Why do we go for mass?
Firstly, let us understand why a person of any religion goes to a place of worship. Well, they go for just that, WORSHIP. It is the purpose of any holy place or the foundation on any religion. But who is worship for? Is it for you? Is it important that you feel uplifted, or that you like the preaching or you feel like the hymns touched you? Not at all, worship is for God alone! Hence, it would be important that we worship in a way that is pleasing to God. However, In order to understand how to worship, we must know the God we worship.
Who do we worship?
When you ask people who they think God is, some describe God as a superior force, a energy in the universe, superior being etc. If we read the Bible, we know that the God of the Bible is extremely different from the world’s understanding of God. Right from the Book of Genesis we see God creating man in his own image and likeness. What does that mean? If we read further in Genesis 5:3 we see that the same words are used to describe Adams relationship to his son Seth.
"When Adam had lived one hundred thirty years, he became the father of a son in his likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth."
To create something in your own image is to have a fatherly relationship with that person. Why do you have children that are in your likeness, why not simply adopt a dog? Its because you want to have a relationship and communicate with that being. That is why God created you, because he wanted to have a personal relationship with you.
We see this constantly in the Bible that when people go away from God he constantly tries to renew the relationship. And he does this by making covenants with them which are 'sacred family bonds’. eg: marriage. So we understand that we worship a God who wants to be in a relationship with us.
How do we worship such a God?
I have friends who have often suggested that the church needs to change with the times to attract more crowds, they find it to ritualistic and don't understand most of what goes on. So the question is why do we do all these strange things during mass, why does the priest wear these fancy vestments? why do we repeat phrases? why do we have incense? why do we have readings? etc, etc. The answer is simple, we do what we do, because that is how God told us he wants to be worshiped in the Bible. Lets take a look at some examples of this from the Old Testament, New Testament and the early churches writings.
Worship in the Old testament:
After God's great act of delivering his people from slavery in Egypt where they lived in idolatry, he brings them to Mount Sinai and gives them the 10 commandments. He wants to create a covenant with them (sacred family bond) and teach them how he wants to be worshiped. We read in Exodus 24:9-11 that God calls Aaron, Nadab and Abihu who were priest along with the elders and Moses up on the mountain to worship him. They sacrifice animals and the sacrifice is important because of the blood, as the Jews believed that there was life in the blood. Moses takes the blood and throws some of the blood on the altar which symbolizes God and some he sprinkles on the people thereby sealing them in a blood bond or a covenant with God. After that Moses takes a Holy book and reads it and the people respond saying "All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient. The worship ends in a sacred meal in the presence of God.
Doesn’t this remind us so much of the mass, we see someone presiding over the worship, there is an altar, a holy book, readings, responses, sacrifice, blood and also a sacred meal.
Now once the people move away from Mt Sinai and head towards the Promised Land, they need a place to worship God. So in the Book of Exodus 25 onwards God gives specific instructions on how to build the Ark of the Covenant in gold which had two huge statues of angels on it. This should hint at why we have statues in churches. God also gave instructions on the vestments of the priest which were embellished with jewels. They had 12 precious stones representing the 12 tribes of Israel on their breast plate so when they go in the tabernacle to offer sacrifice, the 12 tribes were close to their heart. Now you can understand why the vestments of priest are beautifully embroidered and look so royal. Also in the temple was a bronze basin filled with water, where the priest had to wash his hands and feet before entering the holy place to offer the sacrifice, thus purifying himself. You see the priest at mass do something similar where he washes his hands before the consecration of the Eucharist. The priest also had incense which represented the prayers of the people which he would offer to God. We too offer incense at high masses.
But why did God need the golden angels and the ornaments and decor? He didn't, it was to remind the people that when you enter the temple you are no longer on earth but in heaven, in God’s own dwelling, to renew the covenant. Every time we go for mass, we need to remember that we are getting a glimpse of heaven. That there in the mass, we are surrounded by angels, Mary our Mother, the Saints and by God himself.
Worship in the New Testament:
In Revelations 4-5, John has a vision of heavenly worship where he hears singing of the words ‘Holy Holy Holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come’ and soon after, the 24 elders fall down and worship the one on the throne. Don’t we do that during mass, after singing the sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy), we all kneel down. We do it because that's what they do in heaven. As we read further through Revelations 5, we see that after glorifying God, the Lamb of God appears and there is a holy book that is read, there is incense being presented which represents the prayers of the saints and there are angels that gather around the throne. In heaven it is a time of deep worship and it is also the most sacred time of the mass, its the time of the consecration.
Worship according to the Early Church
While we don't have details in the Bible of how worship was held by the early church, we have the apologetic letter from St Justin Martyr to the Roman Emperor, during the time of the persecutions, attempting to explain the faith to him. In the following passage from the letter, we see great similarities to how worship is held in church.
"And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; (same as scripture readings during mass) then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things (homily). Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen (thanksgiving/consecration); and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, (communion) and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons. And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need (offertory and community fund). But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour on the same day rose from the dead. For He was crucified on the day before that of Saturn (Saturday); and on the day after that of Saturn, which is the day of the Sun, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught them these things, which we have submitted to you also for your consideration. (celebration of mass on Sunday)
Now you have a picture of why we do what we do during mass. But still there is something important to be addressed and that is, why do we call it the Sacrifice of the mass? Why is sacrifice so important, we read about in in the covenant at Sinai as well.
Why did God require sacrifice to be part of the worship?
My friend is an animal lover and she can’t bear the slaughter in the Bible and she keeps asking why so much bloodshed of animals in the Bible? Why does God need this sacrifice?
We see this constantly in the Bible that when people go away from God he constantly tries to renew the relationship. And he does this by making covenants with them which are 'sacred family bonds’. eg: marriage. So we understand that we worship a God who wants to be in a relationship with us.
How do we worship such a God?
I have friends who have often suggested that the church needs to change with the times to attract more crowds, they find it to ritualistic and don't understand most of what goes on. So the question is why do we do all these strange things during mass, why does the priest wear these fancy vestments? why do we repeat phrases? why do we have incense? why do we have readings? etc, etc. The answer is simple, we do what we do, because that is how God told us he wants to be worshiped in the Bible. Lets take a look at some examples of this from the Old Testament, New Testament and the early churches writings.
Worship in the Old testament:
After God's great act of delivering his people from slavery in Egypt where they lived in idolatry, he brings them to Mount Sinai and gives them the 10 commandments. He wants to create a covenant with them (sacred family bond) and teach them how he wants to be worshiped. We read in Exodus 24:9-11 that God calls Aaron, Nadab and Abihu who were priest along with the elders and Moses up on the mountain to worship him. They sacrifice animals and the sacrifice is important because of the blood, as the Jews believed that there was life in the blood. Moses takes the blood and throws some of the blood on the altar which symbolizes God and some he sprinkles on the people thereby sealing them in a blood bond or a covenant with God. After that Moses takes a Holy book and reads it and the people respond saying "All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient. The worship ends in a sacred meal in the presence of God.
Doesn’t this remind us so much of the mass, we see someone presiding over the worship, there is an altar, a holy book, readings, responses, sacrifice, blood and also a sacred meal.
Now once the people move away from Mt Sinai and head towards the Promised Land, they need a place to worship God. So in the Book of Exodus 25 onwards God gives specific instructions on how to build the Ark of the Covenant in gold which had two huge statues of angels on it. This should hint at why we have statues in churches. God also gave instructions on the vestments of the priest which were embellished with jewels. They had 12 precious stones representing the 12 tribes of Israel on their breast plate so when they go in the tabernacle to offer sacrifice, the 12 tribes were close to their heart. Now you can understand why the vestments of priest are beautifully embroidered and look so royal. Also in the temple was a bronze basin filled with water, where the priest had to wash his hands and feet before entering the holy place to offer the sacrifice, thus purifying himself. You see the priest at mass do something similar where he washes his hands before the consecration of the Eucharist. The priest also had incense which represented the prayers of the people which he would offer to God. We too offer incense at high masses.
But why did God need the golden angels and the ornaments and decor? He didn't, it was to remind the people that when you enter the temple you are no longer on earth but in heaven, in God’s own dwelling, to renew the covenant. Every time we go for mass, we need to remember that we are getting a glimpse of heaven. That there in the mass, we are surrounded by angels, Mary our Mother, the Saints and by God himself.
Worship in the New Testament:
In Revelations 4-5, John has a vision of heavenly worship where he hears singing of the words ‘Holy Holy Holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come’ and soon after, the 24 elders fall down and worship the one on the throne. Don’t we do that during mass, after singing the sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy), we all kneel down. We do it because that's what they do in heaven. As we read further through Revelations 5, we see that after glorifying God, the Lamb of God appears and there is a holy book that is read, there is incense being presented which represents the prayers of the saints and there are angels that gather around the throne. In heaven it is a time of deep worship and it is also the most sacred time of the mass, its the time of the consecration.
Worship according to the Early Church
While we don't have details in the Bible of how worship was held by the early church, we have the apologetic letter from St Justin Martyr to the Roman Emperor, during the time of the persecutions, attempting to explain the faith to him. In the following passage from the letter, we see great similarities to how worship is held in church.
"And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; (same as scripture readings during mass) then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things (homily). Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen (thanksgiving/consecration); and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, (communion) and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons. And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need (offertory and community fund). But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour on the same day rose from the dead. For He was crucified on the day before that of Saturn (Saturday); and on the day after that of Saturn, which is the day of the Sun, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught them these things, which we have submitted to you also for your consideration. (celebration of mass on Sunday)
Now you have a picture of why we do what we do during mass. But still there is something important to be addressed and that is, why do we call it the Sacrifice of the mass? Why is sacrifice so important, we read about in in the covenant at Sinai as well.
Why did God require sacrifice to be part of the worship?
My friend is an animal lover and she can’t bear the slaughter in the Bible and she keeps asking why so much bloodshed of animals in the Bible? Why does God need this sacrifice?
The answer is simple, God doesn’t need it, everything is his, it is we who need it. Man needed a way to communicate his love to God. In human relationships as well, love is shown through sacrifice. You sacrifice your time for the ones you love, you sacrifice your money to provide for others, we give gifts to communicate our feelings, you sacrifice your self-interest to make loved ones happy. Love cannot exist without sacrifice. For the Israelites who were sheep herders or farmers, the things that were most precious to them were their livestock and grains. So if they had to show their love or thank God, or say sorry they would offer livestock or grain or fruit offerings. It’s not so much about the sacrifice but what’s was in their heart. In a sense, when they were offering the animal they were actually offering themselves to God.
God knowing our human weakness, also shows us his love in the form of a sacrifice. The sacrifice of his only Son. At mass too, we offer a sacrifice on the altar, what is that sacrifice that we offer and to who do we offer it?
God knowing our human weakness, also shows us his love in the form of a sacrifice. The sacrifice of his only Son. At mass too, we offer a sacrifice on the altar, what is that sacrifice that we offer and to who do we offer it?
It is none other than Jesus, who we offer to the Father as the perfect sacrifice, eternal, unblemished sacrifice to the Father, for our sins.
How is this sacrifice a wedding feast?
To picture death, blood and sacrifice at every mass may sound depressing to you, but Jesus describes this sacrifice as a wedding feast. You may have probably heard that Jesus is the bridegroom and the church is the bride, but have you really understood it. In order to understand it, you need to think of a marriage. When is a wedding covenant sealed? Is it at the mass? During the vows? Exchange of ring? No, it is at the consummation of the marriage, the wedding night. In Jewish tradition the wedding night was most important, the bride and groom were taken in a procession to the wedding chamber which was designed according to the dimensions of the tabernacle because the wedding night was considered to be sacred. What actually happens at the wedding night? The groom and the bride give their whole selves to each other willingly and freely.
Now what happens at mass. Jesus the bridegroom, gives his body to the church his bride. But what about the bride? When does she give herself to the bridegroom. Listen again to the prayers at the offertory. We give our hearts, the work of our hands and our whole lives to our bridegroom.
Every time you go for mass, remember its a wedding celebration and you are the bride with the most perfect bridegroom there ever was and ever will be.
How is this sacrifice a wedding feast?
To picture death, blood and sacrifice at every mass may sound depressing to you, but Jesus describes this sacrifice as a wedding feast. You may have probably heard that Jesus is the bridegroom and the church is the bride, but have you really understood it. In order to understand it, you need to think of a marriage. When is a wedding covenant sealed? Is it at the mass? During the vows? Exchange of ring? No, it is at the consummation of the marriage, the wedding night. In Jewish tradition the wedding night was most important, the bride and groom were taken in a procession to the wedding chamber which was designed according to the dimensions of the tabernacle because the wedding night was considered to be sacred. What actually happens at the wedding night? The groom and the bride give their whole selves to each other willingly and freely.
Now what happens at mass. Jesus the bridegroom, gives his body to the church his bride. But what about the bride? When does she give herself to the bridegroom. Listen again to the prayers at the offertory. We give our hearts, the work of our hands and our whole lives to our bridegroom.
Every time you go for mass, remember its a wedding celebration and you are the bride with the most perfect bridegroom there ever was and ever will be.
Well written Karen... Thanks for the explanation. Be Blessed.
ReplyDeleteWow!! So meaningfully, beautifully explained! Makes the Eucharist a delight at every stage. Wanting to cherish every moment of it. Thank you very much.
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