily living. More specifically with respect to Mass, we are offered the “fruit of the vine” as Jesus’ precious Blood at communion. GIRM no. 281 states that Communion under both kinds is a “fuller sign value”. It further states that the reason for this is that the new covenant was ratified in Jesus’ blood and in this the relationship between our Eucharistic banquet and the messianic banquet can more clearly be seen. Everyone should be encouraged to partake in this fuller sign of God’s love for us.

Ordinary Time and second reading: This Sunday’s selection from the Letter to the Philippians gives us clear direction for what hearing and changing our lives might look like: have the mind/attitude of Christ and practice self-emptying so that our focus can be on others rather than ourselves. This reading reminds us that our growth in Christian living isn’t dependent only upon ourselves: we hear God’s message in community and live it out in community. Our relationship to Jesus helps us hear, but so does our relationship to others. This reading is an encouragement that the difficult challenges of faithful discipleship aren’t something we undertake by ourselves but with the support of the whole Christian community.

Liturgical ministries as answering God’s call: GIRM #91 speaks of the Eucharistic celebration as an action of the whole Church in which different orders and offices unfold and the ordained ministers and lay Christian faithful fulfill “their office or their duty” according to what “pertains to them.” Whatever ministries are exercised by different persons during liturgy, they are always undertaken after careful discernment of one’s abilities, prayer to do God’s will (hear God’s call to minister), and appropriate preparation for the ministry itself. In addition to fulfilling ministries at Mass, liturgical ministers also witness to God’s persistent call to disciples to make present the kingdom and continue Jesus’ work here on earth. (From “Living Liturgy”)

Postures during liturgy: For example, with respect to God, we genuflect to the Blessed Sacrament or bow to the altar or Book of Gospels; we bow at the words during the creed, “by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man”; we might bow our heads when we pronounce Jesus’ name; we bow in respect before we receive Communion. In themselves these gestures are worthy of God, the saints, and those of us who are members of the body of Christ for they give evidence of the dignity we have and offer another. Let us gently call ourselves to think about what we are doing. They are ways that we pay homage to God, and because we do them together, we announce that we all share in God’s divine life. In that is the source of our dignity.

Labor Day: The dignity of labor has been brought out more than once in Church teaching, even being afforded an encyclical on the subject (Pope John Paul II’s Laborem exercens, On Human Work issued September 15, 1981.) Christian labor really embraces more than an honest day’s work and just compensation. Human labor parallels the work of God in creation and redemption, and so our own work is a participation in God’s self-giving for the good of others. Morever, human labor is also more than making a living, as important as that is. Human labor also includes building up the Church and making present God’s kingdom in our world. Even the “work” of liturgy (“liturgy” means the work of the people) is something to be celebrated this day!

Liturgy and the identity of Christ: We begin Mass with the Sign of the Cross - an acknowledgment not simply of the presence of “Christ, the Son of the living God” but of the other two persons of the Trinity as well. In the proceeding and concluding proclamations of the gospel, we recognize the presence of Christ, “Glory to you, O Lord” and “Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.” By our common acknowledgment we find ourselves together as one community - we share our identity as the body of Christ. The proclamation of the gospel is a particular moment for building up the Church!

Second reading and revelation to the Gentiles: The Jewish nation understood the Messiah as One who would come to save them and by so doing all nations would come to receive salvation through God’s mighty deeds for Israel. This Sunday’s gospel and Paul’s mission to the Gentiles underscore the radically different and challenging understanding of the Messiah this inclusivity brings - salvation is for all.

Faith and Creed: Following immediately after the silence after the homily, the creed is our response to our encounter with Christ in the Liturgy of the Word. In today’s gospel we hear the challenge of Jesus’ walking toward us and bidding us to come to him; the recitation of the creed is our response to Jesus’ bid to come - it symbolizes our readiness to hand our lives over to him in faith. The entire centerpiece of the creed is a profound profession of Christ’s divinity who announced his identity as “I am,” one with God from all eternity.

Homiletic challenge and eternal life: The gospel calls all of us to share what we have with others who have less. By focusing on the miracle of the loaves and fishes as part of God’s self-revelation through Jesus, we are invited to place God’s abundant gifts in the larger context of divine life that is already ours and will be ours one day in fullness. Two elements of the gospel point to this interpretation: the actions of Jesus (take, bless, break, give) parallel the actions that we do at Eucharist and the twelve baskets of fragments left over both point to the messianic banquet and eternal life.

Liturgy as great treasure: It is true that we experience God’s presence in the many circumstances of our daily lives. But surely one of the most sublime ways we experience God’s presence is in the very celebration of liturgy. The Constitution of the Sacred Liturgy tells us that in liturgy Christ is present in his word, in the presider, in the assembly, and in the Eucharistic bread and wine. Thus liturgy itself is a great treasure of God’s presence. This presents both a caution and challenge for us in celebrating liturgy.
The caution is that we must always keep in mind that liturgy first and foremost is our entry into the dying and rising of Christ and in that surrender of self we give God praise and thanks. There is sometimes a tendency in liturgy to celebrate in a way that pleases us and thus, subtly turn liturgy toward ourselves rather than toward God. When we do this we run a risk of misunderstanding God’s presence to us.
The challenge is that we must surrender to God’s action during the liturgy so that we see the many ways God is present in the celebration. It is too easy to let our minds wander or be distracted by restlessness around us or the things we must do when we get home. Liturgy asks of us a single minded presence to God so that we see God’s loving presence to us. This is liturgy’s great treasure: that we celebrate God’s presence to us and among us.

Liturgical catechesis takes patience: Like the slaves in the gospel, most of us have little patience when it comes to learning more about liturgy so we can celebrate better. Sometimes too much change too fast confuses us and we have a hard time entering whole-heartedly into liturgy. Sometimes we don’t have the patience to discipline ourselves to read bulletin inserts or buy and read a good book on liturgy. Sometimes we don’t agree with what is being said or taught and so we just don’t listen or we listen and then promptly forget what we’ve learned. The point is that something so important as liturgy requires constant learning, constant updating and all this takes a great deal of patience!
One good exercise that each of us might undertake is once-a-month to learn something new about liturgy. This can be something so simple as coming to mass a little early or staying a little longer to read slowly and thoughtfully through one of the hymn texts or one of the Eucharistic prayers. It might be something so challenging as signing up for a series of classes on the liturgy. The real trick to updating ourselves liturgically is not to bite off too much but be patient with ourselves. Take one step at a time and it is amazing how fruitful this can be. The challenge is to take that first step!

Interpreting Scriptures: This Sunday’s gospel is one example of a time when Jesus gives an interpretation of a parable. His interpretation at the end of the long form of the gospel is part of the conversation he has with his disciples about who is able to hear Jesus’ message. In this interpretive context, then, Jesus’ explanation of the parable centers around who can hear or not.
Although an interpretation of the parable is actually given in the gospel itself, interpreting Scripture need not be strictly limited to such explanations which more likely arose from the community where the gospel text was written than from the mouth of Jesus himself. Scripture truly is the word of God, yet it always has layers and layers of meaning and this is why year after year we keep coming back to these Scripture passages.
The nature of Jesus’ parables is to be evocative, consequently, there are different valid approaches to understanding the gospel. While acknowledging the interpretation of the parable given by the early community where the gospel text arose, the Lectionary structure suggests that this is not the only valid interpretation and application of the parable. Indeed, all the interpretations together keep opening up new meanings of God’s word for us so that it can achieve “the end for which (God) sent it” (first reading). The interpretation of the parable this year takes as its context the first reading from Isaiah.

Concluding rites and mission: Because of common pastoral practice, many of us think that mass ends with the recessional and closing hymn. In fact, these are really not part of the rites. Mass ends with a missioning (“Go......”) and blessing. We are reminded by this ritual structure that, having been invited to come to the banquet table and being fed with the bread of life, we are now sent to live as Eucharist (the body of Christ) in our everyday lives. In this way Communion and the concluding rites ritually parallel the dynamic of this Sunday’s gospel: God desires to be known/revealed to us. Jesus chooses to reveal the Father and invites us to come to him, then we take up Jesus’ yoke (mission.)

Sometimes the beautiful simplicity of the concluding rites and their powerful message to go and live the Eucharist are lost in announcements and other parish business. We are reminded in the GIRM (no. 90) that any brief announcements that are necessary come after the post-Communion prayer and before the concluding rites. The reason for placing the announcements here is that it doesn’t confuse the purpose of either of these two parts of mass. When the announcements are placed in the time for meditation after Communion they compromise the prayer that is to take place at that time. When the announcements come in the middle or at the end of the concluding rites they compromise the importance of this rite-missioning us to take up Jesus’ yoke and reveal the Father to those we meet in our daily lives.

Second reading fits! This Sunday is one of those occasions when the second reading - usually running its own course during Ordinary Time of semi-continuous readings from the apostolic writings - accords nicely with the gospel. This is the wonderful passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans which lays out the baptismal theology we put into practice in the Western Church - when we are baptized we are plunged into Jesus’ death and resurrection - our being baptized into Jesus’ death means that we are willing to lose our life.

Confirmation preparation and service: Most parish confirmation preparation programs have some kind of service requirement, no matter at what age confirmation is conferred. The basic idea behind this requirement is that the confirmands learn that part of living out one’s baptismal commitment is service of others. The problem is for many of these youngsters this is just another “hoop” they go through. They put in their time but come away with little understanding of what service actually means. Two points might be made to help change this service component from sheer requirement to a more meaningful activity. First, in light of this Sunday’s gospel, they might see how service actually helps them come to know who they are since adolescence is generally a time of self-discovery and identity-seeking. Placing the service component in this context might make it more meaningful. Only by doing for others can we really discover who we are. Second, since at baptism each of us was given a unique gift of the Holy Spirit for building up the community, this is a good time to discern seriously what is their gift for the sake of the community. In this light, instead of a number of hours in one kind of service, they might become successively involved in different kinds of service with the eye of discerning what they can best contribute to the community. In this way, the service becomes a discovery activity rather than a “hoop” to go through.

Inclusivity and inter-Communion: The Roman Catholic Church does not permit inter-Communion, that is, inviting others who are not Catholics to receive Communion. The issue with inter-Communion isn’t really one of hospitality and inclusiveness as it is an issue of integrity. The Christian church is divided and we must do all we can ecumenically to heal these centuries-old divisions. At the same time, Communion is an act of unity - by sharing the one loaf and one cup at the Lord’s table we are declaring our unity in the body of Christ. But, in fact, we are not a unity! So, in order for integrity to stand - for our faith and actions to agree - we do not practice inter-Communion until the work for unity is realized.

Communion procession: We usually think of the Communion procession as a pragmatic action that gets us from our place in church to where Communion is distributed and back again. It is that, but so much more. In most churches the Communion procession moves forward in the church; this direction has symbolic meaning. Forward is toward the altar, which symbolizes Christ and the messianic banquet. In other words our moving forward in the Communion procession is a posture reminding us that in our very lives we are moving forward to that day of our eternal participation in the heavenly banquet. This procession, then, is symbolic of our journey to salvation. As a moving forward to the messianic table, the Communion procession also might symbolize our whole life’s journey - what we do ritually in this moment is what, really, all our Christian living is about - moving toward eternal union with God. To process and receive Communion is already a witness on our part that we wish to change and live our very lives according to God’s ways. This symbolizes for us the relationship between celebrating Eucharist and living Eucharist - God nourishes us for the journey to eternal life. To live Eucharist fully we must live our lives as Jesus did - dying to self so that one day we will share in the eternal life promised by the resurrection.

Living the Paschal Mystery
Last Sunday, Pentecost, we celebrated the power given to us by the Spirit to forgive one another. On this Sunday honoring the Trinity we ponder the Source of all forgiveness, our merciful and loving God. We are invited to be gracious as God is gracious. It is awesome to think that God invites us to share in such a great mystery as the Trinity! It seems as though God’s graciousness never ends - not only with sending the Son but further with inviting us into God’s saving work. In this context we might think of the simple, ordinary ways we reach out to others - a smile, a helping hand, a kind word - as ways we actually manifest the mystery and majesty of our Triune God. Such love as this can only be matched by those who share the divine life!

Living the Paschal Mystery
Pentecost is more that celebrating the “birthday of the Church - it celebrates our birth into resurrection life and being sent to forgive others. We can speak of a “birthday” of the Church - the Church being the body of Christ - only when we make the Church a reality through forgiveness of one another. Forgiveness is sometimes the most difficult thing we do; so many simple acts in our everyday living demand that we seek and give forgiveness. This is why Jesus sent the Spirit: to empower us, through the common resurrection life we share, to forgive, to heal divisions in the community, to be peacemakers.

Living the Paschal Mystery: It is far too easy for us to file out of our pews into the Communion line, receive, return, leave after Mass is over, and get on with our lives. The food and drink that Jesus offers us in this memorial celebration requires of us conscious preparation, deliberate partaking, and ongoing savoring by how we live. Eucharist changes us to live more holy and self-giving lives. We can’t just put on a costume or cloak of being Jesus’ followers; sharing in the body and blood of Christ means that we share in Jesus’ life of self-giving. This is the only way to eternal life.

Baptism : first sacrament of belonging: For too many Christians baptism is something that happened in the past and rid us of original sin. While that is true, there is more. The most startling effect of baptism is that we are not left orphans - God makes us sons and daughters (members of the body of Christ) by sharing with us divine life. All of the goodness we do in our life flows from the basic relationship with the Almighty. Growing in our Easter faith means that we are growing in our identity as those who are in intimate relationship with God. Each time we say yes to doing God’s will - keeping his commandments - we are growing in our intimate relationship with God. Thus baptism is a sacrament that permeates all we are and everything we do. At Easter we renewed our baptismal promises and all through the Easter season we use the blessing and sprinkling of water to remind us of our baptism. All this takes place at this particular time of the year for good reason - that we equate our resurrection faith with growing in our love of God.

Conflicting voices of liturgy: Many people are disturbed by the seemingly endless and conflicting voices speaking out on liturgy. Who or what to follow? It would be easy if there were an invariable set of rules for liturgy; while there are plenty of guidelines and some pretty specific rules, there are many options and decisions that must be made at the level of the whole Church (in Rome), for a country, diocese, and even parish. So, who/what determines good liturgy? First of all, whatever takes place must be worship of the Father through Christ in the Holy Spirit. All worship is directed to God and has God at the Center. Secondly, all liturgy enacts the paschal mystery, Jesus’ dying and rising into which we enter at baptism and celebrate and live throughout our lives. Thirdly, all liturgy transforms the worshipers into being more perfect members of the body of Christ. Fourthly, all liturgy leads to more just, charitable, and faith-filled Christian living. If all decisions about liturgy were measured against these four principles, a parish would already have taken a great step toward ensuring good and authentic Christian liturgy.

Eucharistic breaking of bread: Few parishes have a single loaf of bread that they break at Eucharist. Nonetheless, when the host is broken during the Lamb of God, this gesture has more than practical import. The breaking of bread might symbolize for us the call to surrender our own bodies in dying to self for the sake of others as did Jesus. It also reminds us that we do share in the same loaf - the resurrected Christ himself. “Lamb of God” is another phrase that reminds us that this simple rite just before Communion calls us to self-surrender.

Seeing, believing, and devotional items: The Church has for centuries helped us to believe what we see by using things perceptible to our sense of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and feel. The most obvious examples are our sacraments that use water, oil, imposition of hands, bread, wine, etc. - visible signs - to lead us to the invisible grace God is offering us. This Sunday’s gospel reminds us, too, that our belief is strengthened when we surround ourselves with other visible signs of God’s resurrection presence and caring love for us. Without turning our homes into veritable shrines, we might look around where we live and determine if there are any signs at all of our belief. When guests come into our home do they know that we take religion seriously? Do they see a crucifix or statue of a favorite saint? Do they see a well-used Bible? These religious articles in our homes can also remind us that religion isn’t simply an hour-on-Sunday deal with God. They can help us turn our lives toward God and express our belief in charitable actions on behalf of others.

For the 6 weeks of Lent, we have not heard the alleluia and now, at Easter, we not only resume using the alleluia (at the gospel acclamation) but for these first eight days of Easter, (the octave) we also use a double alleluia at the dismissal rite. It is as though our joy is so complete that we want to sing alleluia at the beginning of Mass and also at the conclusion of Mass. We are sent forth with alleluia ringing in our ears to remind us that through our baptism (the vows we have just renewed, we already share in the new life of the resurrection. We area resurrection people, an Easter people, an alleluia people.

Historicizing the events of this week: We are called this week to walk with Jesus through his passion and death to resurrected glory. We carry palms and sing anthems of praise to Christ; we are really celebrating with “lively faith” by uniting ourselves with Christ’s suffering and death - thus, fulfilling our baptismal commitment. This we do every liturgy.
More than an instrument of torture and death, the cross is a symbol for us Christians of the triumph of Christ over death when God raised him in exaltation. We can never separate the death of the cross from the new life of the resurrection.

Authentic worship, participation, and body of Christ: Vatican Council II calls for full, conscious, and active participation in the Church’s liturgy. This is probably one of the best known of the Council’s decisions. Participating in the ritual actions themselves is only aspect; we are called to renewal our identity as those baptized in Christ, the body of Christ who participated in Jesus’ paschal mystery. Authentic worship demands of us the willingness to surrender ourselves - which means even our personal tastes and desires in how we might want to worship - in order for the body of Christ to be strengthened. The body of Christ comes to full stature when our own surrender is joined to others’ surrender and something new - Christ’s life - bursts forth. This is when worship is exciting and fruitful: when worship calls us beyond ourselves, we receive gifts from God through others and then return those gifts to the community in mission.

Use of John’s gospel in Lectionary: During the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent in year ! We hear proclaimed three lengthy stories from John’s gospel that are placed there specifically to lead us to reflect on baptism and its effects for fruitful discipleship. The revised Lectionary does not have a specific year devoted to reading John simi-continuously during Ordinary Time as do the synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Hardly does the Lectionary ignore John, though, but assigns selections from this gospel at key points in the year.
During Lent in year A we get these baptismal stories, as mentioned above. In year B from the seventeenth to twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time we read almost all of the sixth chapter of John, the Bread of Life discourse. And during all three years we draw heavily from John’s gospel especially reading from his Last Supper discourse on the fifth through seventh Sundays of Easter. All of these blocks of John’s gospel are kept together and so presented because they give us bright imagery and solid theological commentary on the mystery of salvation being presented. It is as though we draw on the synoptic gospels to carry us on the journey to Jerusalem, but we draw on John to break open the meaning of the paschal mystery in our lives.

Lectio divina: It has been a spiritual practice from earliest times in the Church to do “lectio divina” or divine reading. The ancient vigils - keeping watch throughout the night before an important feast day and reading about God’s mighty deeds of salvation from Sacred Scripture - were a form of lectio divina as is still our Easter Vigil. We cannot listen to God’s voice unless we learn to take time out of our busy schedules to pay attention to one of the most important ways God speaks to us - through Scripture. Lectio divina isn’t concerned with a great amount of Scripture reading, but is concerned with attentiveness while we are reading. We may only read one verse from Scripture and spend time asking what God is saying and how God wishes us to respond to this word. If we begin a practice of regular lectio divina we will also be teaching ourselves how better to listen to the proclamation of God’s word during liturgy. It is as though we become familiar with the voice of our Beloved.

Longer or shorter second reading: During Lent and the festal seasons the second reading is not a the season or gospel and often contains in a nut shell the theology of the feast or season. For this reason during these times we ordinarily recommend that the longer form of the second reading be chosen during Lent and the festal seasons and the short form be proclaimed during Ordinary Time. This principle being stated, on this particular Sunday we recommend the shorter reading because the point is more easily grasped. The longer reading is a marvelous piece of typology; that is, there is an extended comparison between Adam and Christ. However, the argument is one that is better studied than proclaimed.

Use of candles at Mass: At least two lit candles should be on or next to the altar. The origin of lit candles was functional; before the time of electricity, candles were necessary even in daytime because churches tended to be rather dark. Now candles are no longer functional but symbolic: they remind us of Christ the Light of the world; in the context of this Sunday’s gospel they also remind us that we are to be light that shines in the darkness.

Final blessing and dismissal: From a very early time the shape of the Mass included the two great parts of word and sacrament. Communion was really the final act of Mass, but early on there was a felt need to formalize the dismissal of the people. The simplest way to do this was in a kind of second post-Communion prayer called the “prayer over the people” (which is now a choice that is given with some Mass formularies). Paralleling the blessings of those who were dismissed earlier in Mass (and still present in the prayers accompanying the dismissal of the catechumens in parishes implementing the R.C.I.A.), there eventually developed a simple blessing over the people. The import of this concluding blessing is to call down God’s help and protection on the people as they leave to take up their daily tasks. We might interpret this concluding blessing as a kind of shorthand for the Beatitudes. Thus, every liturgy we are sent forth armed with God’s presence, knowing that whatever difficulties (persecutions) we might encounter in living the gospel we are not alone but always accompanied by God. Brief though it is, this final blessing as Mass sums up a message that Scripture often reminds us: our God wished us all good things.

Eucharistic breaking of bread: When the host (usually a large one) is broken during the singing of the Lamb of God, this gesture has more than practical import. The breaking of bread might symbolize for us the call to surrender our own bodies in dying to self for the sake of others as did Jesus. The breaking of bread also reminds us that we do share in the same Bread - the resurrected Christ himself. The singing of the Lamb of God accompanies this gesture and ends when the bread is broken and the cups filled. “Lamb of God” is another phrase that reminds us that this simple rite just before Communion calls us to self-surrender.

Baptism and epiphany: Epiphany originates in the Eastern Church where they celebrated both the birth of Jesus and his baptism on January 6 . By the late fourth century the Western Church had added this date to its liturgical calendar and celebrated three events, captured beautifully in the Magnificat antiphon for Epiphany: “Three mysteries mark this day: today the star leads the Magi to the infant Christ; today water is changed into wine for the wedding feast; today Christ wills to be baptized by John in the river Jordan to bring us salvation.” These three events link together the one identity and mission of Jesus.
At epiphany we read in the gospel how the magi are led by a star to the newborn King of the Jews; thus is Jesus manifested to all nations. Jesus’ identity is further revealed at his baptism where the heavens open and the voice of God announces Jesus as the beloved Son. This identity is further manifested in Jesus’ ministry to others - at his first miracle at Cana where he changes water into wine and saves the wedding couple embarrassment and in all his ministry when he reaches out to anyone in need.

East and light as symbol: We all know that the sun rises in the east, but probably most of us don’t realize what a strong symbol this has always been, both in Christian theology and architecture. Resurrection: All four gospels mention that it was early in the morning on the first day of the week that they found the empty tomb. Hence, the sun rising in the east is a natural symbol for resurrection. Morning prayer, ideally celebrated early in the morning, is a resurrection prayer and has motifs of light and glory as well as praise. Second Coming: From earliest times Christians looked east for Christ’s second coming, the direction of light and a new dawning of life. Church axis: Early church buildings were always constructed on an east-west axis; the altar was situated at one end of the assembly, standing facing the altar, faced east. A parallel symbolism of this axis is that as they left the building they left facing west - a symbol for darkness, sin, and evil. This was a constant reminder that the light and life showered upon the assembly at liturgy was to be taken into a world darkened with sin and Christians were to be the light that dispels darkness. Posture: In the early Church it was customary to turn eastward for prayer. During baptisms the elect would face westward to renounce Satan and then turn eastward to recite the creed.

Contextualizing Scripture: When interpreting Scripture, taking texts literally can often lead to misinterpretation. For a long time Catholics were discouraged from reading and praying Scripture for fear that they would misinterpret and be in error. Now we are encouraged to read and pray Scripture; if we are in question about a passage or how to interpret it, there are many fine commentaries available to guide us well.

Veneration of the altar and the presence/coming of the Lord: When the entrance procession reaches the sanctuary space and the ministers have made their reverence of the altar, the presider approaches the altar and kisses it. We are occupied with singing the entrance hymn, so we probably don’t pay too much attention to this profound gesture. Yet it is fraught with meaning. This gesture dates at least to the fourth century and probably has its origin in ancient culture; often families would kiss the table before a meal began as a kind of greeting. Thus, one interpretation of the veneration of the altar by a kiss is that the presider is greeting Christ who is present among the assembly. In ancient times this gesture of kissing the altar by the presider was directly linked to the exchange of the kiss of peace among the faithful.
At its dedication the altar was anointed with Holy Chrism and thus became a symbol of Christ’s presence. We begin liturgy, then with a gesture that reminds us of Christ and we are at the same time reminded that we are the body of Christ, now gathered around the Head who is present. We also prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ in both word and sacrament. So there is a kind of “already” and “not-yet” play in the veneration of the altar with a kiss. Christ is present, yet we anticipate Christ’s coming.

Discipleship and victory: For months now we have been traveling with Jesus through the proclamation of Luke’s gospel. This festival of Christ the King is the last Sunday and culmination of the whole liturgical year. Next Sunday we begin Advent and thus begin again yet another paschal mystery journey through a liturgical year. This annual celebration reminds us that the difficulties of discipleship are always rewarded by the joy of victory.
Each year we begin and end the same journey. Why is not this cyclic pattern of our liturgical celebrations tedious? The answer lies in our taking the time to recognize our own growth in discipleship and our personal relationship with Jesus our King during this past year. Since judgment is one of the themes of the end times, it might be good to take some time this week to judge our own growth and preparedness to enter Paradise with Jesus. Without such self-reflection we run the risk of every liturgical year simply being like all others. Endings and beginnings always give us an opportunity to assess growth and recommit ourselves to faithful discipleship. True, the cross is not something we would naturally choose for ourselves. But the end of this liturgical year and the beginning of the new one when we encounter our victorious Christ is exactly what we need in order to be faithful to the disciple’s life of self-sacrifice for the sake of others.

When we think of “liturgical ministries” we usually think of the visible ministries, for example, hospitality ministers, lectors, altar ministers, etc. We can easily lose sight of an important ministry that has no “assignment sheet”; the ministry of the assembly, a ministry we all share each time we gather. The basic ministry of the assembly is to make visible the Church, members united with Head. What a privilege! Just by our very gathering to “do this in memory of me,” we manifest the whole Church! This is how we can begin to grasp the cosmic dimension of our discipleship: we are never acting alone, but always as Church.
Jesus promised that where two or three are gathered in his name, he is present. What is key here is not just the gathering, but the gathering in his name. When we gather as liturgical assembly we unite the various members of Christ’s body with the Head. The very idea of gathering, then, is an expression of who we are: the body of Christ. All ministry if from the body to the body.
When we absent ourselves from the assembly without good reason, we make a difference in how the body is manifested, Coming together for liturgical prayer is far more than fulfilling obligation. The liturgical assembly bids us to surrender ourselves to something - Someone - larger than ourselves. This generous self-giving is the first step in faithful discipleship and is what Church is really all about. It is necessary in order for Church to be concretely and most assuredly visible. It is necessary if the body of Christ is to be built up, to come to full stature. Our presence isn’t a luxury, to be given when it’s convenient or when we feel like it or when we have nothing better to do. Our presence is indispensable, for we are all members of the Church, the one body. When the membership of the liturgical assembly is diminished, the body is diminished.

Resurrection of the dead: Easter is the prime time of the year when we think about Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. The end of the liturgical year, when the liturgy invites us to look to the parousia or Christ’s Second Coming, is another time when we think of resurrection and this time as it also applies to ourselves. Our own hope in resurrection, naturally, is based in Jesus’ being raised from the dead to new life. To put this another way: in his resurrection Jesus was taken into eternity by his Father. Resurrection, then, is less a mystery and more a statement of belief that what happened to Jesus will happen to his faithful disciples as well - we will be with God in eternal glory. Each time we recite a creed we include a statement of our belief in the resurrection from the dead. This is a doctrine that we Christians have held since apostolic times. Moreover, it is more than belief that the soul will live forever; we also believe that at the general resurrection at Christ’s second coming somehow our bodies will also be united with our souls. Just as Jesus’ glorified body was different from his body before the resurrection so will our glorified bodies be different from these, our earthly bodies. In the past the Church disallowed cremation in view of the resurrection of the body. Now the Church allows cremation as long as it isn’t chosen out of disbelief in the resurrection of the body. Under all circumstances the Church wants to preserve dignity for our earthly bodies since they have been created by God and are holy.

Change and Liturgy: Change is generally a good thing - it indicates growth and the desire for new directions and accomplishments. Even change in liturgy is good because the need for change is a witness that the liturgical assembly has grown deeper in their relationship with God and each other. Change is a fact of life and of liturgy! Change is good and necessary. But too much change too often in liturgy can actually work against fruitful liturgy.
After change we must give ourselves time to “settle in” and make the change a natural part of the rhythm of our ritual celebrations. If we are always adjusting to something new it is very difficult to internalize the fruits of liturgy. We must give ourselves time to “settle in” not in the sense of becoming complacent or resting easy or getting sloppy, but in the sense of having the luxury of fine-tuning what changes we have introduced. As we grow in familiarity with our rituals we are free to enter more deeply into the liturgical mystery itself.
While change is necessary and good for the rhythm of our liturgies, novelty and innovation generally work against good liturgy. We must always remember that liturgy is given an essential ritual structure that has been tested through the centuries of tradition and this structure must be respected. It ensures that we are maximizing liturgy’s purpose to make present the paschal mystery and that we are celebrating with the whole church.
Lamb of God: The revised Roman Rite of Vatican II has three occurrences of “Lamb of God”; at the Gloria, during the fraction rite, and at the Ecce Agnus Dei immediately preceding the Communion procession.
Gloria. The first use of this phrase in this great hymn of praise is redemptive in character, requesting that the Lamb of God “take away the sin of the world” followed by the response, “have mercy on us.” The second invocation acclaims the Lamb’s victorious place at the right hand of the Father followed by the response “hear our prayer,” reminding us of Christ every-constant intercession on our behalf. The entire third part of the hymn is a litany of attributes of Christ. In the eastern Church the breaking of the bread is a symbol of the Lord’s passion and death, and it is no surprise to find the Greek fathers using arnion lamb, to refer to the eucharistic bread. In the Western Church, however, the Latin fathers referred to the eucharistic bread as hostia, the sacrificial gift. These two complementary images merge in the West when the Lamb of God found its way into the Roman liturgy by late seventh century as a litany sung during the fraction rite, repeated as many times as needed until the fraction was completed. When, during the eleventh-twelfth centuries the Roman rite required unleavened bread, the fraction rite lost its meaning and the Lamb of God was reduced to three invocations. Later, it was separated from the (much reduced) fraction rite and accompanied the kiss of peace; hence, the final ending “grant us peace.” Another variation was introduced during Requium Masses where the responses were changed from “have mercy on us? To “give (us) rest” and from “grant us peace” to “give (us) eternal rest.” This latter invocation is now suppressed but it reminds us of God’s desire to raise us up in exaltation at the end of time.
Ecce Agnus Dei. The third use of “Lamb of God” during the eucharistic liturgy occurs immediately before the Communion procession begins. The presider raises the bread and cup and says, “This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Happy are those who are called to his supper.” This formula clearly addresses Christ in the Eucharistic and identifies Eucharist as a sacrificial offering. The “ecce,” behold, of the earlier sixteenth-century formula has been changed to demonstrative adjective, “this,” quite in keeping with our contemporary Communion practice of not gazing in spiritual communion but really partaking in Christ our passover sacrifice. By thus partaking we are already being exalted and enjoying the abundance of God’s holy table.

Liturgy as prayer: Of course we all understand that liturgy is prayer. There are a number of indicators within the liturgy itself. For example, before the opening prayer and at the post-Communion prayer the presider specifically invites us to pray: “Let us pray.” The heart of the Liturgy of the Eucharist is called the eucharistic prayer. The general intercessions are alternately called the prayer of the faithful. We pray together the Our Father, probably one of the first prayers we learned as children. How is it, though, that liturgy is more than just a stringing together of prayers? How is the liturgy itself a single, seamless prayer?
One part of the answer lies in the fact that in the liturgy we come into God’s presence. God calls us to worship and to be an assembly before the Lord. Liturgy is the preeminent place for encountering God and making present the paschal mystery. Liturgy as prayer, then, helps us to understand that prayer is encounter with God and a response to being called into divine presence. Praying is more than saying words: it is personal encounter with the Divine which characterizes every moment of liturgy.
Another part of the answer to our question lies in the fact that in the liturgy we pray as one body, the body of Christ. By praying with one voice, we lift up a single prayer to God. Because we are this community, the liturgical prayer doesn’t depend on any one individual’s ability to pray or not during a particular liturgy. It is as though we are holding each other up and enabling one another strength and persistence in prayer. The constant repetition of liturgy throughout the world is a constant reminder of the persistence of the prayer of the body of Christ.
Another consideration for understanding liturgy as a single, seamless prayer is that the liturgy as an invariable structure. Individual elements may change and vary somewhat from liturgy to liturgy, but the essential structure is the same. This invariability enables us to surrender to the action and in that surrender both encounter with God and visibility of the Church as the body of Christ become possible.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the overall sentiments of liturgy are praise and thanksgiving. With these attitudes we glorify God and offer our worship. All the individual prayer - yes, even the petitionary prayer - resounds to praise and thanksgiving. All prayer converges on our acknowledging God’s splendor and being grateful for the gift of divine presence.

Eucharist-faithfulness and thankfulness: Eucharist defines Catholic worship and even Christians themselves because in Christ, God has given us the most profound gift of sharing in divine life. Our only response can be faithfulness and thankfulness.
Faithfulness. The divine gift of Eucharist calls us to be faithful in its celebration. For most of us there are Sundays when it is more of a hassle to get ourselves (and family) to mass than we would wish to bother with. Faithfulness means that we still put out the effort. Sometimes going to Sunday mass is the pure respite from a too-busy schedule and this is some time for quiet and peace. Faithfulness means that we rejoice in God’s most gracious gift and make every effort to participate fully, actively, and consciously. Faithful celebration, in turn, strengthens us for faithful discipleship. The Word and Food of Eucharist is a continual renewal of God’s presence that, because we are not alone, enables us to respond to the urgency of discipleship with decisiveness.
Thankfulness. Gratitude in face of God’s great gifts to us is a recognition of indebtedness that can only be adequately expressed in worship. Each celebration of Eucharist is a profound acknowledgment that all we have is from God and that even still God gives us more. Without an attitude of thankfulness we cannot continually open up the capacity within ourselves to receive God’s gifts. Thankfulness, then, is more than saying “thanks.” It is opening ourselves to God by worship and self-surrender.
Eucharist defines Catholic worship and Christian living because this is the only way we can adequately express what God desires of us - salvation in Christ. Eucharist not only changes the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, it changes us into the body and blood of Christ. This is how we are saved - by being transformed.

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