Catechism of the Old Catholic Church

8/7/2019 Catechism of the Old Catholic Church

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CATECHISM OF ST. THOMAS OLD CATHOLIC CHURCH

DIOCESE OF ST. THOMAS

THE MOST REV. ROBERT W. BURGESS, D. MIN.

With grateful recognition for the many hours and editorialskill contributed to this booklet by the

Rev. Deacon Laurie M. Burgess who now rests inthe presence of our Lord.

Copyright 2007. All rights reserved. This booklet may be freely reproduced by Old Catholic ministriesaffiliated and in communion with The American Old Catholic Churches, 303.750.9120.FOR ALL OTHERS, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmittedin any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the priorwritten permission of the publisher. You may contact the publisher at St. Thomas Catholic Church,702.655.5840 or www.dioceseofstthomas.org


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October 2007 2 Copyright 2007All scripture quotes and references from NIV Bible

WHATS INSIDE THE CATECHISM GUIDE

WHY BE CHRISTIAN AND CATHOLIC 5

The INVITATION . 5

THE JOURNEY ... 6

ROLE MODELS .. 7

RIGHT INSIGHT.. 9

WHATARESOMEDISTINCTIVESABOUTBEINGACHRISTIANCATHOLIC..11

ONE ANSWER IS TRADITION 11

CHRISTIAN CATHOLICS HAVE AN APPRECIATION OF CREATION 11

CATHOLIC TRADITION MAINTAINS A WORLD VIEW . 13

CATHOLIC TRADITION GIVE THE INVITATION FOR PERSONAL HOLINESS 14

ONE OF THE GREAT TRADITIONS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS TO BUILD COMMUNITY ..15

SACRAMENTSOFTHECHURCH.. 17

JESUS CHRIST IS THE FIRST AND GREATEST SACRAMENT. 19

THE SACRAMENTS, A MEANS OF GRACE . 20

THE FOCUS OF OUR ATTENTION IN THE SACRAMENTS 21

WORD AND SACRAMENT COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER ... 21

THE BIBLICAL THEOLOGY OF THE MASS .. 22

THE EUCHARISTIC MEAL ...24

THE EUCHARISTIC SACRIFICE .... 26

THE RITUAL ELEMENTS OF THE MASS . 29

THE LITURGICAL CYCLE OF THE CHURCH YEAR 32

MASS PRAYERS ARE BIBLICAL PRAYERS . 34

THE TWO SACRAMENTS OF INITIATION: BAPTISM AND CONFIRMATION .39

INFANT BAPTISM .. 40


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SACRAMENTSOFTHECHURCH CONTINUED

CONFIRMATION 43

THE SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST ..45

EUCHARIST WORDS OF CONSECRATION .. 47

THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION . 48

THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY MATRIMONY .. 50

THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS 50

THE DIACONATE ..51

THE PRIESTHOOD . 51

THE FUNCTIONS OF A PRIEST . 52

THE FUNCTIONS OF THE BISHOP . 53

THE SACRAMENT OF THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK 54

WORSHIPANDTHEHOLYSPIRIT.. 56

CHRISTANDTHELIFEOFPRAYER..59

PRIVATEANDLITURGICALPRAYER61

INDIVIDUAL PRAYER. 61

VOCAL PRAYER 61

SPONTANEOUS PRAYER 61

MENTAL PRAYER: MEDITATION AND CONTEMPLATION ..62

METHODS AND DIVISIONS OF MENTAL PRAYER . 62

MEDITATION . ..63

AFFECTIVE PRAYER . 63

CONTEMPLATION . 64


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PRIVATEANDLITURGICALPRAYER CONTINUED

GROWTH IN PRAYER AND CHRISTIAN LIVING 64

SHARED PRAYER . 64

LITURGICAL PRAYER . 65

INTERCESSIONOFTHESAINTS 66

LIVING SAINTS . 66

PRAYING SAINTS .... 67

THE EARLY CHURCH ... 68

A GREAT CLOUD OF WITNESSES . 69

VENERATION .. 70


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WHY BE CHRISTIAN AND CATHOLIC

This journey begins with an invitation. It is an invitation to a new way of life.

It is fashioned with an approach which looks at the wholeness of life. Onemight call this a holistic mission towards our personal and corporatespirituality. This journey is founded upon personal faith in Christ Jesus asLord and Savior. It is built upon tradition, the appreciation of Gods creation,a unified vision of the church, personal holiness, and the call to community.

The Invitation

When we seek to know more of Christ or draw nearer to God, we areaccepting His invitation. During Christs time to eat at someones tablemeant to be part of that persons life. In Luke 19:1-10, Jesus was tellingZaccheus that He wanted to be part of his life. Zaccheus knew that if Jesuswere to be part of his life he would have to close his heart to greed.

Q. How does my response to Jesus invitation into my lifecompare to that of Zaccheus?

When Jesus first called His disciples, they did not hesitate to drop every-thing and follow Him. Mark tells us that we must be willing to abandonall when Jesus invites us to join in His journey [Mark 1:16-20].

Q. How does my response to Christs invitation for my lifecompare to the early disciples?


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The rich man in Matt. 19:16-22, was proud of the fact that he kept thecommandments. But when invited to join Jesus, he was unable to leave hiswealth and follow Jesus.

Q. How does the message of the rich young man comparewith my response to the invitation of Jesus?

In the media today we hear of dedicated people who sacrifice their lives orare suffering for the sake of the message of the gospel. Some serve thepoor while others put their lives in danger to proclaim the message ofsalvation.

Q. How do I respond to Christs call to follow Him as I

live my life daily?

The Journey

It has been said that a journey begins with the first step. When encounteringnew adventures in life we begin different phases of our journey. We meet

new friends, deepen our love with those we know, enter new mysteries,tragedies, joys and discoveries. We not only move our feet, but weexperience the movement of our hearts. The message of Jesus is aninvitation to a journey. He invites us to be His disciples, but He also warns usof the suffering and hardships along the way. He offers new joy, new life,and new understanding.

When the disciples in John 1:35-42 asked Jesus where He lived, they werealso asking if they were accepted as disciples. Jesus in turn invited them to

join Him on the journey and to come, see, and learn from Him.

Q. What does the scripture say about the attitude I musthave to journey through life with Jesus?


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As Jesus went about healing the sick and afflicted, the people swarmedaround Him everywhere He went. The disciples were quite fond of this newfame and even interrupted Jesus as He prayed. Jesus reminded them of Hismission and journey, which He received through prayer, [Mark 1:32-39].

Q. How does prayer help me to understand my journeywith Christ?

In Lukes gospel, Jesus speaks of His journey to Jerusalem. Jesus taughtthat He had come to build and to save, and everyone was important to Him.Jesus heads toward His passion, death and resurrection, and He asked usto fully commit ourselves on our journey with Him, [Luke 9:51-62].

Q. What does the scripture say concerning my journeythrough life as a disciple of Christ?

Role Models

We can learn from the Disciples and Saints of old what it means to be a

Christian and Catholic. Where they lived, they were always free. They werefree to love because of the wholehearted love for God and their loveembraced all of Gods creation. By allowing Gods love to take possessionof their hearts, their love extended to everybody that God loves. They werefree to love, for by living only for God they were liberated from lesserconcerns, by surrendering to God, and thus allowing God to live in them,they became all that God wanted them to become. In the culture of our day,


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these past examples of deep spirituality become our pathways to Christianmaturity and freedom in Christ. However, the freedoms that the Saints of oldenjoyed were not without a price. There is no cheap grace. The Saintsfound the pearl of great price spoken of in the Gospels, and they were willingto give their lives for its possession. The first challenge to us is to join withthe Saints of the past in the daily struggle of the carnal flesh warring againstthe will of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This is an inward struggle, as each of ushas a self that is me centered and wants to have its own way, have itsdesires satisfied, and craves to be in control of its own destiny.

There is in us the sin nature that does not want to give up being selfish, yet itis only by becoming selfless, that we are freed from the demands of self. Itis only by surrendering to God that we find true happiness, and the liberty tolove wholeheartedly.

The second struggle is with the world around us. There are many goodthings in the world, but far too often the good things of the world become theenemy of what is best for us. We too often settle for second best for ourlives. The Saints often faced family and friends who told them to be satisfiedwith just being good, just to obey the commandments, go to church, lead adecent life, just make a living and get along, etc. They had to struggle withthe temptation of settling with these things instead of walking in holiness.The Saints also had to struggle with the political and social situations of theirday and what was politically right, all of which tried to force them to conform.In the face of such things the saints risked their lives, even unto martyrdom.

What I am attempting to say, to be a Christian and a Catholic, is to be part ofa tradition which is ultimately a walk of saintliness. It is a tradition of apeople and a church that is like a sea of holiness whose tide rises on wavesof spiritual renewal. On the caps of those waves stand the Saints who havebeen pulled up, into a unique spiritual maturity. They are now our examples,drawing us upward toward greater holiness. The Saints stood on thetradition of the Apostles that supported them, leading the way to the mystery

of self surrender, or emptiness that the mystics say is to be filled with theHoly Trinity. Being a Christian Catholic leads us to not just admire the Saintsof old, but to emulate them and truly become priests and kings unto ourGod, [Rev. 1:5-6] and live as saints right now. This life exhibits not justknowing about Christianity; it is living Christianity from the heart. It is the wayto live freely, fully, and lovingly.


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If the wisdom of Catholic Christianity is depicted in the Saints, then thechallenge of Catholic Christianity is that each and every one of us can be likethem in our own way. We must individually and collectively, as a community,learn to live the gospel authentically, and then commit to putting that visioninto practice. If the gospel of Jesus Christ was good for the Saints of old andthe world of their time then the gospel of salvation is good for us and ourworld as well. We must live it as radically as did the Saints. But the questionis, how?

Right Insight

We use the word see to describe the ability to see with our eyes or to trulyunderstand something. We cannot see love, but we can experience it

through actions, feelings, touch, and time spent together. We use the axiomThere is more to this than meets the eye. For us, insight is more importantthan eyesight. We define this insight to the message of Jesus by the wordFaith.

Jesus calls us to a proper view of life. He tells us to trust God and not tofollow or allow the world to become the force that shapes our attitudes.Heavenly treasure and love for others deserves more of our energy than thecontinuous planning for our earthly security in life. Jesus does not tell us to

avoid all planning but He warns against our over concern for worldlymaterialism. Our attitude toward the world and its goods will determinewhich way we are viewing the world, [Matt. 6:19-25].

Q. What is my attitude toward the treasures of the world?

Our spiritual growth and maturity are gradual just as one blind man receivedhis sight gradually. As we study the scriptures and learn more about Jesus,we reflect this knowledge, our faith will deepen, and we will gain divineinsight into the things of Gods kingdom. Jesus is always ready to help usand to heal our spiritual insight, just as He did the blind man, [Mark 8:22-25].


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Q. What does the story of the blind man reveal to meabout my growth in faith?

After walking on the road to Emmaus, [Luke 24:13-32] two disciples were stillin the dark. Not until they were eating and breaking bread with Jesus, didthey understand who He was when they were on the road. Yet they knewthat on the road there was something special about Jesus as He spoke tothem, for their hearts burned within them, yet their insight was darkened.

Q. What message for my life can I learn from the disciples

and their walk with Jesus on the road to Emmaus?

People who possess faith change the world. Faith drives some people to alife of prayer, others to complete commitment to the poor and love forothers. Still other people have a depth of trust when all hope seems lost.Because we believe in the unseen Kingdom of Gods presence and Hisguidance which is always with us, we withstand many difficulties, criticallosses, and frustrations that usually cripple people who have no faith ortrust in God. Faith is the driving force behind acts of love and concernfound in the Christian life.

Q. How do I intend to make faith more central to mydaily walk in life?


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WHAT ARE SOME DISTINCTIVES ABOUT BEING ACHRISTIAN CATHOLIC

1. One answer is Tradition. Some people get confused between thewords tradition and traditions. Traditions are particular and changeable,while tradition carries with it a much more pervasive, long lasting meaningthat is passed down, or handed on to the next generation with great effectcentury after century. A culture is a tradition in this deep sense of the word.The church Catholic is a Christian culture in its whole way of thinking aboutthe world, life, and God.

Tradition, [2Thes. 2:15], is that body of revealed truth handed down to us bythe Apostles both through written and verbal communication. Tradition is a

distinct part of theology and includes four main sources: the Holy Scripture,the writings of the early church fathers, archaeology, and liturgy. Thegospel, in it historic context within the church, is symbolic which gives livingproof of the Churchs beginning and its continuance to the present. Traditionis the gospel becoming real in the life of the church. Tradition is fidelity tothe gospel of grace and truth, which must reach humanity to save them.Tradition is truly viable in its identification with the gospel message, Christ asHead of the Church, and the Church itself.

There is Eastern and Western traditional/cultural Christianity. TheEastern tradition centers mostly on the wisdom of the scriptures and itseffect on our inner personal spiritual growth. Western tradition is morepractical and organizational in both Protestant and Catholic Christianity.Our goal is to maintain the Eastern tradition which emphasized our innerspiritual development in Christ Jesus through the power of the indwellingHoly Trinity, while at the same time embracing a balance of the westerntradition of organization and practical Christianity. If we only live with theWestern tradition and its frame of mind, then its objectiveness willcontinue and become even more narrow and legalistic, authoritarian and

impersonal, lacking the grace of God.

2. Christian Catholics have an appreciation ofCreation. Catholics bothEast and West have traditionally been open to the goodness of creation.There is a poem that declares: Wherever a Catholic sun doth shinethere is plenty of laughter and good red wine. At least I have alwaysfound it so. Let us bless the Lord. The Catholic Christian culture of both


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East and West has continually expressed thankfulness for the good things oflife and creation, much in keeping with Gods Words on the sixth day of theworld: God looked at everything he had made and He found it very good,[Gen. 1:31]. Christian Catholic tradition is in touch with the goodness ofcreation and the joy of life. It tells us to rejoice and be glad for all the greatand small pleasures that come our way from God. It has little to do with thePuritan belief that pleasure is sinful and beauty is a temptation from thedevil. With our roots in Judaism, the Far East and Mediterranean cultures,Catholic tradition, in keeping with the scriptures, sees God as the Giver of allgood gifts, nature, shelter, food and drink, beautiful families, sexual pleasurein marriage, and the fruit of children.

The material world, instead of being evil, is the channel of Gods grace. Wecan make this point another way: Catholic theology is incarnational. When

we hear of the incarnation we think of Jesus, Gods word made flesh. Wetake the incarnation much more seriously than those who think that Jesuswas some sort of Clark Kent, divine on the inside and human on the outside.Catholic teaching says that Jesus is both 100% man and 100% God. IfJesus is the incarnation of God, Jesus is also the revelation of God. InJesus the mystery of God is revealed so we can see it, even if we do notcomprehend it. In the life of Jesus, Gods life of grace is manifested. In thewords of Jesus, God communicates to us in ways we can hear. In the deedsof Jesus, God shows us that divine love is really ultimate redemption.Because Jesus is the ultimate revelation of God, Jesus is the fundamentalsacrament of God. He is the greatest sign of Gods love and presence in theWorld.

The sacramentality of Jesus did not end with the Ascension, it continues inthe church which, since the days of St. Paul, has been called the bride ofChrist. The church, as the whole people of God, embodies the divinepresence of God in creation. The church is basically a sacrament of God tothe world. Into the history of the world came Jesus Christ, and the life of theworld changed. When we read of the life and message of Jesus, we realize

that He truly came to share in our humanness because He loved us andwanted to save us. With the inspiration of the Holy spirit and the freedom ofthe writing style of the day, the gospel writers tell us of the story and life ofJesus; God becoming human. The gospel writers had new insight into thelife of Jesus that developed from an understanding of His resurrection. Theywove this insight into their message and laid it before the world, not as abiography of Jesus, but as an intimate glimpse of the Person and His


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message, like precious jewels polished to perfection under the guidance ofthe Holy Spirit. The birth of Jesus challenges us to reflect on our responseto the presence of Christ in our lives [Luke 2:1-21].

Q. What message for my life do I receive from this passageas I, like Mary, ponder all these things in my heart?

Why does the churchs Catholicity emphasize the sacraments so much? Webelieve that just as people 2000 years ago came in contact with the mysteryof Gods presence when they allowed themselves to be touched by Jesus,

people today come in contact with God when they are touched by water,bread, wine, oil, and human hands. We put something as simple as breadand wine in the center of our worship. The eucharist is the catholic way ofsaying that the way to God is not limited to private mediation, but by sharingthe Body and Blood of Christ [1Cor. 11:23-26]. Our worship is not so muchverbal and intellectual, but physical and relational. The liturgy is a down toearth communal celebration of our sharing the life of Christ together.Catholic tradition, which is reflected both in its theology and in its worship, isincarnational and sacramental. It takes the world seriously and encouragesus to find the awe of God in the world. It takes human activity seriously andencourages us to be like Jesus to the world.

3. Catholic tradition maintains aWorld View. The original meaning ofthe word catholic is universal. The church was called Catholic as it spreadthroughout the known world in ancient times. The first ecumenical councilmet in 325 A.D. and formulated the essence of the worldwide faith, theNicene Creed. The Catholic church both East and West is a multiculturalchurch spanning every nation and culture. Because of this fact the churchcalls us to a universal world view. Our faith in Christ and the church brings

us face to face with the challenge to deal with our narrowness and inhibitionsthat keep us from reaching out to others.

To be truly Catholic means that first we are Christians and second we arelocal residents in a parish. If we are to be truly Catholic Christians, we mustlook at the world and all the people in it from Gods perspective and not fromour view point. In the story of the Prince and the Pauper, two boys changed


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roles so they could see what it was like to live different lives. The story ofJesus is not a fictional tale. It is the story of God who became human out oflove for us. Christ Jesus emptied Himself of His powers to become a humanservant. It would have been enough for God to become man and retain Hispowers, but to empty Himself for our sakes was the greatest act of love.God did this so that we might share His life for all eternity. Phil. 2:6-11 tellsus of a servant who lived in obedience throughout His life and the Fatherexalted Him so that the world would worship Him and proclaim Him as Lord.

Q. How well do I empty myself for the service of others?

4. Catholic tradition gives the invitation for Personal Holiness. Thisinvitation calls for the entirety of our life to be whole, spiritually rich, andrewarding as God intended it to be. To live in the Kingdom of God is toachieve our fullest spiritual potential. Catholic spirituality has always beenconcerned with holiness. Wholeness and holiness come from the same rootword. We are encouraged to submit to Christ and become truly whole. Truewholeness is fulfilling the sacred trust that God has given us to becomeconformed to the image and likeness of Jesus. Holiness does not mean thatwe all must become nuns, monks or recluses to achieve perfection. EveryChristian is called to achieve his or her fullest spiritual potential. To be trulywhole is being holy, regardless of occupation or position in life. Scripturedeclares that we are all priests and kings unto our God. We must seeourselves for what we are and invite God to make us all that He desires forus to be through the power of the Holy Spirit and His presence in our lives.This holistic spirituality, (body, soul, and spirit) is rewarding and demanding.It is not enough to go to church on Sunday and leave the rest of lifeunchanged. True holiness requires the conversion of the whole person, atransformation of the total personality, a conversion of lifestyle.

Everybody wants to be happy. People search for happiness in wealth,power and success, and often look for it in every means possible. Thewisdom of Catholic spirituality and tradition is in the understanding thatexistence in the world and communication with God are both needed to givemeaning, happiness and energy to all of life. A Catholic Christiansunderstanding of life begins with spiritual conversion, but also affirms that


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conversion is on-going. The Christian life is a process of continuousconversion and growth into a more Christ-like personality. We are beingsaved every day, as our journey goes through various stages, beingintroduced to different challenges, and suffering through inevitable pitfalls.But those who persevere in fidelity and trust are insured of entering moredeeply into the life of Christ. Thankfully, salvation and happiness do notdepend on our strength alone. God is with us and lovingly takes the initiativein offering us salvation and calling us into holiness. This is the meaning ofgrace. Grace is Gods invitation and power reaching out, and into us. Butwe have to be open to God in order to be filled with His Holy Spirit. We haveto cooperate with the grace of God to live grace-filled lives.

Cooperation with the Spirit of God is not so much an activity or a work as it islistening. We learn from the early church fathers and tradition that

cooperation with God is taking time to listen to God in our hearts and lettingGod tell us how to serve Him and to be truly happy and holy at the sametime. Growth in the Spirit, growth in spiritual perfection as some call it, istrue holiness because of our relationship with Jesus Christ. This does notmean that we are perfect, or that holiness equates with sinless perfection.Spiritual perfection, holiness, and growth in the Spirit, are synonymous witheach other because we have a relationship with Christ and are growing inthe likeness of Christ. The result is the whole of the Holy Trinity resides in usas we are partakers of the divine nature of the Trinity. In Catholic traditionthe ultimate satisfaction is promised to those who die to their false self toobtain the whole authentic self that it found in God. Jesus promises that,Those who seek their own life will lose it, but those who lose (or give it up)their lives will find it, [Mark 8:35]. This is part of the meaning of thecrucifixion, for the cross always brings with it daily resurrection and new life.When we let go of ourselves we let ourselves be caught by God. When westop controlling ourselves we let ourselves be taught by God. When we stoptrying to fix and fulfill ourselves, we allow ourselves to be filled with Hisgrace.

5. One of the great traditions of the Catholic Church is to BuildCommunity. It is difficult to hear from the Lord or see His direction clearlywhen we are in isolation, and almost impossible to respond if we try to go italone. It is hard to get a sense of Gods promise of fulfillment unless weexperience that promise being fulfilled in the lives of other believers. In mostareas of America we have lost the sense of community. Churches are too


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big, society is too mobile, and there are many other things that entice usaway from one another.

Most Christians try to live their lives of faith all alone. One of the reasons forthis is that we have bought into the myth of rugged individualism. Manybelieve that they have to make it on their own and if successful they need tolive their lives in privacy. People pay a great price for self-sufficiency livingwithout relationships. Relationships enrich lives and help nurture wholenessand holiness. The true Christian way of living is in community. The earlyChristians were so connected that St. Paul called them the Body of Christ.The church was a social body whose soul was the Spirit of Christ. Living likeChrist meant putting yourself out for one another, making sacrifices for oneanother. Just like an arm or a leg can not live on its own, Christians in timespast did not attempt to live on their own. In our individualistic society there is

a great need to return to the Catholic gift of community that has been passeddown to us from the early Church fathers. Many in Protestantism have lostthis gift because of its insistence on individualistic accountability with God.The Protestant work ethic, since the early stages of this country, has beenthat spiritual salvation is reflected in material well being. This has led to agreat emphasis on personal success through economic competition withoutregard for the welfare of others. By and large, and to the Catholic Churchsdetriment, a large majority have bought into the aftermath of thisindividualistic outlook on life and must be challenged once again to regaintrue community and spirituality.

As an American Old Catholic church we intend to work for the developmentof a strong sense of community. Each of us has talents and gifts given to usby God for use in His Kingdom, and they need to be expressed and used tothe benefit of the whole body as we worship together, minister to oneanother, pray for one another, serve one another, and even have funtogether.


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SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH

One aid in developing community for us will be an understanding of theSacraments. In the New Testament and in the life of the church so much

importance is given to material signs given by God so that they may ministerto us as multidimensional people. These signs do belong to the materialworld, but none-the-less, they are sacred as they assist us in perceivingspiritual realities and values which give full weight to the Incarnation of Christand His ministry.

Recently there has been an emphasis placed on the importance of touch.Both children and animals that suffer from touch deprivation end up neurotic.We need touch in our lives for healthy and normal development. In a mental

hospital a child sat in his chair day after day with his head down, moaning.People would go by him and give a cheerful Hi and he would just keep onmoaning with his head hanging down. One day an older person came byand touched him and then said, Hi. The boy raised his head with a smileand for the moment stopped his moaning.

When Jesus gave us the sacraments He could have chosen to pass on thegifts with a cheerful Hi in our direction but instead He chose to touch us.Through the sacraments we will be studying, Jesus touches us at importantpoints in our lives.

These sacred signs of the Church are also called the sacraments of faithand love. They not only presuppose an active faith, but by word and theelements used in the various rites, they also nourish, strengthen and giveexpression to our faith. Through these sacred signs God keeps in touchwith us. In Mark 5:25-34, a woman believed that Jesus had the power toheal her, but she also believed that she had to reach out and touch Jesus.When she did, she was healed and Jesus turned to speak to her, andreminded her as well as, that it was not just the touching, but touching in

faith that made her whole.Q. How does this story help me to understand the role of faith inthe celebration of the sacraments?


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This active faith is what St. Thomas Aquinas meant when speaking of thesacraments used in developing an intimate relationship with Christ Jesusthrough the celebration of His continuing earthly ministry in the sacramentsand the liturgy. Jesus was touched with compassion over the plight of thepeople around Him. The fact that Jesus is God, tells us that God is toucheddeeply by our needs and that God will respond by touching us in some way,[Luke 7:11-17].

Q. How does the compassion of Christ help me to place morefaith in the power of Christ in the sacraments?

Scripture says that love covers a multitude of sins. There was a woman whorecognized her sinfulness as she approached Jesus. Jesus reminded thosepresent that it is not sin which keeps a person from approaching Him, but theneglect of repentance. Jesus proclaims through a parable that because hersins were many and her conversion deep she would love more deeply thanthe person with few sins. [Luke 7:44-50]

Q. What does this story say about the necessity of my love inthe celebration of the sacraments?

The Church, rightly being the guardian of the sacraments just as she is the

custodian of the Scriptures and of faith, desires that we have some positiveunderstanding of the sacraments and know the necessity of the faithfulobservance of ecclesial guidelines for their proper use. Therefore, as weprogress in our discussions, we will use question and answer periods toassist with both an understanding of the sacraments and doctrinesurrounding them. Hopefully this will also be a time of openness to the HolySpirit for the examination of conscience and faith.


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Jesus Christ is the First and Greatest Sacrament

God looked at everything He had made, and He found it very good [Gen.1:31]. This realization provides the basis for the Churchs insistence on a

sacramental view of life. The Church has had to do battle against those whodespise the material universe and those who wish to reduce the Churchsactivities to the Scripture alone. True Catholicism, both East and West,remains true to its Jewish roots and looks at humanity as a unified wholepeople in whom the spiritual and the material are so commingled that theindividual is led to Christ.

The author of Psalm 19 knew this well while singing, The heavens declarethe glory of God, and the firmament proclaims His handiwork. Materialcreation is a sign of Gods divine love and providence; it is something for us

to appreciate and to properly use [Gen. 1:24]. We find elsewhere in scripturethat there are two invisible lights, spiritual and natural, that draw humanity toGod. The first light is Christ, the Word, who is the true light given to all menin the gospel of St. John 1:1-4, the second light is creation as we read inRom. 1:20.

It is in this sense then that material substance and liturgy are natural tohumanity. Since Christianity is an incarnational relationship it takes themultidimensional person seriously and thus offers sacramental worship to

the believer. The physical elements assist the believer to know in thedeepest sense the Holy One who is both spiritual and the Creator. For theChristian, Jesus is the first and greatest sacrament, or sign, that man hasever received. Christ is the definitive sign of Gods love for us and His lastWord dealing with salvation, [Heb. ch. 1]. It is in Christ that both Word andsacrament are united, and thus the Church accepts this as her source oflife. The Church then, is a God initiated sacrament that expresses Hisnearness to humanity and His desire to save mankind. The sacramentalityof the Church is the continuation of Christs saving work in the world today.

When we speak of a sacrament we are saying that it is an outward signinstituted by Christ to administer grace. When speaking of an outward sign,we are referring to things that have an effect upon one or more of the fivesenses. Grace can be received through one or more physical means, be itwater, bread, wine, oil, incense, sight, or the laying on of hands. All of this isalluded to in 1John 1:1-4. By these means, these material signs carry to thebeliever the supernatural message of continual salvation and grace.


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These signs taken from the natural realm transcend themselves whenviewed from within the Churchs sacramental tradition. Like the union of thehuman and divine natures of Christ, nature and the supernatural combine toproduce sign and symbol that are of a deeper spiritual reality. Through theChurch and seeing with the eyes of faith, we are able to go beyond ordinaryhuman experience and gain a glimpse of the divine. With this understandingwe gain an appreciation of the sacraments.

What makes this possible for us, is our appreciation of the fact that Christestablished the Church, gave His life for her, and willed that the life givingbenefits of His Passion, death, and resurrection be extended to all people forall of time through the sacraments.

The Sacraments, a Means of Grace

What is grace? For some, grace is a measurable object which one can gainor get more of so the church is like a filling station. To others, grace isdefined as unmerited favor so they do nothing to receive it.

One of the best definitions of grace is having a deep relationship with ChristJesus, and it is best enhanced within the parameters of a spiritualcommunity. So the increase of grace can come from growth in onesrelationship with the Lord within a community.

How else is grace obtained? Grace is obtained through a process of divineand human encounters, and divine and human cooperation.

For example, when God sought out Mary by the angel Gabriel with His planof the incarnation, [the divine encounter] Mary responded humbly with, Yourwill be done, [thats human cooperation] and as a result great grace wasgiven to Mary. Catholic theology has always explained the operation ofgrace in the same way. In every sacramental encounter God takes theinitiative by making an offer of grace; the believer accepts the offer and

opens his heart to the invitation. You might remember it this way, Godsgrace always comes before mans response.

Q. In what ways has God provided a divine encounter in my lifeso that I can partake in human cooperation with Him?


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The Focus of Our Attention in the Sacraments

We must never forget the most important focal point of all sacraments. It isJesus Christ the Lord who is the supreme Sacrament. It is He who is active

in the sacraments, both in the administration and in the reception of them.Each sacrament is the action of Christ and is the extension of His earthlyministry offered to the believer in the here and now. It is God reaching downto us, not our struggling to reach up to God. The focus is not on the priest,not on the individual, not on the churchthe focus of attention is to be onChrist Himself. The whole Church, each bishop, priest, all the clergy andeach parishioner, all draw meaning from Christ, and they all are thebeneficiaries of His redemption.

Why did Jesus leave us the sacraments? We need clear signs that cause,

or bring into effect, what the sacraments signify. The waters of Baptism, theOil of Confirmation, the Bread and Wine of the Eucharist all have the powerto forgive and to save, as spoken of by Jesus Himself, [John 6:32-59].Salvation itself is sacramental, this is subtly but clearly pointed out in John19:34 as we read of the water and the blood flowing out of the Saviorswounded side.

Word and Sacrament Complement each Other

Both Eastern and Western Catholics have traditionally developed a very highsacramental sense, while Protestants stress the importance of the Bible(almost to exclusivity). However, any tension between the two need notexist. This is not an either or situation, both are required. In fact they arevery complementary. Luther defined the church as the place where theWord of God is preached and where the Sacraments are administered. Justas the Word of God became flesh in the incarnation, so the celebration ofGods Word leads to its enfleshment in the sacraments. The sacramentsare the breakthrough of the Kingdom of God into human affairs. EasternCatholic theology has always regarded liturgy and sacrament as

experiencing heavens liturgy now, while the Western Catholic Church hasreferred to liturgy and sacrament as a foretaste of heavens liturgy and feast.In either case God invades the hearts and minds of believers in the present.The sacraments are Gods signs and touch offered to His people.


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The sacramental encounters with Christ that we enjoy now are a contrast tothe eternal encounter when there will be no need for sacraments becauseGod will be all in all [Col. 3:11]. Until that day however, we celebrate thesacraments, thanking God for those gifts that proclaim so clearly and sobeautifully that our God is involved with, and cares for, each one of us.

The Biblical Theology of the Mass

The Mass is the central act of Catholic community worship. Those whoobject to any form of Catholicity, eastern or Western, often charge that theform of the Mass is man-made and thus idolatrous. The purpose of thisportion of the presentation is to demonstrate the biblical basis for both theform of the liturgy and the theology of the Mass, firmly situated in both theOld and New Testaments, thus forever valid.

As a basis, or foundation, we must remember that the church and its form ofworship came to us from our Jewish roots. The church, outside of theEastern and Western Catholic traditions, has forgotten those roots of ourearly beginning. However, for us those roots are extremely important. As anexample, let me share a story I read recently.

A priest was teaching in a Catholic grad school located directly across the

street from a Jewish grad school. Once a year the students from bothschools would share a worship service together. One year the priest wasunable to prepare the Jewish children for the Mass and feared that theywould not be able to follow along and understand what was happening. Tohis delight, the priest discovered that in questioning the Jewish studentsafterward, they had understood the liturgy as well as his own Catholicstudents. They said that the Liturgy of the Word was just like their ownSabbath service in the synagogue on Saturday evening. The Offertoryprayers sounded like their meal prayers, and all the references to the Lambof God and the sacrifice reminded them of the Passover celebration.

The point of the story is that we as Christian Catholics are spiritually rootedin Judaism, we have been grafted into Israel [Rom 11:11-24]. In fact, aninability to grasp this fact causes a loss of appreciation for the churchsliturgical practice as being an inheritance from Judaism.


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In the early church a man named Marconi tried to rid the church of anyJewish remnants of influence including the Old Testament. The churchdeclared Marconi a heretic and the church has remained faithful to herJewish roots since. Much later after Luther the Protestant Reformers tried todo the same thing as Marconi and in many ways succeeded. They were sointent on the purity of a stripped and watered down liturgy that any realidentity to the churchs Jewish heritage was lost. In fact, what resulted wasthe rise and propagation of hatred and anti-Semitism (found especiallystrong in the writings of Martin Luther).

We know from scripture that Jesus was a devout and observant Jew, Heengaged in prayer, went to the synagogue faithfully, and participated in theTemple liturgy. His disciples followed His example, and later earlyChristians held to these Jewish traditions adding the new Christian breaking

of bread [Acts 2:42-47]. Later the believers in Christ were consideredsectarians and troublesome in the synagogue and were kicked out. Thenthese Christians took with them the synagogue liturgy and added on to it theliturgy of breaking bred, [the Eucharist].

Synagogue liturgy consists of the following: [notice the similarities to our ownliturgy]

The Litany A series of prayers blessing God for His love

The Confession Gods faithfulness to forgive mans sin

Intercessory Prayer Prior to the reading of the Holy Scripture

Scripture Readings Readings from the Law and the Prophets

Homily The readings were expanded upon and clarified for theapplication to daily life

Benediction Conclusion of service (benediction, which meansgood word)

To this traditional Jewish liturgy was added the Eucharist, and as a result theLiturgy of the Mass was formed into two parts, the Liturgy of the Word, andthe Liturgy of the Eucharist. The earliest and clearest reference to liturgycomes to us from the book of Acts. In the church at Antioch, about 46 A.D.,


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in what by then would have been a well established and structuredcommunity of believers, we find, As they were liturgizing [leitourgounton]before the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, Set apart for me Barnabasand Saul to the work to which I have called them. The protestant translationis, as they were ministering to the Lord, but the Greek word is not minister[diakonein], it is liturgy [leitourgos] meaning a common act of formal ritualworship. The early church was worshiping as they knew how from theirformer liturgical manner, but in a Christian Eucharistic form as early as AD46, just 16 years after the resurrection of Christ.

Edersheim, a Jewish Christian historian and theologian writes in his book:The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, The synagogue became thecradle of the church. As if that were not enough, the components of Jewishworship, which came into Christianity, did so in an orderly manner. This is

evident in that the basic six point structure of synagogue worship constitutesthe core of the liturgy. This dependency on order, verifies the historical andtheological truth of the worship practices of the early Christian church as thefulfillment of that which God had begun in Israel.

Our lectionary readings come from the Lords time in the synagogue. Thescripture readings then were based on a three year cycle just as they arenow in our contemporary liturgy. After the reading the people responded inan equivalent of our, Thanks be to God.

The Eucharistic Meal

At the midpoint of the Eucharistic Prayer, the priest invites the community toproclaim the mystery of faith. Notice we do not say a mystery, but themystery of faith, because the entirety of salvation is summed up in thespoken response that is focused on the Passion, Death, Resurrection andSecond Coming of Christ that are remembered as we partake of theEucharist. For this reason we need to examine this mystery as well as we

can with our finite minds to gain more understanding and lead us to a deeperappreciation and love for God. The Eucharistic celebration is our perfectway of telling God of our love for Him.

There are two important elements within the celebration of the Eucharist.First it is a meal. This is apparent to our senses as we eat and drink. For theJewish mind and Jewish tradition every meal was a sacred event forging


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bonds of love between the participants and Almighty God (considering Himto be the source of all food and every good thing). Besides the need fornourishment, meals had an important role in Jewish practice. To share ameal with a person was to share in his life.

Mark 14:12-26 sets the scene for the Last Supper within the context of thePassover meal. Jesus and His disciples celebrated the feast of unity with allof Judaism indicating that Jesus would offer Himself as the new, completeand final lamb sacrifice. The second important element is to share this mealwith Christ. This meal is a time of commitment to Christ, a time to share inthe life of Christ and to offer our lives to Him. As we celebrate the Eucharistwe place ourselves in union with Christ and with all other Christians.

Q. What is the meaning of the celebration of the Eucharist in mylife?

Throughout the scriptures we find the Lord providing for His people withphysical sustenance, whether it is manna, quail, or water from a rock. Whenreading scripture Christians have always taken these divine gifts asprefiguring Christs offering of Himself as the Bread of Life. Each and everymeal pointed to a sign which looked forward to the Messianic banquetaccording to the devout Jew. It is not a surprise then that Jesus took fulladvantage of this rich tradition surrounding a meal in order to grant to HisChurch the gift of salvation, Himself. By this Eucharistic act Christ entrustedto food the eternal value of His redemptive death and resurrection. Throughthe taking of bread and wine with thanksgiving to the Father, Jesus

consummated for all ages this form of worship of Himself and of everythingto God according to scripture: [Matt 26:26-29; Mk 14:22-25; Lk 22:15-20;Acts 2:42-47; 1Cor 11:17-34].


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Q. What do these scriptures tell me about the role of theEucharist in my life?

Q. What do these scriptures tell me about my need forcommitment to the total idea of the Eucharist?

I want to close this section with one last major point. In Hebrew thought theWord of God is powerful. It accomplishes its purposes. We read in thePsalms, By the word of the Lord the heavens were made. When Jesussays, This is my body, and This cup is the new covenant in my blood, wetake Him at His Word and see in His actions a mystery take place. It is asreal and exciting as the creation of the universe being made out of chaosand His own Incarnation in the womb of the Virgin Mary. God, who fed Hispeople in the desert, now in Christ entrusts to food the eternal redemptivevalue of His death and resurrection. This food has a unique significanceintimately united to the Lords self sacrifice. By meditating on the Lordsdeath and resurrection we can gain new insight from the Holy Spirit as to themeaning of how Jesus is the Bread of Life.

The Eucharistic Sacrifice

Out of all of the seven sacraments, probably the most misunderstood and

theologically abused sacrament is the mystery of the Eucharist being asacrifice. Some Catholics do not have a correct understanding, andProtestants are either afraid to address the issue or just condemn Catholicsthinking that they are sacrificing Christ all over again. The mystery of theEucharist is like a multifaceted diamond. To be appreciated for its complexbeauty, let us consider it from many angles. Even though we have spoken of


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the Eucharist as a meal, Catholic theology (both Easten and Western), hasalways insisted that it should be regarded as much more than a meal.

Hebrew worship consisted of the offering of a lamb during the PassoverFeast. Prefiguring Christ as the Lamb of God is one important facet of theEucharist. In 1Cor. 5:7-8, St. Paul sets forth the rationale for thisunderstanding, For our Paschal Lamb Christ has been sacrificed. Thereforelet us keep the feast. The lamb offered and consumed at the Seder meal,was eaten with a Hebrew mind set and understanding. They were eating thesacrificial lamb with one eye focused on the original sacrificial event whichhad previously taken place ages ago.

The Jewish worshiper was looking back to the original Passover Feast(celebrating their freedom from Egypt). They were also celebrating the

Passover feast in the present and they were looking forward to a futurePassover celebration all at the same time. Each Passover supperaccomplished the deliverance of Israel for another year and the reality ofcommunion between man and God.

When Christ established the Eucharist celebration for us, the same Hebrewmind set and understanding was applied because of the very words Jesusused on Holy Thursday night with His disciples around the table.

Prior to Passover Jesus entered the city of Jerusalem desiring to share thatfinal supper with his disciples. The disciples undoubtedly expected tocelebrate the actual Passover. What they were not expecting happened.Jesus Christ in the context of Thursdays supper, offered Himself as theLamb of God for the world (which is recorded in all the Gospels).

Also important to notice is the supper that Jesus and His disciples celebratedwas not the Seder supper of Passover. There was the breaking of breadand the drinking of the cup, but it was not the actual Passover because ittook place on Thursday evening after sunset (the beginning of Friday). The

Passover Seder had to take place after sunset on Friday evening, at thebeginning of the Jewish Sabbath, Saturday. The significance of Thursdaynight is that it was the day before Passover and there were no slaughteredlambs available from the temple to eat. Without the meat of the sacrificiallamb from the temple the meal could not have been the Seder Passovermeal. According to St. John 18:28, the death of Christ took place the nextday which would have been on Friday during the same time when the


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lambs were being sacrificed in the temple. Thus, the Last Supper was onThursday evening with the anticipation of Christs sacrifice at Golgotha onFriday. Jesus spoke to His disciples, I have eagerly desired to eat thisPassover with you before I suffer, for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it,until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God, [Luke 22:16]. Jesus desired to eatthe Passover meal with the disciples but He did not because He knew thatHe was to be the Lamb slain the next day (on Friday at the same time theother lambs were being sacrificed). Jesus indicated by His words during themeal that the bread and the wine were His body and blood, which wouldattain the full meaning when His body would be given up and His bloodshed. Further, we note that the Eucharist is more than a meal becauseScripture records that the cup, being the blood of the new covenant, did notreceive the berakah, the blessing, until after the meal was over, [Luke22:20]. Another indication that it was not the Passover meal.

The Lord Jesus Christ gives us the definitive explanation of how all of this isto be interpreted within the Hebrew context. In Luke 22:19 Jesus says, dothis in remembrance of me.The concept of memory is the key to a genuineJewish and biblical understanding of the Eucharist as a sacrifice. Thecelebration of the Pascal meal is not just a passive recollection of an event inthe distant past. By using the word remember,Jesus put into place thereality of the Eucharist being an ongoing event. The Hebrew word forremember means that the event being celebrated is actually present, and thepresent celebration has actually become a part of the past. In the Eucharistwe are actually in that upper room with Jesus and the disciples, Christsredemptive work. Therefore we can say that sacred memory leads to sacredreality. We are to regard the Eucharist in such a way that in our liturgicalreenactment of the meal it will bring us to the remembrance of the salvationHe won on the cross while motivating us to look forward to His return inglory. By Jesus instructing us to engage in memory, the most powerful ofhuman abilities, and the benefits of His redeeming death, offered once andfor all [Rom. 6:9] is applied to us now.

The proper understanding of the Eucharist as a sacrifice requires us toappreciate the fact that the Eucharist does not faintly recall, nor does itrepeat, the once and for all sacrifice of Christ. But by remembering the workof Christ which is eternal, and which transcends time and space, it is that bywhich we are saved unto eternal life: the Eucharist is the presentactualization of the Cross, the Tomb, the Resurrection and the SecondComing of Christ all at the same time. Thus the Eucharistic words of Jesus


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became standardized into liturgical form and enabled Paul to write 1Cor.11:23-26. A Liturgical Tradition was already set in place by 56 AD.

With this we can see that the covenant meal of promise held on HolyThursday was fulfilled on Good Friday with Christs sacrifice. The resultingcelebration of the Eucharist down through the ages brings the past activelyinto the present, and the present actively becomes part of the past. TheEucharistic Food that is received is the Victim who was once and for us andwho is ever present continuing His sacrifice within us as we participate in it.Now we can also understand why the bread is called a host from the Latinword meaning victim. This sacrificial Eucharist brings us into union withChrist and with one another as the body of Christ, For as often as you eatthis bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until Hecomes, [1Cor. 11:26]. The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a

participation [communion] in the blood of Christ, the bread we break, is it nota participation in the body of Christ, [1Cor. 10:16].

The Ritual Elements of the Mass

Humanity was created to adore. We cannot live without adoring somethingor someone, whether it is elements of creation or the Creator. Humanbeings find fulfillment in the act (or drama) of worship which centers a person

on the divine Holy Other. For this to be a truly spiritual activity it mustnecessarily involve the whole of a persons being: body, soul, spirit,emotions, and intellect, as well as incorporating the five senses of sight,smell, touch, taste, and hearing.

As an incarnational faith, Christianity has never hesitated to use the createdthings to point to the Holy One Who created everything. The Churchreceived this rich liturgical inheritance from her mother, Judaism. Ritual, as aspecial divine language, communicates more through sign and symbol thanwords. It has been said that if we do not learn the ritual language of God we

risk remaining inarticulate. In other words, we receive from ritual the tools tospeak to God and at the same time the tools to hear and understand God.

If you were taken on a tour of the Temple as an observer in Old Testamenttimes you would be told it contained the altar of sacrifice. You would seecandles burning and smell incense. Someone might be reading fromScriptures at the lectern and various postures of prayer would be observed.


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The Psalms tell of prayer postures, kneeling and genuflecting as being signsof adoration. Folded hands speak of submission; prostration declaresvulnerability and dependence, while raised hands are a sign of petition orpraise. We are encouraged to do all of these during worship. Candles usedin Jewish prayer for the Sabbath meal and in the Temple stood for joy. In thecase of death or sorrow, candles were placed by the head of the deceased.Incense is a symbol of prayer, Let my prayer come like incense before you,(Psm 141:2). The sweet odor reminds worshipers of prayer ascending toheaven and the loveliness of the heavenly Kingdom in the presence of theLord. With the use of incense God is also honored as in the days of old,especially when sensing the tabernacle, the sacraments and the Gospelreading. The people of God are honored when they are incensed. Such isthe richness of incarnational theology.

While the people of Israel believed they were a priestly nation, just as we arespoken of in the Bible as being priests and kings to our God, weacknowledge that there are those who are set aside to fill the office of apriest and that they are to reflect the High Priestly office of Christ Jesus. Thepriests were to dress, as God decreed, in a certain manner. Some of thosevestments are still used in the church today. The Alb, the long white outervestment, and the miter which is the ceremonial headdress for a bishop, arespoken of in Exodus 28. All the vestments used today give us a spiritualpicture of our position in Christ. The white Alb represents the believersrighteousness in Christ Jesus. The Cincture or rope tied at the waistrepresents the girdle of truth, and the Stole, the Yoke of Christ. Theseasonal colored Chasuble worn by the priest who serves the Eucharist,represents the covering, or the outpouring, of the Holy Spirit upon thebeliever.

During the Mass there is the Offertory Procession. This is a continuationfrom Old Testament worship which also finds its fulfillment in New TestamentChristian worship. In Gen. 14:18-20; 28:22; Ex. 23:15-16 and 19 (a tenth);Lev. 2:12; 27:30-33; Num. 18:12; Deut. 14:22-29; 16:13-17; 18:1-5 and 26:2;

Neh. 10:35; Pr.3:9; Heb. 7:1-9; we see God asking us to give back to him10% of the 100% of what he has provided for us as a gift of love and an actof worship. The ideal long term investment plan is to set aside 10% insavings and live reasonable on the rest and not be in debt. That is Godsideal plan. That does not include the debt of a home, of course. St. Paulgave clear instructions in 1Cor. 16:2, On the first day of every week, eachone of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income


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The significance of not tithing and giving offerings to the Lords work isspelled out in Malachi 3:6-18. The early church fathers such as Justin Martyr,Renaeus, Tertullian, Cyprian, Irenaius, and Ambrose all wrote to the effectthat, God has received a tenth part of Himself, and therefore it is not lawfulfor a man to retain what God has reserved for Himself.

Jesus said Give unto Caesar what is Caesars, and unto God what belongsto God. What is meant for the Lord we will not keep; it will be spent in someneedless way, perhaps even to include sickness, or some loss. We shouldgive to the Lord with love and thankful hearts in response to Gods great giftof grace, salvation and the many blessings He constantly gives to us, forGod loves a cheerful giver, [2Cor. 9:6-7].

Q. What is my heart-felt response to Malachi 3:6-18?

Q. How does my giving reflect my attitude and love for ChristJesus and what He has done for my life?

Another Old Testament gesture that has an important place in NewTestament worship is the Laying on of, or the imposition of, hands. Theordination of men to the priesthood or as a king was not complete without

the laying on of hands and the anointing with oil, [Lev. 16:20-22; Ex. 30:22-23; 1Sam. 16:13]. The imposition of hands is then carried over to our time inthe invocation of the Holy Spirit to transform the bread and the wine of theEucharist, priestly ordination, the sacrament of baptism, confirmation,absolution and the solemn blessing.


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Both instrumental and vocal music were highly regarded as worship in thesynagogue and temple. Responsive singing was the norm andcongregational participation was encouraged. Readings from the Scriptureswere chanted as were the Psalms. The guiding principle of the music wasthat it should always be consistent with the scripture readings and the homilyand not become predominant or entertaining.

The desire for our church is that the experience of worship within the liturgy,which is presented to our senses throughout the Mass, will make a claim onour hearts and minds and we will take ownership of it all. Hearing the Lordthrough the liturgy of the Mass should enable us to respond to His call andour response as worshipers will echo Isaiahs answer to Gods call. Here Iam Lord, send me. Liturgy then takes the things of this world, translatesthem into the language of divinity, and impregnates our spirit to send us forth

to love and serve the Lord.

The Liturgical Cycle of the Church Year

Time is a most precious commodity. Yet time can be a trap or a gift. In thecelebration of the cycle of the church year, our Judeo-Christian Traditionoffers us the opportunity to make sure that time is a gift from God. Time trulyis a gift. As we live through time, according to the divine clock of the

liturgical cycle, it brings to us the reality of eternity. The whole purpose ofreferring to a liturgical cycle is to point us toward the life of Christ and thenever ending, ever repeatable cycle of time and events that lead us to Christand eternity.

The first generation Christians inherited and accepted a fully developedliturgy form from Judaism, including its understanding of sacred time whichhad its own cycle of Jewish celebrations. We regard a liturgical daybeginning at sundown of the previous day so that a Saturday evening Massis as valid as a Sunday morning Mass.

The central liturgical celebration of early Christianity was the commemorationof the Lords resurrection observed not only on Easter but every Sunday.The seven day week is not a division based on nature, but rooted in Genesisdescribing God as resting on the seventh day, thus providing His chosen


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people with a model for life. The Jewish rabbis presented the Sabbath as acelebration of creation and a foretaste of the coming Kingdom.

The Church consciously took over significant aspects of various Jewishfeasts. The spring festivals of Passover and Pentecost came into theChurch as the observance of the fifty days of Easter and Pentecost. It isonly fitting that the memorial of the slaying of the Paschal lamb should becelebrated as the slaying of the Lamb of God and that the celebration of thegiving of the Law at Pentecost should be translated into the birth of theChurch, the fulfillment of the law, and the grace of salvation for all.

The autumn feasts of Rosh Hashanah [New Years day] and Yom Kippur[Day of Atonement] came into the Christian liturgy as the season of Advent,originally six weeks of preparation. St. Jerome saw in advent the same

renewal theme found in Judaism with the penitential emphasis and readingsfrom Isaiah common to both Judaism and Christianity. The Jewish feast ofSuccoth and our feast of Epiphany (the Eastern Church celebrates thebaptism of Christ, the Western Church the visit of the Wise Men). Both stressthe importance of water and light and are still given significant importancetoday.

Judaism also holds a unique reverence for martyrs. Historically the first feastdays noted in the Christian calendar were those of martyrs with theEucharistic celebration actually held on the tomb of the one remembered.The practice of this still continues with the use of an altar stone underneaththe altar cloths. The remembrance of feast days for saints of old are seen asboth the continuation of the Lords passion and death enacted in the lives ofHis people and the victory of His resurrection in their lives.

Human nature seems to have a basic desire to share in the experience ofothers, especially those we love. It is significant that first and foremost, inthe liturgical cycle of the Church year, we live with Christ in the sequence ofHis life. We walk with Him from His birth to His baptism, share in His

ministry, suffer through His death, rejoice in His resurrection and ascension,receive the sending of the Holy Spirit, and participate in the formation of HisChurch, all the while looking forward to His glorious Second Coming. Asmembers of Christs body we have the privilege to participate in this divinecycle repeatedly year after year, and prayerfully, its significance will beimplanted into our hearts and minds.


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Participating in the sacred calendar of events is an important way to sanctifythe secular calendar year particularly in this post-Christian society. It remindsus that there are still some people who march to a different drummer.Attending Mass regularly can be seen as a powerful act of Christian witnessin a society that is going pagan. Pausing to pray and worship during Mass,especially on the Lords Day, is an acknowledgment of our origin and ourfinal destiny in God our father. It is the sure conviction of Christian faith thattime spent in worship is not only preparation for eternity but the genuineforetaste of eternity. Christ redeemed mankind and now through theliturgical cycle, Christ now redeems our time. Catholic theology subscribesto the principle that one can determine our doctrine by observing our liturgybecause what we believe is enshrined in our worship and is the bedrock ofbiblical theology powerfully conveyed in sign and symbol.

Mass Prayers and Biblical Prayers

I have asserted that the Mass is biblical, theological and traditional incontent. We are praying the scripture at every Mass. Here are just a fewexamples from the Mass.

Order of the MassINTRODUCTORY RITE

Priest: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son,

and of the Holy Spirit [Mt. 28:19].People: Amen Let all the people say, Amen! [1Chron. 16:36].Priest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the

Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.People: And also with you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of

God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all [2Cor 13:13].The Lord be with you! [Ruth 2:4].

PENITENTIAL RITE

All: I confess to Almighty God, to you my brothers and sisters, that Ihave sinned through my own fault

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for oneanother, that you may be healed[James 5:16].


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in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and inwhat I have failed to do;

The tongueexists among our members as a world of malicedefiling the whole body[James 3:6]. Sofor one who knows theright thing to do and does not do it, it is sin [James 4:17].

Priest: May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, andbring us to everlasting life. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and

and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from allunrighteousness [1John 1:19].

All: Lord have mercy.All: Christ have mercy. grace, mercy, and peace from God the father

and Christ Jesus our Lord[1Tim. 1:2].

THE GLORIA

All: Glory to God in the highest, and peace to His people on earth.Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whomHis favor rests [Lk. 2:14].

Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world:have mercy on us;

Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world[Jn 1:29].

you are seated at the right hand of the Father; receive ourprayer. It is Christ who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right

hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us [Rom.8:34].

PROFESSION OF FAITH

All: We believe in one God, the father, the Almighty, Maker ofheaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen.

For in Him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visibleand the invisible [Col. 1:16].

For us men and for our salvation He came down from heaven:No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has comedown from heaven, the Son of Man [Jn 3:13].

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life, Whoproceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and theSon He is worshiped and glorified.

It shall come to pass in the last days, God SaysI will pour out aportion of my Spirit upon all flesh [Acts 2:17].and I will ask Father, and He will give you another advocate to bewith you always[John. 14:16].


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We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.so we, though many, are one body in Christ and individually partsof one another [Rom. 15:5].

LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST

Priest: Blessed are you, Lord, God all creation. Through Yourgoodness we have this bread to offer, which earth has given andhuman hands have made. It will become for us the bread of life.

I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats ofthis bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I willgive for the life of the world [John 6:51].

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation. Through Yourgoodness we have this wine to offer, fruit of the vine and work ofhuman hands. It will become our spiritual drink.

Then He took the cup, gave thanks, and said: Take this and shareit among yourselves; [Lk. 22:17-18] Jesus said to them. I tell youthe truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink Hisblood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinksmy blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eatsmy flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.[John 6:53-56]

People: Blessed be God forever. Blessed be God! [Psalm 68:36]

EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

Priest: Lift up your hearts.People: We lift them up to the Lord. Let us reach out our hearts toward

God in Heaven [Lam. 3:41].

Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.People: It is right to give Him thanks and praise. give thanks toGod the

Father through Him [Col. 3:17]. We always give thanks to God,the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ [Col.1:13].

PREFACE ACCLAMATION

All: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of Power, and might, heaven andearth are full of Your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed isHe who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.


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Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts! they cried to one another.All the earth is filled with His glory! [Is. 6:3].Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!Hosanna in the highest! [Mk. 12:9-10].

EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

Priest: Lord, You are holy indeed, the fountain of all holiness. Let YourSpirit come upon these gifts to make them holy, so that theymay become for us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Before He was given up to death, a death He freely accepted,He humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even thedeath on the cross [Phil. 2:8].This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life inorder to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it

down on my own. I have the power to lay it down, and power totake it up again [Jn 10:17-18].

Priest: May all of us who share in the body and blood of Christ bebrought together in unity by the Holy Spirit.

Because the loaf of bread is one, we through many, are one body,For we all partake of the one loaf [1Cor. 10:17].

COMMUNION RITEThe Lords Prayer [Mt 6:9-13]

Priest: Deliver us, Lord, from evil, and grant us peace in our day.In your mercy keep us free from sin and protect us

I do not ask that You take them out of the world but that Youkeep them from the evil one[Jn 17:15].

Priest: Lord Jesus Christ, You said to Your apostles: I leave you peace,my peace I give to you

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you [Jn. 14:27].

Priest: The peace of the Lord be with you always.Peace be with you [Jn 20:19].

BREAKING OF THE BREAD

People: Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world: have mercyon us.

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and said Behold,the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. [Jn 1:29]


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COMMUNION

Priest: This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.Happy are those who are called to His supper.

Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast ofThe Lamb [Rev. 19:9].

All: Lord, I am not worthy but only say the word and I shall be healed.Lord, I am not worthy to have You enter under my roof; only saythe word and my servant will be healed [Mat. 9:8].

DISMISSAL

Priest: The Mass is ended, go in peace to love and serve the Lord.Your faith has saved you; go in peace [Lk. 7:50]. Serve nowthe Lord, your God, and His people Israel [2Chron. 35:3].

These examples do not constitute every sentence of the Mass, but they giveus the assurance that we truly are praying scripture and focusing on the lifeof Christ and the reality of His presence with us.

As we move on in our study of sacramental life we are now brought to theplace of examining personal spiritual growth through each of the sacraments

which are part of the Mass at various times of celebration.


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The Two Sacraments of InitiationBaptism and Confirmation

Eastertide is the season in which we traditionally focus our attention on

Baptism, the sacrament of rebirth and new life. Whether baptized as aninfant or as an adult, the meaning of this first sacrament of initiation needs tobe explored again and again so as to attain a true appreciation of itssignificance and power.

Everyone who is born into this world possesses a sinful nature which isreferred to as original sin: that is, our will that is opposed to the will of God.The sacramental application of baptism deals with Original Sininherited fromour parents, through the fall of Adam and Eve, and it is cleansed in thesaving waters of baptism. The Sacrament of baptism is preferable by

immersion in water [water being the obvious symbol of the Living Water ofChrist] with a person who desires to make a profession of faith as an adult,or by faith for a couple to unite their baby to the body of Christ, the Church.If baptism by immersion is not available or desired, it is sufficient to pourwater over the persons head three times, in the name of the father, the Son,and the Holy Spirit. This too is a washing and also represents theoutpouring of the Holy Spirit. In baptism the water is both an agent of deathand life. The old man [old nature] of sin is put to death as the personenters into Christs death on the cross just as the Egyptians were killed in the

waters that saved Israel as they made their exodus out of Egypt. In eitherform of baptism as the person emerges from the water they are joining in thevictorious resurrection of Christ, the Paschal Mystery, and becomes a newcreation sealed by the Holy Spirit. They are a member of Christ and withChrist become a joint heir of the kingdom of heaven. In baptism, sins arewashed away and the gift of eternal life is given. [Matt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:16;John 3:5, 15:4-6; Acts 2:38, 22:16; Rom 6:1-4; 1Cor 12:13; Gal. 3:27; Col.2:10-13; 1Pet. 3:18-21].

Each person to be baptized is presented by two believing sponsors. In the

case of an adult, the sponsors witness to the church of the baptized personsconversion and commitment. In the case of children the Godparents pledgethat they will see that the child is raised in the faith and in the Church. In allcases, the sponsors continue to provide spiritual guidance for the newChristian.


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Infant Baptism

First, the practice of infant baptism says many things to us. Infant baptismemphasizes that the gift of faith is just that, a gift on which we can never

make a personal boast. Gods love is go great that He offers Himself to usbefore we can ever return His love [1Jn. 4:19].

Secondly, we learn that the Lord withholds His love from no one. We arethe ones who turn from or choose to walk away from His love baptized ornot baptized.

Third, intelligence is not a prerequisite, only an attitude of openness ofheart. And who is more open than an infant? Surely this is the reason Christurged the apostles to allow the little ones to come to Him.

And the people were bringing children to Him that He mighttouch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus sawthis He became indignant [angry, furious] and said to them, Letthe children [infants-brephos] come to me, do not prevent them,for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I sayto you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like achild will not enter it. Then He embraced them and blessedthem, placing His hands on them. [Mk. 10:13-16]

Fourth, infant baptism in the New Testament Church fulfills the OldTestament rite of infant circumcision when eight days old. Infants werecircumcised as a sign of the Old Covenant, were made a member of thefamily of Israel, and then were expected to take on the responsibilities ofGods people as they matured in life. So infants of believing parents of theNew Covenant in Christ are incorporated into the New People of God, theChurch, by the rite of baptism and likewise are expected to grow in faith andresponsibility as they mature.

Fifth, we find the practice of infant baptism fully articulated in the New

Testament when whole households were baptized, [Acts 10:24, 48, 16:15;16:32-33; 1Cor. 1:16]. Origen wrote early in the third century [late 200s] thatthe practice of infant baptism came directly from the apostles.St. Augustine cites that the universal practice of infant baptism in the Churchis because of its belief in original sin. He stated, infant baptism is apowerful statement of our belief in divine initiative and grace. Just as theinfant Jews were born into the Chosen People simply by virtue of their


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parentage and not due to their intelligent choice or self worth, we Christiansare born into a family of faith because of Gods grace and providence andnever by our own doing, even if we are an adult convert. [Gods love-1 Jn.4:19].

The sense of a new beginning is echoed again and again in the baptismalliturgy. The child is presented with a white garment, which reminds us of anew found innocence and also of the new man with whom St. Paul urgesus to clothe ourselves [Eph. 4:24]. The priest touches the ears and the lipsof the newly baptized infant in imitation of the Lord. From then on the infantis to be prepared to hear the Word of God and proclaim it with the aid of thewhole Church, the communion of saints, and to live totally for God. Theinfant is also anointed with the oil of charism, as did the priests of old, whichdedicates the child to God and places him in the priestly role of the Church

which Christ formed. Having put on the new man and having received thecommission to hear and spread the gospel, the parents are given a candle litfrom the Easter candle. This symbolizes the light of Christ for the infant; forit is in His light that the child must walk to attain the fullness of salvation.

Within this baptismal practice the role of the parents is at the very heart ofthe matter. The spiritual burden is on the parents. They renounce sin,profess faith, and it is their responsibility to see that their lives give testimonyto the faith they profess since they are the first Christian influence for thechild. Then the Godparents and the whole of the Church are the extendedfamily who are to support and bring up the child to the fullness of faith, forbaptism is not the culmination or the completion of salvation but only thebeginning because we believe that salvation is a growing process thatrequires a daily commitment.

Each time we enter into the church sanctuary we bless ourselves with Holywater, which recalls for us our Baptism. This sign is an indication of ourcontinued willingness to be faithful to our baptismal promise to die to self andsin and live only for God. It is also a prayer to the Lord, that He who began a

good work in us on the day of our baptism, will complete that work until Hecomes again.

Another area that must be covered is the question concerning a child whodies without baptism. What happens to that child? Two areas must beexplored to answer this question. First, the mere desire of the Christianparents to have had the child baptized is from an attitude of their intention


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and God looks on the heart. Second, the scripture is clear that there is anage of accountability when the child is fully aware of right and wrong. Whatthat age is, is a mystery because it is not stated clearly and it is different forevery child. In either case the Church believes that the child under the ageof accountability and with the intent of the believing parents for the child tohave been baptized yet that child dies prematurely, the child goes directlyinto the presence of Christ. We cannot limit Gods love, mercy, andcompassion, nor try to put Gods dealings with us in a box of ourunderstanding. St. Thomas Aquinas stated that God is not bound to thesacraments as we know them. Although the sacraments are surely a meansof grace they are not the only means by which God can affect our salvation,so we place such a child into the Fathers loving care.

Q. What is the purpose of Baptism?

Q. Why does the Church practice infant Baptism?

Q. How is the theme of new life communicated throughthe symbols used in Baptism?


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Confirmation

The Sacrament of Confirmation is referred to by many names, such as theSacrament of the Holy Spirit, the Sacrament of Completion, the Sacrament

of Maturity, and the Sacrament of Christian Witness.

Confirmation is the sealing of the baptismal commitment (or covenant).Because of this close link, the Confirmation sponsor ideally should be thesame people who stood with the candidate at Baptism. It is helpful toexplain this rite of Confirmation as the most significant personal affirmationof Baptism. We view this sacrament as the action of the Holy Spirit sent byJesus as our Advocate/Counselor in bestowing on the candidate the fullnessof the Holy Spirit [Luke 11:13; Acts 1:4-8; 8:12-17; 2Cor. 1:21-22; Gal. 4:6].

As a successor of the apostles, the Bishop administers Confirmation toemphasize the relationship of the first Pentecost in the early Church to ourown personal Pentecost experienced through this sacrament [Acts 2].The Bishops presence also illustrates that the faith we profess goes back tothe teachings of the apostles and their practice of the impartation of

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Catechism of the Old Catholic Church

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