The Mystery of the Blessed Sacrament

I posted a status today on Facebook saying that I wanted to understand the Blessed Sacrament and judging from some of the comments, I think I should clarify what I meant.

The Holy Eucharist is the source and summit of the Catholic faith (I think this is from the Catechism, but it is definitely on the Vatican website and I've heard/seen it many times before) and as Roman Catholics, we believe that Jesus Christ becomes truly and mystically present in the sacred species during Holy Mass.  The Creator of the world is physically and truly present in Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Holy Communion; not just mere symbols as Protestantism erroneously claims.

So if that's true, I want to know the power behind this Mystery of God.  What does this mean for pious Christians who approach the Holy Table to receive these beautiful Gifts?  I feel like this is something that is believed in theory among Catholics (although Orthodox seem to wholeheartedly believe in the True Presence), but to me, a lack of Faith seems to prevent us from experiencing the fullness of this amazing Truth.  It's so sad.  These are things that I notice:

People that attend Holy Mass and receive the Lord seem so hasty about it.  There is this crazy idea that we need as many Extraordinary 'Ministers' of Holy Communion so we can speed along the distribution.  And although the Second Vatican Council did not intend this at all, people seem to think this is another role to be filled like ushers, and greeters, and people who collect the offering, and what not.

Not to be judgmental, but the way in which a lot of people receive Holy Communion distressed me to the point where I just don't look (there are other reasons I don't look such as the fact that that is a very intimate encounter to have the personal visitation of our Lord and God and should not be disturbed by my eyes).  These really fast Signs of the Cross, the quick and hurried bows (or nods of the head)...if people even remember to do them (technically, if you're going to bow, it has to be three bows...not just one...).  People walking while receiving Holy Communion.  And also not many people offer prayers of thanksgiving for the Heavenly Food, the Bread of Angels, which they just received.  Even more, many leave the church while processing away from the Communion line before Mass even ends!

What in the world?!  This is just unacceptable and I just want to scream every time I witness these at Holy Mass.  I've never seen anything like this in the Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy (actually I love how they receive Holy Communion).  How Communion is received in the Extraordinary Form is more acceptable, but still sometimes seems like a lack of piety.  As judgmental as that sounds, this is what I've observed.

But I think the reason that I'm seeing this (and maybe you all have noticed it as well) is because we don't take the time to ponder what we have in the Blessed Sacrament.  Another thing that bothers me is no one likes to talk about it either (although I can almost always get a conversation about the glories of the Blessed Sacrament from a lot of Orthodox...*cough* Catholics, we need to step it up).  Why wouldn't we want to share and give thanks together (not just as Holy Mass) about these things?

Since we are all trying to get to Heaven and should be trying to encourage each other towards our Heavenly Home, why not speak of these Mysteries and help each other to receive them more reverently?  I can't tell you how many texts I've sent to Catholics trying to engage them to talk about these things to not get an answer back...

Now, about the comments on my status.  Both were from two Christians (one Catholic and one Orthodox) whose piety I greatly admire and thank God for how prayerful they both are and both are very spiritual although the Catholic has a hard time expressing it in words but I know it's there.  Well, he missed the point I was trying to make, and she (Orthodox and very much on fire with the Holy Ghost, Deo gratias..and she has really been accompanying me on this journey and it's always great to hear from her because she gives me much good things to think and consider and sends me some great sermons too) wanted to emphasize the "mystery" part of the Sacrament and just have Faith to accept it which is not exactly where I was going, but she did tell me that no matter what we feel or know or do not know, we must trust that the Lord is working on us and purifying us with His Grace through the Sacraments even if we cannot tell.

I think this is key because I do not really feel "changed" or anything after receiving the Sacraments and it sometimes makes me wonder if I 1) received them unworthily or if I 2) wasn't good enough or something and I would get frustrated because these holy means of Grace are supposed to guard us from sin and despair   yet that only seems to last for maybe hours at best...  And I kinda think to myself, "God must be stronger than that, so maybe the problem is me..." but there's like no help to correct this.  Priests don't seem to take me seriously when I ask.  My knees are probably all crusty from trying to pray for answers on this so much.  Other Catholics don't really know what to say through lack of catechesis (or indifference...I've noticed a lot of traditional Catholic men (I don't know many women) seem pretty indifferent to my spiritual life probably because I don't know as much as they do and as with most guys, you have to show yourself worthy of them ugh), and if I talk to Orthodox men, I'm going to get beaten over the head with the "You need to leave that heretical church and join the True Church so you can get True Sacraments and you won't have this problem!"

Is God torturing me, again, this is another desire that I have that He, for whatever reason, is withholding from me, and what spiritual good is it really doing?  I cannot tell at the moment, but maybe something good will come of it.

So I'm going to be in the Scriptures and in the Catechisms again trying to soak in all these words and maybe read some Fathers along the way about the Holy Eucharist and see if that helps a little more.

I just want to run to my Lord and have Him welcome me with open arms and cast away all my doubts and fears and just be wrapped in His Love and have Him keep me there safe from all the spiritual trauma that I feel I go through (internally) on a daily basis.  Somehow, I'm still in the game!

Reminder (rant) About Catholic Requiem (funeral) Masses

Read this article about a successor of the Holy Apostles, His Excellency Jaime Soto, Bishop of the Diocese of Sacramento, who reiterated the proper guidelines for Masses for the deceased.

Requiem Mass (Extraordinary Form)

I am in agreement with everything His Excellency said concerning the proper guidelines when offering a Requiem Mass in the Ordinary Form for the departed souls of our Christian brethren.

Points I would like to make in addition to this article:

1.  When funerals or weddings take place within the context of Holy Mass, the rites are secondary to the Holy Sacrifice.
2.  It is inappropriate to commemorate or celebrate the lives of the deceased in the context of Holy Mass as this can and should be reserved for another time that day or otherwise (like a reception or dinner after burial for example).
3.  No one has the authority to declare that a deceased loved one is without-a-doubt already in Heaven (otherwise, why even offer Mass in the first place for the repose of their souls...) and no affirmations should be made to suggest that they are, whether at the funeral or any time after, unless the Church infallibly declares one to be a member of the Church Triumphant by canonizing him or her.  This is a privilege reserved to the Apostolic See alone.

When we offer Holy Mass, we are worshiping God first and foremost, and all attention should be directed towards Him.  At Requiem Masses, we offer the Sacrifice to God for the salvation of the souls of the departed, begging the mercy of Christ when said person appears before His dreaded Judgment Seat to account for the good and evil said person has done throughout his or her life, and that if they have sins to atone for, that they pass swiftly through the fires and pains of Purgatory so that they may enjoy the Beatific Vision and the company of the Blessed Virgin and the Saints.

Because it is still Holy Mass, the Consecration of the Gifts takes place and the bread and wine which are offered are miraculously transformed by the Holy Ghost into the Sacred Body and Precious Blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  The Pascal Mystery is re-presented as Christ immolates Himself again (but in an unbloody manner) on our behalf for our sins and offenses, and presents Himself (and us) anew to the Father through the power of the Holy Ghost and we, the faithful, receive the fruits of the Salvation which has come to us.  This is a very solemn thing each and every time it happens (be it on Sunday, on a weekday, a high solemnity or a feast day of a Saint, for a marriage or a funeral), and nothing ever super cedes this Mystery of the Faith, and it is a direct sin against the First Commandment to ignore this fact.

Therefore, anything that shouldn't happen in any other Mass shouldn't be permitted in these "special" Masses. Secular music has no place in Catholic worship, ever.  We should be modest in dress (big reminder for women at weddings who expose the shoulders and the like, regardless of how formal the attire) although this most likely isn't an issue at a Requiem.  We should still say our prayers before and after Mass and any other acts of devotion we do at any Sunday Mass.

Also, if you are a Catholic who only goes to Mass for weddings, funerals, the Solemnity of the Nativity, or the Solemnity of the Resurrection, then do not even think about approaching to receive our Lord in Holy Communion without Sacramental Absolution from Confession as the rules and guidelines for the reception of Holy Communion still apply to you as well.  Sadly, you probably don't know about these guidelines, however the priest should mention them either audibly in the sermon or in the program.

Which brings me to the sermon.  The sermon is an opportunity for the priest or deacon to instruct the faithful by showing the spiritual and doctrinal significance of the Readings or Holy Gospel or another pertinent matter of faith.  It is not a time for him to eulogize the departed, or in the case of a wedding, to joke about how how the wife is going to have to deal with the groom's obsession with COD and Dungeons & Dragons.  Sermons in these instances should speak of the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony as a divine ordinance and the sanctity of the married state, or about death being the wages of sin and how effective and pleasing (and necessary) prayers for the departed are.  Also, no one besides the priest or deacon is permitted (ever) to deliver the predication (sermon).

Yes, we should speak well of the deceased and especially of our friends and family members or those close to us, but there is ample time for that and with technology and social media, you can do that on Facebook and through cards and gifts and what not if you are unable to be present at any social reception after the funeral and burial.  That stuff has no place in worship of God and is insulting to Him and to the Church and not at all of any benefit to the departed; they could be suffering in Purgatory (or worse) while you're all smiling and chit-chatting about how great they are.  Talking about how he was the most caring person you've ever met is not going to appease the divine Justice nor help him atone for his sins...

Our attitude towards Holy Mass should be consistent through and through and the reverence and veneration due it does not depend on special occasions (or high feast days for that matter either) or the Form (we shouldn't be more reverent at an EF Mass versus an OF) or the Rite (as long as it's in Communion with Rome, the Sacraments and their Graces may be received (usual circumstances apply))...also, we should be ESPECIALLY reverent when the surrounding is irreverent (God deserves someone's honor and adoration), and we need to stop secularizing everything.

End rant.

NOTE:  This is usually not a problem in the Extraordinary Form as there is hardly any room for personalization or innovation.

But while I'm at it:  Requiem aeternam dona eis Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis:  Requiescant in pace.  Amen+++ (Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord, and let perpetual Light shine upon them:  May they rest in peace.  Amen+++)

Is Latin Mass really "better"???

A beautiful thought came to me today while discussing Holy Mass with my best friend.  We assisted together this evening for daily Mass and when we got home, he said he really noticed the difference between the Ordinary Form and the Extraordinary Form.  We celebrated Mass in the cry room of the church as there is construction going on in the nave/sanctuary.

He's not Roman Catholic, but he is struggling to try to believe in something (God bless him), and he said he sees why I prefer "Latin Mass" to "that Mass." 

But I told him that I have made some progress in the past couple years.  Realizing how harmful my disdain for the post-Vatican II Liturgy was to my spiritual well-being, I prayed to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (continually) that He help me love the Holy Sacrifice and have great reverence for it regardless of the Form or Rite as long as it is validly (and legally) offered. 

The essence of the Faith is that Christ, the Son of God and our Redeemer, becomes truly present in the Blessed Sacrament through the invocation of the Holy Ghost by the priest, the minister of God and of His Mysteries.  Period.  THIS is Catholicism in its perfect form and this has been a constant since the days of the Holy Apostles.

The Liturgy has organically developed and the solemnity to draw attention to the reality of our Faith and relationship with God has become greater over time (although has greatly diminished [in terms of solemnity] over the past half-century.  But still, the reality is the same regardless of peoples' attitudes toward it:  Christ becomes truly present, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar and He always deserves my utmost devotion and adoration (latria).

Regardless of what is going on around me, when I am assisting at Holy Mass worshipping God, I try to keep my mind focused primarily on

• Adoring the Blessed Trinity as my sovereign God and realizing the Jesus Christ is soon to offer Himself yet again to the Father and that praise is always becoming Him.
• Thanksgiving for any and all blessings and the right we have to stand before Him in worship because of His infinite goodness.
• Reparation for my many sins and offenses and for being the reason that He had to die, and to satisfy for my shortcomings.
• Begging His Grace to assist me in all things (Domine, exaudi orationem mean) and even if He only grants me one or two Graces, that's fine, although I would rather get as many as possible, but I may not always be properly disposed to receive them.
• Besides those four main things, any other intentions I have for offering Mass.

This I strive to do regardless of anything that may displease me that is circumstantial:  irreverent music, indifferent priest, irreverent atmosphere, adding things to the rubrics, applause, mean judgmental people, etc.  I am at Holy Mass to worship GOD and to be with Him and although I would love to assist at the Extraordinary Form exclusively, that is not currently possible, but I am grateful that I live close to two Catholic churches and Holy Mass is offered basically everyday.  Sure, there are some things that could be done to add to the solemnity, but any and every valid, legal Mass is infinitely pleasing to God.

Latin Mass (Extraodinary Form) is not better than Mass in the vernacular (Ordinary Fom), Sunday Mass is not more Grace-giving that weekday Mass (although the former IS obligatory while the latter is recommended), abuses do not necessarily mean the Mass is invalid (but it does depend on the abuse...), God is not more pleased with one than the other (both can be reverent; both can be disastrous), etc.

The words of Consecration MUST be said by a priest for the Mass to be said and the Holy Gospel must be read as well.  There MUST be a validly ordained priest who has use of his priestly faculties.  The Hosts must be wheat and unleavended.  The Wine must be made of grapes. 

Other than that, no other abuses really cause Christ to not be present, Grace can still be gained, although NO ABUSE should ever be encouraged or tolerated and we should always strive for piety and solemnity. 

In the past, I would have been beside myself to have Mass in locations such as the cry room or basement of a church or in hotels, etc.  But where did our forefathers in the Faith worship?  In tombs.  The externals should testify to the internals of the Liturgy, but sometimes factors arise that make that impossible.  Honestly, I was glad to be able to "fulfill my obligation to [God].(Canon of the Mass, Extraordinary Form)" and it didn't matter where.

That Christ becomes truly and physically present in the Blessed Sacrament is the essence of Roman Catholicism.