Dear Friends,
Having briefly discussed the Our Father, we continue forward to the Sign of Peace. We do this as a plea for peace for those in the Church and for the entire human family; we also do this as an expression of mutual charity. We can say that Scripture also gives us insight into the Sign of Peace; at the Sermon on the Mount in St. Matthew’ Gospel, Jesus says, “If you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift (5:23-24).” Nevertheless, we should reconcile with others before Mass—and go to Confession as well. We also know that Jesus commissioned the 72 disciples to go to various towns to heal the sick, drive out demons, and proclaim that the Kingdom of God is at hand, and Jesus gives this instruction: “Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household (Luke 10:5).’” At the Sign of Peace, we offer the peace of Christ, which is peace the world cannot give (John 14:27), to each other.
The General Instruction of the Roman Missal reminds us that the Sign of Peace should be sober and offered to those nearest to us. In other words, the Sign of Peace isn’t a social hour or time to greet everyone in the church. We ought not attempt to garner the attention of people on the other side of the church or 10 pews away from us. I’ve mentioned before that the challenge to the Sign of Peace is not offering Christ’s peace at Mass, but rather, to offer the peace of Christ throughout the week, in moments when other people may frustrate us, annoy us, disrespect us, or harm us. In these moments, Christ challenges us to offer His peace.
After the Sign of Peace, we begin the Fraction Rite. We could say that it begins with the Agnus Dei, Lamb of God. In the Gospel of St. John, John the Baptist proclaims, upon seeing Jesus, to his followers, “‘Behold, the Lamb of God (1:29).’” John the Baptist wasn’t saying Jesus was gentle like a lamb; his point was that Jesus is the Passover Lamb, the One who will be sacrificed and offered to save God’s people from death. This is essentially what we are chanting or reciting: Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. We finish the last verse with “grant us peace.”
As we chant the Agnus Dei, the priest breaks, or fractions, the consecrated Host. In the early Church, the celebration of the Eucharist (Mass) was regularly referred to as the “Breaking of the Bread”—think about the passage of the Road to Emmaus, in which two disciples recognize the Risen Lord “in the breaking of the bread (Luke 24:13-35).” By actually breaking the consecrated Host, we hearken back to Christ’s action of breaking bread at the Last Supper (along with the miraculous Multiplication of Loaves and Fish), and this fraction signifies that the faithful are made one body in Christ.
The priest then drops a small piece of the consecrated Host into the chalice. This signifies the unity of Christ’s Body and Blood in the work of salvation. In the early Church, it was also a sign of unity with one’s bishop: a small piece from the bishop’s Eucharistic celebration would be taken to communities farther away and placed in the chalices there. It is a reminder to us that we are not individual and rogue churches; rather, we are united to a broader and wider Church, united first with the Bishop of Toledo and the Church of Toledo, and then ultimately united with the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church.
There may be consecrated Hosts in the tabernacle, so those are then brought to the altar. We believe that after the consecration, the Blessed Sacrament remains the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ, even after Mass is over. The priest silently prays one of two prayers: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, who by the will of the Father and the work of the Holy Spirit, through your Death gave life to the world, free me by this, your most holy Body and Blood, from all my sins and from every evil; keep me always faithful to your commandments, and never let me be parted from you,” or “May the receiving of your Body and Blood, Lord Jesus Christ, not bring me to judgment and condemnation, but through your loving mercy be for me protection in mind and body and a healing remedy.” These are prayers for the priest in preparation for the reception of Holy Communion.
We are saints under construction, offering the peace of Christ to each other and to the world. Have a great week!
In Christ,
Fr. Matt