The Secret Lesson 8

Sanctify, O Lord, the gifts we offer, and cleanse us from the stains of our sins. Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the union of the Holy Ghost, God world without end. Amen. (Secret for the Second Sunday after Epiphany).

The priest prays the Secret or Secrets right after the Orate Fratres. Sometimes there is one Secret, sometimes two, sometimes three. The priest reads the Secrets from the Missal. These prayers change day to day. The priest prays the Secrets in a voice which the people cannot hear.

The Secret is the tenth and last prayer of the Offertory.

The Secrets are almost always about the bread and wine that are to be changed into the body and blood of Our Lord. The Secrets always ask a favor of God.

The Secret for the Second Sunday after Epiphany speaks of the bread and wine as “the gifts we offer.” When we ask Almighty God to cleanse us from the stains of our sins, we are thinking about the most pleasing offering our Blessed Lord will make to Him at the Consecration of the Mass. At that time He becomes our great gift to God. In a most special way He is making up for our sins.

Taken from The Kingdom of God series The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by Ellamay Horan. I am not the Author merely the distributor. God Bless BJS!!

The Gospel Lesson 2

At that time, as Jesus was speaking to the crowds, behold, a ruler came up and worshipped Him, saying, “My daughter has just now died; but come and lay Thy hand upon her, and she will return to life.” And Jesus arose and followed him, and so did His disciples. Now a woman who for twelve years had been suffering from hemorrhage, came up behind Him and touched the tassel of His cloak, saying to herself, “If I touch but His cloak I shall be saved.” But Jesus, turning and seeing her, said, “Take courage, daughter; thy faith has saved thee.” And the woman was restored to health from that moment. And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house, and saw the flute players and the crowd making a din, He said: “Begone, the girl is asleep, not dead.” And they laughed Him to scorn. But when the crowd had been put out, He went in and took her by the hand; and the girl arose. And the report spread throughout all that district. (Gospel for the Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost.)

Before going to the left side to read the Gospel, the priest stops at the center of the altar. He looks up at the crucifix. Then he bows low, with hands folded, and prays. The prayer he says asks God to prepare his heart and his lips to make the Gospel known.

The Missal, which was at the right side of the altar, has been carried to the left side. The Gospel is one of the parts of the Mass that changes each day. It is the second and the most important of the two instructions in the Mass of the Catechumens.

The people stand during the Gospel to show their respect for the word of God. The Gospel is taken from the Bible. It tells what Our Lord said and did. It tells what He taught. Our Lord never taught a single lesson that He Himself did not put into practice.

Before reading the Gospel, the priest says: “Dominus vobiscum” – The Lord be with you. And the server answers: “Et cum spiritu tuo” – And with you, too.

Then the priest is ready to read the Gospel. But first he makes four small crosses. You have seen him make a little Sign of the Cross on the book, on his forehead, on his lips, and on his breast. We also can make these little crosses on our foreheads, on our lips, and on our breasts. With the priest, we can ask God that our minds may know the teachings of Our Lord, that our tongues may make them known, and that our hearts may love them.

When the priest has finished reading the Gospel, the server says: “Praise be to Thee, O Christ.” At this time the priest kisses the book saying: “By the words of the Gospel, may our sins be blotted out.”

If you read the Gospel carefully, if you listen to the priest as he reads it to the people, you will learn how Our Lord lived, you will be reminded of lessons, many of which you already know. You will also learn new lessons about the things our Blessed Lord taught while He was on earth.

We should always try to find in the Gospel of the Mass a message from God to us. We should think about that message and plan what we can do about it right away. Sometimes it is not easy to put Our Lord’s teachings into practice. But we should recall the lesson in the Catechism on grace. Actual grace, if we will use it, helps us to do good and to avoid sin. And we know that one of the principal ways of obtaining grace is to receive the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

Taken from The Kingdom of God series The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by Ellamay Horan. I am not the Author merely the distributor. God Bless BJS!!

Externals of the Mass Lesson 4

Externals are those things that one can see. The externals of the Mass are the objects used during Holy Mass that you can see. The Church has exact regulations for all the externals of the Mass.

The Altar

The Altar is the most important object in a Catholic church. On the altar the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is offered. In the tabernacle of the altar the Blessed Sacrament is kept.

If possible, the top of every altar should be a stone slab. There should be five crosses engraved on this slab. The crosses represent the five wounds of Our Lord. There is one cross in the center and one at each of the four corners.

Sometimes, the top of an altar is not a stone slab. Then an altar stone is used. This altar stone may be as small as a large piece of tile. Five crosses are cut into the top of the altar stone. The crosses are just the same as on a large stone altar.

In the altar stone, or in the top of a stone altar, there is a small box. The box is made of lead. It contains relics of at least two saints who were martyrs.

The altar is always covered with three white cloths of linen. The first two cloths need cover only the top of the altar. Over these cloths a much longer one is placed. This cloth reaches to the floor on both sides. It is the real altar cloth.

Only three things are necessary on an altar. These three things are a crucifix and two candles. The candles must be made of beeswax. They are placed on each side of the crucifix.

The priest reads from a large book during Holy Mass. This Mass book is called the Missal. It is on the right side of the altar when Mass begins. The Missal is placed on a book rest.

The water and wine for Mass are put in two cruets. The cruets are little pitchers. They are used with a small dish. The cruets and dish are placed on a table near the altar. Sometimes they are placed on a shelf. When used, this little shelf is on a wall near the altar. At the side of the cruets there is a small white finger towel. This is used by the priest to dry his fingers.

The Vestments

The priest is told just what he should do in dressing for Holy Mass. He has a special prayer to say as he puts on each vestment. The word vestment means a garment that is different from everyday clothes.

Some vestments are plain. Others are very rich. But always vestments are dignified. They are made like clothes people wore hundreds of years ago.

The priest puts the vestments on over his black cassock. The cassock is the long black garment he wears. Vestments are of two kinds, outer vestments and linen vestments.

Outer Vestments

The chasuble is the large outer vestment. Long ago it was much longer. The chasuble and the other outer vestments are always the same color.

The stole is a long narrow vestment. The priest wears it about his neck and crossed on his breast. The stole worn during Holy Mass is made of the same material as the chasuble.

The maniple is worn on the priest’s left arm. It also is made of the same material as the chasuble.

The Church tells the priest when he is to use different colors. Violet is used during Advent and Lent. White is used during Christmas and Easter time. White is also used on feasts of Our Lord, our Blessed Mother, and for saints who were not martyrs. Red is for the Holy Ghost and for saints who were martyrs. Black is for funerals and for Masses for the dead. Green is used when no special feast is to be celebrated. Sometimes, for special days, vestments of gold or silver cloth may be used. Violet, white, red, black, and green are called liturgical colors.

Linen Vestments

The amice is a white linen color. It is worn by the priest about the neck and over the shoulders.

The alb is the long white vestment. It is very wide. The sleeves reach down to the wrists.

The cincture is a long white cord. The priest ties it around his waist. The cincture holds the alb in place.

What the Priest Carries

As the priest goes to the altar to offer Holy Mass, he is carrying several objects. Only the outer covering can be seen. The outer covering is called a veil. It is made of the same material and color as the vestments.

The priest places on the altar the objects he is carrying. He puts them over the altar stone. He does so gently and carefully. He arranges the veil so that everyrhing looks very nice.

The burse is a hard square folder. It is on top of what the priest carries. The burse is covered with the same material as the vestments. The priest carries the corporal in the burse.

The corporal is a large square of linen. Before Holy Mass begins, the priests opens the corporal. He places upon it all he has been carrying.

After consecrating the Sacred Host, the priest places it upon the corporal. The chalice also rests upon it. If a drop of the blood of Jesus should spill, it would fall on the corporal. The corporal is a very sacred cloth. No one is allowed to wash it except a priest, or one who is almost ready to be made a priest. No one may touch the corporal until the priest has first washed it. Only then may some one else complete the washing and iron it.

The chalice and paten are under the veil. The paten is a small gold-like plate. On it is the large host. This is the host which is to be consecrated during Holy Mass. The chalice is empty. It is the scared vessel in which the wine will be consecrated. The chalice and paten are always made of gold, or of silver with the inside of the cup gilded.

This is the way the objects are placed under the veil at the beginning of Holy Mass:

1. The chalice stands on the altar.
2. A linen cloth, called the purifactor, is placed across the cup of the chalice. This cloth is folded three times lengthwise. It hangs down on each side. The purificator is used to clean inside the chalice. Like the corporal, the purificator is a very sacred cloth. It also is washed first by the priest.

3. On the purificator rests the paten. The host is on the paten.
4. The paten is covered with a square piece of starched line. This cover is called the pall. During Holy Mass the priest uses the pall to cover the chalice.

Taken from The Kingdom of God series The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by Ellamay Horan. I am not the Author merely the distributor. God Bless BJS!!