The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

[Fiat_Voluntas_Tua]

[b]The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass[/b]

The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the greatest cause of joy and happiness on this Earth. The reason for this is because it isn’t of the Earth but of Heaven. Where else can the Faithful actually sit down at the very table Christ sat at and eat the same Flesh and Blood that the Apostle’s ate and drank in the Upper Room? Where else can the Faithful actually kneel next to Mary, the Virgin Mother of God, while at the foot of Christ crucified on the Cross? Where else can the Faithful join in singing with the entire choir’s of angel’s in Heaven and on Earth? Where else can the Faithful get a glimpse of Heaven while on Earth? Nowhere else can this happen outside of the Mass.
It is this Holy Sacrifice, Paschal Meal, and Glorious Ascension that is the ultimate happiness. The Mass is the Truth of Salvation History. The Mass is the ultimate Good on Earth. If we are educated about the covenant’s of old and the covenants of today we will begin to know and understand the Mass. If we begin to understand the Mass we will begin to Love it, because we will see the good it is able to produce and the glory it contains.
Now looking at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in this light, how can one say that the Mass is boring? Is not what the Mass truly is the negation of boring. Not only can hearing a Mass faithfully be a pathway to Salvation, but if one knows the origins of the Mass it could be quite attention captivating.
In class we learned some of the Biblical origins for the Liturgy of the Eucharist. This is very interesting to see how the Old Covenant Passover foreshadows and paves the way for the New Covenant Passover, through the sacrificing of a ‘lamb.’ In the Old Covenant, the sacrificial lamb was a lamb that was without blemish, slaughtered, flesh was eaten, and its’ blood was used to mark the places this took place. The New Covenant Passover, Last Supper, Christ was the Paschal Lamb of God. He was without blemish. He was slaughtered, crucified. His Flesh was eaten. His blood was marked on those lips that partook in this sacrifice. There is no challenge to see the similarities between the two Covenants. The New Covenant Passover is still lived out today. The same Lamb of God is sacrificed. The same Flesh is eaten. The same Blood is shed. The same Grace and Salvation are the results in partaking of this meal. This meal is made present at the Mass. This is the same Mass that we are ‘obligated’ to attend every Sunday. This is the same Mass that is offered everyday of the week for most everyone in this class. Why then do the majority of Catholic’s not attend or unwillingly attend such a Holy ‘Memorial.’ Is it because of the lack of knowledge that they have for such a blessed event? Is it because of the lack of sacrifice they are willing to make to attend such a blessed event? Is it because of the lack of respect for the first commandment that they don’t attend this blessed event? I am not one to judge another, but I would say it is everything and anything that prevents them from knowing the Truth of the Mass and loving the Good in the Mass. Without the Mass there would be very little happiness in the world.


Totus Tuus,

Andy

[Fiat_Voluntas_Tua]

Please let me know how it is, and if you see anything that could be changed?

Thanks.

[franciscanheart]

i'd say it was pretty good

just a comment or two:
-limit technique to three
-if you choose not to limit to three, bead
*this might be hard considering the length of the "paper"

i think thats all.... otherwise.... props

[Fiat_Voluntas_Tua]

Thanks...

[phatcatholic]

[quote name='Fiat_Voluntas_Tua' date='Oct 10 2004, 02:24 PM'] It is this Holy Sacrifice, Paschal Meal, and Glorious Ascension that is the ultimate happiness. [/quote]
this could be a confusing sentence. when i first read it i was preparing myself for the titles most often give to the mass, in which case i noticed "glorious ascension" as somewhat peculiar. when i went back and read it again, i noticed that you may have been going through the steps of his sacrifice (Scott Hahn notes that his sacrifice began when he sat down to eat w/ them.) but then i noted that in my own personal research i don't recall reading about the mass as a celebration of his ascension, but instead his [i]suffering, death and resurrection[/i], which are similar but still very distinct things.

so you may want to consider "glorious ascension" as a phrase that throws off the reader.

i hope that helps some.

pax christi,
nick

[Fiat_Voluntas_Tua]

It does...thankyou...I put that in there because my Theology teacher talked about how the Mass was in some part, 'remembering' His Ascension.

Thanks Phatty.