Feb 26 Thu
Why do we refer to Christ’s Passion and Death in the Mass?
The Mass is the sacramental memorial of Christ’s Passion and Death.
A part of the Canon, called Anamnesis or Memorial, comes after the acclamation of the Consecration. In it the Church calls to mind the Lord’s Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven.
We have just been asked to “proclaim the mystery of faith.” And what is this mystery? Precisely the redeeming sacrifice of Christ celebrated in these rites.
We are now reminded that the Church is acting in memory of our Lord and obeying his explicit command: “Do this in memory of me.” We are mindful of Christ’s mandate and profess fidelity to Christ’s express indication. Thus, the Church declares that the Eucharist is a sacramental reenactment of Christ’s death on Calvary and not an attempt to “add to” the sacrifice of the Cross.
Pope Saint John Paul II wrote: “This sacrificial value is expressed earlier in every celebration by the words with which the priest concludes the presentation of the gifts, asking the faithful to pray ‘that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.’ … Thus, by virtue of the consecration, the species of bread and wine re-present in a sacramental, unbloody manner the bloody propitiatory sacrifice offered by Him on the cross to His Father for the salvation of the world.”
We are not mere spectators; rather, we play an active part: we offer. But we should make a distinction here. The common priesthood of all baptized persons empowers us to offer the Mass. On the other hand, the priest, having received the sacrament of Holy Orders, possesses the ministerial priesthood that empowers him to celebrate the Mass.
Lay people are members of the people of God, which is ‘holy.’ United to the entire Church, we now offer Christ’s sacrifice with the desire that it becomes the center of our daily life and apostolic eagerness. Meanwhile, “the Church presses forwards amid persecutions of the world and the consolations of God, announcing the cross and death of the Lord until He comes.”
We not only announce what happened in the past but also prophesy what is to come: the final fulfillment of the kingdom, the light that knows no setting.
The Third and Fourth Eucharistic Prayers show:
- The expectation of the coming of the Lord is explicitly stated.
- The sacrificial character of the Eucharist is stressed, showing that Christ is the direct object of the offering.
- An element of thanksgiving has been added to that of memorial.
Following the footprints of Jesus, our life should become a prolonged Mass. Here is a summary or program of life by which we can achieve this ideal:
- To remember Christ’s passion and death. It delivered us from the real evil, sin; and merited for us all true good.
- To experience constantly the joy of his resurrection.
- To proclaim his resurrection and ascension, through our words and deeds.
- To center our day on this holy sacrifice, while we look forward to Christ’s coming.