Diocese of Toledo, Ohio

Browsing From the Pastor

August 28th/29th Bulletin Article

Dear Friends,

We hopefully conclude the Eucharistic Prayer in this week’s bulletin installment on the Mass. Last week, we discussed the Epiclesis—calling down the Holy Spirit—and the Consecration. After the Consecration with the elevation of the Host and Chalice, the priest proclaims, “The Mystery of Faith,” and the congregation responds with one of the options for response. What’s interesting is that the “Mystery of Faith” doesn’t refer to the people’s response; the Mystery of Faith (Mysterium Fidei in Latin) is the Eucharist, the Blessed Sacrament. We trust what Christ and His Church reveal and teach us: while the Host and Chalice look like ordinary bread and wine, it is truly the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

The next element of the Eucharistic Prayer is Anamnesis, which is a Greek word connected to remembrance. This element of the Eucharist Prayer is about fulfilling the command received from Jesus Christ to keep His memorial, recalling His blessed Passion and Death, glorious Resurrection, and Ascension into Heaven. At various times before, I have mentioned that the people of Israel saw a memorial as something more than just looking back and remembering an event. A memorial made that past event present to them; for them, a memorial was as though time travel occurred and that past event was being re-lived right before them. This is still the case for us. The Anamnesis brings forward the reality that, during Mass and especially during the Eucharistic Prayer, Christ’s saving Passion and Death and glorious Resurrection are present before us. In a sense, we are standing at the foot of the Cross at Calvary when we go to Mass. This is why the Mass has been referred to as the “un-bloody re-presentation” of Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross.

Recognizing that we are witnessing our Lord Jesus Christ offering Himself in obedience to the Father, we turn to the next element of the Eucharistic Prayer: Offering. In the Holy Spirit, we offer Christ, the Spotless Victim, to the Father, but Jesus is not the only one being offered. Through this, we are invited, called, and challenged to offer ourselves to the Father. As members of the Body of Christ, in order to be more fully united with Jesus Christ, we unite ourselves to His offering, imitating Him and offering our very lives to God the Father.

The next element of the Eucharistic Prayer is Intercession. In this element, we express that we celebrate Mass not on our own, but in communion, joined to the entire Church, mentioning Pope Francis and our local bishop, Bishop Daniel Thomas. We offer Mass in communion with the Church in Heaven (Church Triumphant), recognizing all of the saints and angels present at Mass with us. Making this offering, we are praying for ourselves, that we may receive the fruits of the Mass and the fruits of Christ’s saving actions. We express our intercessions not just for the Church on earth (Church Militant), but we also pray for all of the souls in Purgatory and all who have passed away with the sign of faith (Church Suffering).

The last part of the Eucharistic Prayer is the Final Doxology. This is always the same: “Through Him, with Him, and in Him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.” We are offering everything—our lives, our prayers, our offerings—for the glory of God, for the glory of the Father. We give thanks, acclaim His holiness, call down the Holy Spirit, recall the memorial of Christ’s Passion and Resurrection, intercede for others, offer ourselves, and consecrate bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ for the glory of God. The response is simply, yet it should be resounding: Amen! Amen is a word meaning more than simply, “I believe.” Amen means, “it is so,” or “indeed,” or even, “you better believe it!”

I had hoped to give examples of the text from the Eucharist prayer, but space prevented me. We move next week (only one week) to the Our Father. If you kept my bulletin columns from last summer, you’ll have my reflections on the Our Father.

We are saints under construction, living for the greater glory of God. Have a great week!

In Christ,

Fr. Matt

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