‘ STAND FAST IN THE FAITH’

New Zealand Tablet, 10 July 1913, Page 3

‘ STAND FAST IN THE FAITH ’

(A Weekly Instruction specially written for the N.Z. Tablet by 'Ghimel.') '- THE SACRIFICE OF THE MASS EXPLAIN ID: XIV.—I HE COMMUNION In the three prayers before Communion the priest, thinking of his unworthiness, earnestly begs that through our Lord's goodness the Holy Communion may be to him 'as a safeguard and a remedy, both of soul and body.' His courage would fail at this "last moment, were it not for the thought of his Saviour's loving condescension in wishing to come to him. Then after genuflecting he takes the consecrated Host in his left hand, saying with becoming respect: ' I will take the Bread of Heaven, and call upon the name of the Lord.' He thrice repeats the humble prayer of the Centurion, each time striking his breast: 'Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed.' He next takes the Host in his right hand, and making with it the Sign of the Cross over himself as an act of faith in Jesus crucified, Who, now, as on Calvary, gives Himself for our salvation, he communicates himself, saying: ' May the Body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve my soul unto life everlasting. Amen.' After a moment's adoration, the priest collects on the paten any fragments of the Sacred Host that may have fallen on the corporal, and places them in the chalice. Then taking the chalice in his right hand he pours forth his- joy and gratitude in words borrowed from the 115th and 17th Psalms: ' What shall I render to the Lord for all He has rendered to me I will take the chalice of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord; I will call upon the Lord and I shall praise Him and shall be saved from my enemies.' Once more, before receiving the Precious Blood, he makes the Sign of the Cross over himself, and says: ' May the Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve my soul to life everlasting. Amen.' The Communion of the faithful follows. The Confiteor is said by the server in the name of the faithful to obtain a more perfect purity of conscience, and in answer the priest begs God to have mercy on them and forgive them their sins. Then, taking a consecrated Host from the ciborium, he shows it to the people, first saying 'Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him Who taketh away the sins of the world,'. and then repeating on their behalf, as he has just done for himself, the words of the Centurion: ' Lord, I am not worthy,' etc. The Ablutions. Since Christ is present not only in the whole Host, but in every particle of It, and in every drop of the Precious Blood, the Church, out of a due sense of reverence, commands the priest to collect the particles on the corporal, to purify the chalice, and' to wash his fingers. Meanwhile two prayers are said: ' Grant, Lord, that what we have taken with our mouth, we may receive with a pure mind; and if a temporal gift may it become unto us an eternal remedy.' May Thy Body, O Lord, which I have received, and Thy Blood which I have drunk, cleave to my heart, and grant that no stain of sin may remain in me, who have been refreshed with pure and holy sacraments. Who livest and reignest world without end. Amen.' The drift of this second prayer will appear, when we remember that ' the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ remain in us so long as the sacramental species are not destroyed. The Church asks that the sacramental grace may not pass rapidly as earthly food, but cling to us, filling us with Jesus Christ, and she prays that no stain or shadow of sin may remain in the heart, that has been refreshed by the holy sacraments ' ('Gavin, p. 167). The Thanksgiving. * The prayers and ceremonies that follow form the thanksgiving of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The priest and the faithful, after having offered to God the Father the Body and Blood of His

Divine Son Jesus, have been nourished and strengthened thereby. It is but fitting that they should thank the Lord for so many graces.’ But the liturgical act of thanksgiving is very short: the Church wishes to leave priest and .faithful free to speak to God in their own fashion.

’ Two prayers are read aloud from the Missal at the Epistle —the Communion and Post-Communion. The Communion consists of an antiphon, the remnant of a long psalm, which was formerly sung during the Communion of the faithful. The Post-Communion is usually a prayer of thanksgiving and a petition for the. protection of the saint whose feast is being celebrated. It corresponds with the Collect and Secret. Here is an example from the feast of St. Catherine of Siena: May the heavenly banquet, wherein we have been fed, obtain for us eternal life, as it also nourished the life of the body for the holy virgin Catherine.’ After kissing the altar, and greeting the people with the usual formula: The Lord be with you,’ the celebrant dismisses the people: ‘ Ite, Missa est ’.(‘ Go ,it is the dismissal). On some days, however, during the penitential seasons of Advent and Lent, ‘Benedicamus Domino (‘Let us bless the Lord’) is said instead, the reason being that in former times the people did not go away immediately -on such days, but remained for further prayers. So at Requiem Masses, ‘ Requiescant in pace ’ (‘ May they rest in peace ’) is said, because the Absolution at the catafalque or tomb is to follow. Up to the tenth or eleventh century the Mass ended here. The blessing with the prayer before it and the Last Gospel are comparatively late additions, being originally private devotions which the priest said as he walked to the sacristy. The Gospel of St. John is usually said at the end of Mass, ‘ because it is a short summary of our belief. The sublime narrative which St. John, soaring with eagle’s flight far above the earth, has written, is a confession of the greatest truths of Christianity. It reviews the mysteries of the Blessed Trinity, the wonders of creation, and recalls the Divine and Human Natures of Christ, His Teaching, His Passion, His Office of Priest and Victim in Holy Mass, the centre and soul of Catholic worship.’