About the Mass Series: Concluding Rite part 3.

CONCLUDING RITE PART 3

‘DISMISSAL’.

The word Blessing has many meanings. In Scripture it is used to mean: (a) praise, (b) divine favour, (c) a prayer that God shall be with a certain person or thing, (d) the dedication of person or thing to a sacred purpose.

The priest’s greeting and blessing is important. By raising his hand and making the sign of the Cross, he calls down God’s help upon the congregation. The priest then dismisses the congregation with one of the three invocations: 

1. ‘God in the peace of Christ’;

 2. The Mass is ended, go in peace;

 3. Go in the peace to love and serve the Lord.

The congregation respond ‘Thanks be to God’.

From the fourth century, the dismissal statement was ‘Ite missa est’, since the word ‘Missa’ comes from ‘mittere’ which means to send. 

‘Ite missa est’ means simply ‘Go, this is the dismissal’. However, the dismissal formulae which are used today are inspired by the formula of Eastern Syria, and in doing so the East and Rome are united by it.

The priest venerates the altar one last time by kissing it as a sign of reverence to Christ, since on the altar His sacrifice on Calvary is made present to us.    The kiss of farewell at the end of the Mass mirrors the kiss whereby the altar is greeted at the beginning of Mass. Both are gestures venerating the altar as the symbol of Christ.  

Engraved in the marble altar are five crosses, which represent the five wounds of Christ.  In every altar, there are relics of saints placed in it. The farewell kiss looks back to the Eucharist, which has just concluded, and anticipates the next occasion when the congregation will assemble again.

We have heard God’s Word and have been nourished by eating Christ’s body.  Now it is the time for us to leave, to do good works, to praise and bless the Lord in our daily lives. We too then can throughout the week or until the next time we come to Mass say ‘thanks be to God’.

   

Opening Prayer Series: 30th Sunday of Year A

The Opening Prayer for the 30th Sunday of Year A reads as follows:

Let us pray,

(for the strength to do God's will)

Almighty and ever-living God,

strengthen our faith, hope and love.

May we do with loving hearts, 

what you ask of us 

and come to share the life You promise.

In making this prayer tangible, the following reflection questions emerged

1. What is God's will?
2. What is God's will for me?
3. What changes do I need to make to live according to God's will for me?
4. How can I strengthen my faith, hope and love during this coming week?
5. What does God ask of me?
6. What are the areas of my heart that need more of God's love?
7. What changes will I make to these areas of my heart?
8. What is the life God promises me?

In today's Gospel, the following aspects caught my attention.  Firstly, both the Pharisees and the Sadducees  were out to get Jesus at any cost.  They banded together to bring Jesus down, even though each group disliked each other. The common thread of motive here seems to be power and revenge, and if each group had to 'sacrifice' a certain amount of pride to get the job done, then it seemed to them that the outcome would be worth it, especially as they had safety in numbers.  This to me is a Gospel example of our modern day work place bullying of employer vs employee and/or employer vs trade union members. The same motive is at work even if the method is more seemingly sophisticated. Unfortunately, the same method is being used by young children at primary school when they bully another child in their class.

The reply Jesus gave them outwitted them because He reminded them of the commandment of love which they would have been familiar from Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19.18. In essence, He reminded them to love God first and then to love God by loving one's neighbour. Throughout the Gospel we hear the commandment to love, and in the Church we hear many homilies exhorting us to do that. 

However, it seems to me that often a vital ingredient of this commandment is overlooked or downplayed- the commandment to love God by loving ourselves in a healthy manner. If we do not love ourselves appropriately, then it is difficult to love our neighbour, because we cannot give what we do not have on our own.  With the help of God , we can all learn to love ourselves in a healthy manner. God will provide the missing elements especially when we ask Him in prayer.

The Pharisees and Sadducees most likely missed the point of the reply of Jesus.  In essence Jesus is saying to love God with your whole heart, soul and mind  and to treat others as you would like to be treated yourself out of love for God. Therefore, loving God also means to love yourself out of love for God, since it God who created you out of love, and then out of love for God, you will love your neighbour.

Let's see what we can do to put this commandment into practice this coming week in our family, workplace and parish.

About the Mass Series: Concluding Rite Part 2

‘FINAL BLESSING-SOLEMN BLESSING’.

The Concluding Rite consists of: (a) the priests greeting ( the Lord be with you etc), (b) the blessing, which on certain days or feast days is expanded (c ) the dismissal which sends the congregation back to doing good works while praising and blessing the Lord and(d) recessional hymn.

Before sending his disciples into the world to bear witness to His resurrection before all the nations, we are told in Scripture that ‘Jesus lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he was taken up into heaven’. (Luke 24:50-51).

Before sending the congregation back into the world to announce the Good News to others, the priest likewise lifts up his hands over us, and marks us with the sign of the cross, and invokes the blessing Father, Son and Holy Spirit upon us.

On certain feast days such as Christmas, Easter, Pentecost and other important liturgical moments, the priest uses a more solemn form of blessing known as the solemn blessing.  First he invites us to ‘bow our heads and pray for God’s blessing’.  Then there are usually three invocations to which the congregation reply AMEN. Then the priest gives the blessing as he blesses us with the sign of the cross.

It is important to note that as he gives the blessing, he is representing Christ in our midst and he is bringing us the blessing on the part of God by marking us with the cross of Christ. In this sense, he does not bless himself. He does not say ‘may almighty God bless US’. The words therefore ‘May almighty God bless YOU are significant’. It also expresses something of the humility of the ordained priestly ministry.

About the Mass Series: Concluding Rite no 1- Announcements

The giving of announcements has occurred at various locations within the Mass.  In the late 7^th century papal liturgy, it was immediately after the communion of the pope, and before the communion of the clergy and congregation, that the archdeacon announced the time and place of the next papal Mass, because non-communicants were accustomed to leave the church at this time.  

Another place, which was considered appropriate for announcements, was after the homily. For example, Pope Leo the Great (440-461) at the conclusion of his sermons reminded the faithful of the fast days during the week ahead, and invited them to attend the vigil on the eve of the next Sunday.

Nowadays, the announcements are made immediately after the prayer after communion, so that they are kept completely separate from the homily. These announcements are meant to be short, necessary and generally of concern to the whole community.  Longer and more particular information is considered better communicated in other ways, such as, through the parish bulletin and/ notice board.

Since the lectern is reserved for the proclamation of God’s word, it is preferable that the announcements are given elsewhere, although for practical reasons, this may not always be possible.  

Apart from the practical issues related to announcements, they are important also because it helps to build a sense of community and highlight the unity of purpose, which is crucial for the vitality of parish life.  Announcements are not a ‘switch out’ time, rather a ‘switch in’ time to see how YOU can make a difference.  

     

Opening Prayer Series: Twenty Seventh Sunday of Year A

The Opening Prayer for the Twenty Seventh Sunday of Year A reads as follows:

Let us pray

(that God will forgive our failings and bring us peace)

Father,

Your love for us surpasses all our hopes and desires.

Forgive our failings,

keep us in Your peace 

and lead us in the way of salvation. 

In making this prayer tangible, the following reflection questions emerged:

1. What does the gift of God's forgiveness mean to me?
2. What are the failings that I wish God to forgive in my life?
3. What difference would God's gift of peace make in my life?
4. How does God's love surpass your hopes and desires?
5. What value do I place on the sacrament of Reconciliation in my life?
6. What commitment am I prepared to make this coming week to ask God's forgiveness in the sacrament of Reconciliation?
7. What is the way of salvation and how do I walk in this way during this coming week?

Today's Gospel may not speak to us immediately especially if we have no connection to wine growing. The closest we may become to it may be the produce as we share a drink with friends and family.
However, let us not wipe this gospel as one that does not concern us since  the words of Jesus at the end of the gospel are most telling 

' I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken from you 

and given to a people who will produce its fruit'. 

Our lives are busy and we are governed by the world's demands on us  Providing for our families is getting more difficult in this global financial crisis. Finding time to place our focus on God when we are worried about our daily lives is a challenge.


So the questions we need to ask ourselves are 

• What is the fruit of the kingdom?
• How do I produce the fruit of the kingdom in my daily life?
• How would I feel if the kingdom of God was taken away from me?

 
Even though my life is in such a muddle at the moment,  I still want to live for God and eventually get to Heaven.

What about you? What is your priority?

Reflection and Prayer Series: God's Gift.

My reflection and prayer series is about sharing reflections and Prayers which have impacted upon me and have provided food for thought. I hope that they will also nurture your soul and spirit.

My post is called:

GOD'S GIFT

Today look upon something beautiful

for beauty is a gfit of God,

a touch of wonder,

 a glimpse of glory,

a hint of great and splendid things,

eternal things to be.

Let us develop the habit to gaze on beauty of the Lord 

since this is what we will do for eternity as we live in house of the Lord.