Origins and Influences IX: Eucharist in the 150s AD

Justin Martyr, as he is usually termed, was born c100AD in Samaria, Palestine. He converted to Christianity, probably from paganism. His surviving works are all defences of, arguments for, Christianity – and in two of them he addresses the theme of the Eucharist.

The first of them, The Dialogue with Trypho, offers a conversation between Justin and Trypho, a Jew. In conversation, Justin tries to persuade Trypho to convert to Christianity, and answers his various objections. In the dialogue Justin argues that the Eucharist is the Sacrifice pleasing to God, which is offered now by the Church in the bread and cup of thanksgiving. (cf Malachi 1.10b-12a). He argues this has replaced the sacrifices of Judaism (which, in any case, had ceased with the destruction of Jerusalem’s Temple).

The second, the First Apology, dated around 150AD, is addressed to the Emperor, Antoninus Pius, arguing against the persecution of the Church, and defending the virtue of Christianity. For our purposes it is most notable for giving us our earliest (relatively) full description of how Christians celebrated Eucharist.

In the Apology Justin actually gives us two descriptions, the first being the conclusion of a longer baptismal liturgy and the second seemingly an account of the more usual Sunday practice.

The conclusion of a Baptismal Liturgy

65.1 After we have thus baptized him who has believed and has given his assent, we take him to those who are called brethren where they are assembled, to make common prayers earnestly for ourselves and for him who has been enlightened’ and for all others everywhere, that, having learned the truth, we may be deemed worthy to be found good citizens also in our actions and guardians of the Commandments, so that we may be saved with eternal salvation.

When we have ended the prayers, we greet one another with a kiss.

Then bread and a cup of water and (a cup) of mixed wine are brought to him who presides over the brethren, and he takes them and sends up praise and glory to the Father of all in the name of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and gives thanks at some length that we have been deemed worthy of these things from him. When he has finished the prayers and the thanksgiving, all the people give their assent by saying “Amen.” “Amen” is the Hebrew for “So be it.”

And when the president has given thanks and all the people have assented, those whom we call deacons give to each of those present a portion of the bread and wine and water over which thanks have been given, and take them to those who are not present.

There are a number of points that are worth commenting on.

• The common prayers would seem to be akin to the Prayer of the Faithful of Mass today. Prayers offered by the Church for the world, for herself and for particular needs.
• The kiss -the sign of peace – here follows the common prayers, preceding the bringing of the offerings to the altar, perhaps in conscious obedience to Jesus’ words at Matthew 5.23-24: “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift”
• The elements brought to the altar may have been not only the bread and cup of wine mixed with water but also a second cup which was of water only. There is a certain ambiguity in the Latin, one cup with wine and water mixed or a cup of water and a cup of wine mixed with water. There is a plausibility with either reading, but Justin does not explain further on the significance of the two cups.
• There is little detail given of the prayer of Thanksgiving, the Eucharistic Prayer, but Justin notes the particular significance of the congregation’s concluding and affirming Amen.
• The Prayer is offered by the ‘President’. Justin uses the word proestos – a Greek word meaning ‘leader’ – the implication being this is a corporate work carried out by a leader with others, not a (for example, priestly) work for the congregation.
• Deacons distribute the Eucharistic food and drink to the gathered assembly, and then take some of it to those who are not present. Again there seems to be an emphasis on the integrity of the body of the faithful – all of those present, and with those unable to be present.

Our thanksgiving/eucharistic food

This account of the Eucharist which concludes the Baptismal Liturgy is followed by a further exploration of the nature of Eucharist

66.1 And we call this food “thanksgiving“; and no one may partake of it unless he is convinced of the truth of our teaching, and has been cleansed with the washing for forgiveness of sins and regeneration, and lives as Christ handed down.

For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but just as our Saviour Jesus Christ, being incarnate through the word of God, took flesh and blood for our salvation, so too we have been taught that the food over which thanks have been given by a word of prayer which is from him, (the food) from which our flesh and blood are fed by transformation, is both the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus.

For the apostles in the records composed by them which are called gospels, have handed down thus what was commanded of them: that Jesus took bread, gave thanks, and said, “Do this for the remembrance of me; this is my body”; and likewise he took the cup, gave thanks, and said “This is my blood”; and gave to them alone.

And the evil demons have imitated this and handed it down to be done also in the mysteries of Mithras. For as you know or may learn, bread and a cup of water are used with certain formulas in their rites of initiation.

• The  food and drink is named after the action, the praying over them – thanksgiving/eucharistein.
• The eucharistic food and drink is reserved for those who have been baptised. This same care is there right from the beginning that the Eucharist is food and drink for those who have been baptised and who live as Christ handed down. We have previously observed in the Didache.
• Justin considers the gospels to have been written by the apostles. Scholars now see the link between the apostles Matthew and John and the gospels that bear their names as less immediate. Mark and Luke of course were not apostles, although traditionally Mark and Luke were close to Peter and Paul respectively.
• Mithraism was a religion popular in the 1^st and 2^nd Centuries. It had elaborate initiation rites and, as Justin notes, these included a share meal. It seems unlikely that there was direct influence of Christianity on Mithraism or vice versa.

The Sunday Liturgy

67.1 And thereafter we continually remind one another of these things. Those who have the means help all those in need; and we are always together.

And we bless the Maker of all things through his Son Jesus Christ and through the Holy Spirit over all that we offer.

And  on the day called Sunday an assembly is held in one place of all who live in town or country, and the records of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read as time allows.

Then, when the reader has finished, the president in a discourse admonishes and exhorts (us) to imitate these good things

Then we all stand up together and send up prayers; and as we said before, when we have finished praying, bread and wine and water are brought up, and the president likewise sends up prayers and thanksgivings to the best of his ability, and the people assent, saying the Amen; and the (elements over which) thanks have been given are distributed, and everyone partakes; and they are sent through the deacons to those who are not present.

And the wealthy who so desire give what they wish, as each chooses; and what is collected is deposited with the president.

He helps orphans and widows, and those who through sickness or any other cause are in need, and those in prison, and strangers sojourning among us; in a word, he takes care of all those who are in need.

And we all assemble together on Sunday, because it is the first day, on which God transformed darkness and matter, and made the world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour rose from the dead on that day; for they crucified him the day before Saturday; and the day after Saturday, which is Sunday, he appeared to his apostles and disciples, and taught them these things which we have presented to you also for your consideration.

I will not comment on all the significant elements of the passage above, only those which did not appear in the previous excerpts from Justin’s 1^st Apology.

• Justin twice observes that the community gathers on Sunday – in the opening and closing sentences of this section. The reason for Sunday gathering will be explored below, but here it suffices to note that Justin does not tell us when on Sunday the assembly gathers. Is it on Saturday evening, in Roman counting, but the beginning of Sunday, according to Jewish custom? Or is it Sunday itself, as it were? We don’t know. Neither do we know whether at this time the weekly gathering was still preceded by a shared meal as was the earlier custom, or whether there had been a separation between them, even a jettisoning of the shared meal in favour of (only) the Eucharistic rite.
• Justin says readings from apostles or prophets are read. Does this mean sometimes readings came from the Old Testament and sometimes from the New? Or might it be both. Either way the reading seems to be determined not by set readings from a Lectionary but reading (and listening!) according to the time available.
• The reader reads, and the presider, with the rest of the assembly listens. Then the presider gives his discourse. This same model is the norm proposed by the Roman rite today where readers, psalmist and deacon proclaim the word, and then the priest/bishop preaches.
• In the same way that there does not seem to have been a Lectionary, neither did the President have the convenience of a Missal with composed Eucharistic Prayers – he prayed to the best of his ability. Later, perhaps in order to protect against heresy being imported, presidents were required to use given texts for the thanksgiving.
• If we have doubt as to whether this is Mass, perhaps the reference to a collection will assuage those doubts!
• It is perhaps surprising that what is collected (money, food? We are not told) is lodged with the president. Surprising only because one might have thought it would be given to the deacons to dstribute – but Justin only witnesses to their service of the distribution of the eucharistic food (and drink?). It is the president who is singled out as the caregiver here.
• And finally Justin again returns to Sunday and now gives expounds on its meaning.

A familiar pattern for the Eucharist

Taken all together these descriptions of the Church’s prayer can provide the following structure pretty similar to the outline of our celebrations of Mass today,

• Gathering of the Assembly
• Readings
• Homily
• Prayer of the Faithful
• Kiss of Peace
• Presentation of the gifts/collection for the poor
• Prayers and thanksgiving by the Presider
• Distribution of the ‘eucharistized’ bread and wine

There are of course differences to what we do know, but not many. And maybe those differences challenge us about how we are and how we do things – maybe particularly the effects of doing things by the book; the direct link between our Sunday assembly and the care of those not able to be present, and of those in need.

Reflection questions

• What most strikes you in Justin’s account of the Thanksgiving?
• Is there anything notable absent from it?
• What do you think are the positives and what might be the negatives of Liturgy from the Books?
• How is ministry encouraged in your community?
• How does the community take responsibility for the care of absent members and the needy?

A log with links to previous postings in this series is kept here.

Acknowledgements

• Translation of First Apology taken from R.C.D Jasper and G.J Cuming, Prayers of the Eucharist Early and Reformed. 3rd revised edition. Collegeville: Pueblo Publishing, The Liturgical Press, 1990.
• The Roman Missal (c) 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.
• Photograph (c) 2012, Allen Morris. Statue of St Justin Martyr, from church of Justin Martyr, Nablus, Palestinian Authority territory.
• Graphic (c) Jonathan Stewart, 2007
• Text (c) 2021, Allen Morris.

The Art of Celebration VII: The blessing and sprinkling of water

Again, it is fortuitous that we consider this optional feature of Sunday Mass during the Easter season – for this season is the particular time singled out in the Roman Missal for this blessing and sprinkling to especially but occasionally substitute for the Penitential Act.

This optional rite echoes the rite which is a required part of the Easter Vigil when after those to be baptised have been baptised and confirmed, the faithful present are invited to renew their promise of of baptismal faith (although they can also be invited to renew this promise during the baptismal liturgy iteself (Roman Missal, The Easter Vigil, 49).

On Easter Day the renewal of promises and the sprinkling follows the homily and takes the place of the Creed.

Dear brethren (brothers and sisters), through the Paschal Mystery
we have been buried with Christ in Baptism,
so that we may walk with him in newness of life.
And so, now that our Lenten observance is concluded,
let us renew the promises of Holy Baptism,
by which we once renounced Satan and his works
and promised to serve God in the holy Catholic Church.

There follows the renewal of baptismal promises and then the priest says:

And the Priest concludes:

And may almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has given us new birth by water and the Holy Spirit
and bestowed on us forgiveness of our sins,
keep us by his grace,
in Christ Jesus our Lord,
for eternal life.  All: Amen.

And then the priest sprinkles the assembly with water blessed at the Vigil.

The prayer highlights the way our keeping of Lent prepares us for continuing to live the life of Easter, and the way we were initiated to that life in Baptism.

On other Sundays there is no renewal of promises and the sprinkling (and prior blessing of water, if needed) replaces the Penitential Act. Perhaps in consequence of the absence of the promises on other Easter Sundays the prayer of Blessing is more extensive, echoing some of the principal themes of the blessing of water at the Vigil (and Baptism).

On these other Sundays of Easter Time the priest introduces the rite, saying:

Dear brethren (brothers and sisters),
let us humbly beseech the Lord our God
to bless this water he has created,
which will be sprinkled on us
as a memorial of our Baptism.
May he help us by his grace
to remain faithful to the Spirit we have received.

If there is a weakness in the prayer of blessing that follows it is that it is mostly looking back – to saving mysteries, to baptism celebrated etc, rather to the living of the Baptismal life, (which is better expressed in the concluding words of the introduction.

Lord our God,
in your mercy be present to your people’s prayers,
and, for us who recall the wondrous work of our creation
and the still greater work of our redemption,
graciously bless this water.
For you created water to make the fields fruitful
and to refresh and cleanse our bodies.
You also made water the instrument of your mercy:
for through water you freed your people from slavery
and quenched their thirst in the desert;
through water the Prophets proclaimed the new covenant
you were to enter upon with the human race;
and last of all,
through water, which Christ made holy in the Jordan,
you have renewed our corrupted nature
in the bath of regeneration.
Therefore, may this water be for us
a memorial of the Baptism we have received,
and grant that we may share
in the gladness of our brothers and sisters
who at Easter have received their Baptism.
Through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.

Weaker still are the prayers offered for blessing the water outside of Easter Time. They rather narrowly focus on forgiveness and protection – presenting the faithful as more or less passive recipients of grace rather than active collaborators with it.

To occasionally replace the Penitential Act with the rite of blessing and sprinkling does help vary the experience of a congregation, provide a reminder of the foundational importance of baptism, and open us up to another way of contemplating and praying about God’s saving work, freeing us from the bonds of sin and for a life focussed on love and service.

Of particular importance for the prayerful engagement with this rite is the chant that accompanies the sprinkling.

The Missal offers a range of mostly scriptural texts, and also allows for other appropriate chants.

During Easter Time

Antiphon 1                                                                                       Cf. Ez 47: 1-2, 9
I saw water flowing from the Temple,
from its right-hand side, alleluia:
and all to whom this water came
were saved and shall say: alleluia, alleluia.

Antiphon 2                                                                              Cf. Wis 3: 8; Ez 36: 25
On the day of my resurrection, says the Lord, alleluia,
I will gather the nations and assemble the kingdoms
and I will pour clean water upon you, alleluia.

Antiphon 3                                                                                      Cf. Dan 3: 77, 79
You springs and all that moves in the waters,
sing a hymn to God, alleluia.

Antiphon 4                                                                                                  1 Pet 2: 9
O chosen race, royal priesthood, holy nation,
proclaim the mighty works of him
who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light, alleluia.

Antiphon 5
From your side, O Christ,
bursts forth a spring of water,
by which the squalor of the world is washed away
and life is made new again, alleluia.

Outside Easter Time

Antiphon 1                                                                                                    Ps 50: 9
Sprinkle me with hyssop, O Lord, and I shall be cleansed;
wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.

Antiphon 2                                                                                             Ez 36: 25-26
I will pour clean water upon you,
and you will be made clean of all your impurities,
and I shall give you a new spirit, says the Lord.

Hymn                                                                                                   Cf. 1 Pet 1: 3-5
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who in his great mercy has given us new birth into a living hope
through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
into an inheritance that will not perish,
preserved for us in heaven
for the salvation to be revealed in the last time!

The texts for the chant repay our use in meditation during the Liturgy and outside it too – they are somewhat stronger than the prayers provided!

Questions for reflection

• When and why is the Blessing and Sprinkling rite used in your community?
• How is its meaning presented to the assembly?
• What music is used, and who is it sung by?
• In what other ways and when is the significance of baptism explored with your Sunday congregation?

A log with links to previous postings in this series is kept here.

Acknowledgements as

~ Excerpts from the English translation and chants of The Roman Missal © 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.
~ Commentary: (c) 2021, Allen Morris
~ Photograph: (c) 2003, Allen Morris. Stained glass, former Dominican chapoel, Eindhoven Netherlands.

The Art of Celebration V: The Gloria

Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of good will.

We praise you,
we bless you,
we adore you,
we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.

Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
         have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world,
         receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father,
         have mercy on us.

For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.

The Gloria is an ancient hymn, that is sung at Mass on Sundays (other than during Advent and Lent) and on Feast Days and Solemnities. It is fortuitous that our consideration of the hymn in this series of mini-essay coincides with the Gloria reappearing in our Sunday celebrations as we celebrate the Easter Vigil and begin our keeping of the 50 days of Easter Time.

The Gloria is one of the so called psalmoi idiotikoi – non-biblical psalms written by the early Church to serve the Liturgy and complement biblical songs. It first appears in the Apostolic Constitutions a late-4th Century Syrian Church Order – a guide to Christian life, church discipline and liturgy. The manuscript tradition reveals two forms of the song.

The first – presumably the older form – is addressed to God the Father only, making reference to Jesus as High Priest, Son and Lamb that takes away the sin of the world, but not addressing Jesus directly, and not making any mention of the Holy SPirit.

The second, like the text used in the Roman Rite , does address Jesus directly, as Lord, only-begotten Son, and Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. It also makes reference to the Holy Spirit, but in the address to Jesus not, as in the Roman Rite, in the concluding verse.

These features testify to the ancient origins of the song, suggesting it may have originated before the Arian controversy (c320-380 AD) concerning the divinity of Jesus and the theological reflection during the 4th and 5th centuries AD which gave greater precision to Christian discourse about the Holy Spirit, and clarity to the Christian doctrine of the Trinity.

The main difference between the Roman usage and that of the Eastern Church – to this day – is that for Latins the Gloria is a song sung at Mass, and for the Orthodox it is a song sung at Morning Prayer.

Somehow or other this Eastern song made its way West, and found its new home in the Eucharist. At first it was reserved for celebrations at which the bishop presided, but subsequently permitted in liturgies at which presbyters presided.

But whether it is sung at Morning Prayer or at Mass, the Gloria is a song of praise – a song for full-throated singing.

Sadly, this year, COVID restrictions will likely mean that the Church cannot sing the Gloria. In some places, instead, the singing of the hymn will be entrusted to socially-distanced cantors; in other places it will be recited by the congregation.

Reflection questions

• Are there particular parts of the hymn that regularly stand out for you?
• Why do you think the Church omits the Gloria on the Sundays of Lent and Advent?
• How do you experience the difference between singing and reciting the hymn?
• Do you have favourite musical settings of the hymn? If so, what makes them favourites for you?

A log with links to previous postings in this series is kept here.

Acknowledgements

~ Excerpts from the English translation and chants of The Roman Missal © 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.
~ Commentary: (c) 2021, Allen Morris
~ Photograph: (c) 2017, Allen Morris. ‘Gloria’ window, St Mary’s Priory, Abergavenny.

The Art of Celebration IV: The Penitential Act

Mass begins with our assembling together, and with the entrance procession and its song. Then comes the Sign of the Cross and the Greeting.

There may also follow some very brief introduction to the Mass of the day. These might usefully engage us with both the day we experience together and the Mass we are now celebrating. What is best to avoid is something which is a duplicate greeting, especially a second greeting that lacks the gravitas and beauty of the first.

If the priest and congregation have already greeted one another in words such as

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.

And with your spirit.

to then go into

Good morning everyone,
Good morning, father.

not only seems redundant and lesser, it immediately leaves God out of things!

We can be much better helped into our celebration together if the greeting is followed by some acknowledgement of  the circumstances of our gathering (perhaps some important news event, perhaps something of the saint of feast day), and maybe to allude to a key theme in one of the readings, or from the Eucharistic Prayer chosen.

This is generally followed by the Penitential Act, with its own introduction provided – calling us to ‘acknowledge’ our sins and so as to be prepared for our celebration.

Brothers and sisters,
let us acknowledge our sins,
and so prepare ourselves to celebration the sacred mysteries.

The current English translation that gives us ‘so prepare ourselves’, clumsily overlooks the various things we have surely already done that we might be prepared to celebrate. The Latin lying behind the translation more accurately speaks of our being ready and prepared, able and apt from what we are to do.

It is helpful to notice the use of the word ‘acknowledge’ in the introduction. We come together as sinners – there is no getting away from that. And neither should we seek to get away from that, so we do, simply, acknowledge our being sinners – but not only ‘sinners’

Pope Francis engaged with the more when he chose at his motto, a phrase from a homily of the Venerable Bede – a phrase that might be rendered ‘sinners but chosen.’

We have come together as brothers and sisters in Christ, sinners who have been chosenand are being saved from our sin. Our celebration of the Penitential Act needs to do justice to both those things – our sinfulness and our being saved.

I said above that the Greeting and Introduction are generally followed by the Penitential Act. Let me briefly note when something else will replace it. First to note is the optional Asperges rite, which may be used on Sundays, and especially in Easter Time, blessing and sprinkling water as a reminder of Baptism. This will be the subject of another mini-essay in a few weeks time. Also it may be replaced by another rite particular to a particular celebration, for example the Procession or Solemn Entrance of Palm Sunday; or the occasional Rite of acceptance of Catechumens.

Back to the Penitential Act!

It is worth noting that the Penitential Act which we celebrate at Mass is a new rite, introduced to the Order of Mass following Vatican II, replacing what was a private rite of preparation for the priest and ministers. Now it is a properly communal  rite.

The Penitential Act is provided in three forms; first, the Confiteor; second, a brief responsory; and third, what might most helpfully be described as a Litany of Mercy. Each is followed by an absolution spoken by the priest and then by the Kyrie Eleison, except in the third case where the Kyrie is incorporated into the Litany itself.

Those preparing for a particular celebration of the Mass do well to note that there are choices to be made here. Which form is most appropriate to the particular occasion; to its place in the broader context of the seasons of the Liturgical Year; to the congregation and its needs.

There is plenty of room for different decisions to be made as to which form to use and when but a sensible general plan (pretty much as commended in our Bishops’ Conference, Celebrating the Mass) is to use the Confiteor in Lent; the responsory form during Ordinary Time, and the Litany of Mercy during the seasons of Advent, Christmas, and Easter.

The Confiteor most firmly expresses the seriousness of our sin (greatly sinned/most grievous fault); and its all-pervasiveness (I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do. It also achieves a happy marriage of individual and communal dimensions of confession and of intercession – I confess but to God and to my brothers and sisters (which brothers and sisters are also confessing to me and each other); and we together ask for prayer from Our Lady, the Angels and Saints, and each other. A lot is happening in these few words.

I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
         And, striking their breast, they say:
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
         Then they continue:
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.

The brief responsory is, well, briefer. The same ‘notes’ are there, but expressed less vigorously or fulsomely.

The Priest says:
Have mercy on us, O Lord.
         The people reply:
For we have sinned against you.

         The Priest:
Show us, O Lord, your mercy.
         The people:
And grant us your salvation.

The third form of the Penitential Act is the one that most commonly misused. The Missal provides us with a Litany of Mercy.

         The Priest:
You were sent to heal the contrite of heart:
Lord, have mercy.       Or:    Kyrie, eleison.
         The people reply:
Lord, have mercy.       Or:    Kyrie, eleison.

         The Priest:
You came to call sinners:
Christ, have mercy.     Or:    Christe, eleison.
         The people:
Christ, have mercy.     Or: Christe, eleison.

         The Priest:
You are seated at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us:
Lord, have mercy.       Or:    Kyrie, eleison.
         The people:
Lord, have mercy.       Or:    Kyrie, eleison.

However it is not uncommon to hear instead a Litany of Faults!

For the times we have turned from our neighbour’s need…
For the times we have gossiped…
For the times we have not paid proper attention to what the Missal asks us to do…

The Litany of Mercy allows us to ask afresh for mercy, but it is principally a confession of acts of the Lord’s saving love.

The edition of the Roman Missal for use in England and Wales useful includes an Appendix of additional sample invocations for the Litany of Mercy which can be used in place of the sample text included in the Order of Mass. Useful, if you easily have access to a Missal! But here they are as a downloadable PDF. Each one a helpful remembrance of the saving love of God, not one a direct reminder of our faults.

Download

I end this mini essay with consideration of the absolution spoken by the priest:

May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal rather perfunctorily observes:

The rite concludes with the Priest’s absolution, which, however, lacks the efficacy of the Sacrament of Penance. (GIRM 51)

The absolution in the Sacrament of Penance confers forgiveness of sin. The absolution in the Penitential Act is different. In the Penitential Act we acknowledge our sin and engage with it afresh. So, in the Penitential Act, we also acknowledge God’s mercy and the salvation shared with us, in Baptism, in the Sacrament of Penance, in so many different ways, always for our benefit, and now once more to be received through the Eucharist, itself a sacrament of Reconciliation.

The absolution in the Sacrament of Penance neither petitions for forgiveness, nor is it authoritative declaration of new forgiveness, but it is a confident and encouraging statement of our hope in God’s ever-lasting mercy.

Thus reassured, on most Sundays of the year, the Church continues its prayer by singing its praise of God in the Gloria – the theme of our next mini-essay.

A log with links to previous postings in this series is kept here.

Acknowledgements

~ Excerpts from the English translation and chants of The Roman Missal © 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.
~ Commentary: (c) 2021, Allen Morris
~ Photograph: (c) 2018, Allen Morris. Detail of Fresco of people at prayer from Caesarea Maritima, Israel. Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

Origins and influences VI: Eating and drinking with Jesus

In last week’s ‘Origins and Influences’ posting we considered the New Testament accounts of Christians gatherings held in fulfilment of the Lord’s command to ‘do this in memory of me’–  gatherings for… well, what do we call it? Breaking of the bread (generally their term), or call it Eucharist or Mass (our terms and, to a greater or lesser extent, anachronistic terms)

A key term, a key verb, associated with these communal meals – used in the accounts of the Last Supper in the Gospels and in Paul is eucharistein. It is a word that means ‘giving thanks’. It is also a word that has remained in currency over 2000 years. And is used in the New Testament most broadly than in the accounts of the Last Supper.

As noted in last week’s mini-essay, eucharistein is also used in association attitudes and a life of thanksgiving more generally – key aspects of living in communion with the Lord.

It is a word also used, in Matthew and Mark’s Gospels in their account of the multiplication of the loaves for the 4000; and in John’s account of the feeding of the 5000. Though eucharistein does not appear in the synoptic gospels account of the feeding of the 5000, there are other verbal parallels which themselves echo the synoptic accounts of the Last Supper. In other words, these miraculous feedings far great, far more substantial than the feasts of which Paul complains in Corinth – these meals too need to feed into our appreciation of what it means to eat and drink in memory of Jesus.

Let’s look at the accounts of the feeding of 5000 and 4000 in Mark’s Gospel.

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

Mark 6.30-44

It is interesting to note that not only is Jesus’ action with the bread described in terms which evoke what he does at the Last Supper, it is describe much more elaborately than is what he does with the fish. The bread is blessed, broken and given – the fish just divided.

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand
In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

Mark 8.1-10

Again, the fish are just set before them, but the bread… the loaves Jesus give thanks (eucharistein) for, breaks and gives them.

This language of giving thanks, breaking and sharing anticipates the language that Mark uses to describes Jesus’ actions at the Last Supper.

This is surely not accidental. In these miraculous feedings Jesus draws on his divine power, on himself, for the benefit of others.

The disciples – by contrast – seem just want rid of the others – send them away. They want to keep what they have for themselves and for Jesus.

There is lovely little episode in Mark’s Gospel that follows on from the feeding of the 4000 that seems to me to make the point beautifully. The Pharisees miss the point, and the disciples miss the point. The Pharisees are blind to the signs that have already been given; and the disciples fail to understand the deeper truth of the sign. Jesus is the bread – the living bread as John would put it – and to be in communion with Jesus is to be fed. Every thing else is bonus…

The Pharisees Demand a Sign
The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” And he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.

The Leaven of the Pharisees and Herod
Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

Mark 8. 11-21

Jesus tells us he has a reputation for one who has come ‘eating and drinking, and they say, “Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!”’ . (Mt 11.19).

And yet believers see that in his eating and drinking with sinners he manifests the love and mercy of God in a way that is sometimes obscured by our disciplines of inclusion and exclusion, not least those surrounding eating and drinking, be that in our homes, and even – at least sometimes – in our religious rituals.

When we ourselves come to eat and drink with the Lord, or – in truth even more truly when we come to eat and to drink the very Lord himself in the Eucharistic food and drink – we do well to call these other transgressive meals to mind.

When we come to the Eucharist we say that we are not worthy to be there – we group ourselves with tax-collectors and sinners. Do we mean it? Do we? And do we truly ask the Lord to speak his healing word.

Lord, I am not worthy
that you should enter under my roof,
but only say the word
and my soul shall be healed.

Order of Mass 132

The priest at Mass is given additional words to use in his prayers before Communion and as he receives Communion. They underline our very real need for what Christ offers in communion

The Priest, with hands joined, says quietly:
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God,
who, by the will of the Father
and the work of the Holy Spirit,
through your Death gave life to the world,
free me by this, your most holy Body and Blood,
from all my sins and from every evil;
keep me always faithful to your commandments,
and never let me be parted from you.

Or:
May the receiving of your Body and Blood,
Lord Jesus Christ,
not bring me to judgement and condemnation,
but through your loving mercy
be for me protection in mind and body
and a healing remedy.
…
(As he receives Holy Communion) the Priest, facing the altar, says quietly:
May the Body of Christ
keep me safe for eternal life.

And he reverently consumes the Body of Christ.

Then he takes the chalice and says quietly:
May the Blood of Christ
keep me safe for eternal life.

And he reverently consumes the Blood of Christ.

The Order of Mass 131, 133.   

The priest prays ‘keep me always faithful …and never let me be parted from you.’

In other words he prays that as he leaves the altar, as he leaves the assembly of the faithful and with them returns to ‘the world’ he might continue to live in communion with Christ. He prays that he will be at one with Christ’s life of thanksgiving to the Father.

He prays that he himself (with the rest of the Church) will live as an effective sign of communion with Christ that Christ himself extends to all peoples – with those others with whom we might easily eat and drink – but especially with those others that, left to ourselves, we might shrink from spending quality time with…

Reflection questions

• How does Eucharist challenge the status quo?
• Does Mass in your Christian community challenge the status quo?
• What connects sharing in the Eucharistic food and drink with other meals in your daily life?
• How does Eucharist feed the hungry? Where does it fail to meet their needs?

Acknowledgements

• Translation of Scripture: English Standard Version (c) 2001-9, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
• The Roman Missal (c) 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.
• Photographs. (c) 2013, Allen Morris, Two images from paleo-Christian sarcophagii, Musee Departemental Arles Antique, Arles, France.
• Text (c) 2021, Allen Morris.

Origins and influences V: The Breaking of Bread

In an earlier blog I noted that although we can have an idea that there is a direct and straight line from the Last Supper to our Mass of today that is not so. Jesus did not distribute a missal to each of the apostles and say ‘do this in memory of me’.

What were they to do, in memory of him? Everything he had done at the meal?

There is no indication that they ever did that. Whatever the Passover element of the meal was – and we do not know what it was, with any certainty – never seems to have been repeated. If it was a Passover meal, remember in John’s Gospel the meal is before the Passover. But there is no indication that there was a regular gathering for the mutual washing of feet either.

What we do know about that line of connection in the earliest days of the Church, between the Last Supper, the Lord’s Supper – and for sure there is a line of connection – we glean from scripture.

The first thing that we see is that the Breaking of Bread becomes a significant ritual for the early followers of Jesus.

The Breaking of Bread

That term, the Breaking of Bread, is used especially in the writings of Luke. It comes first in the climax of the Emmaus story which takes up almost the whole of the last chapter of Luke’s Gospel and in which Jesus helps his disciples slowly put together the things they will need to understand what has happened in the Easter Mystery, the Paschal Mystery, of his Passion, Death and Resurrection. First he engages them in a reconsideration of scripture, helping them to begin see that his death rather than being a betrayal of hope is in fact hope’s fulfilment. And second he takes, blesses and breaks bread with them: and it is at the breaking of the bread that they recognise him.

That language of the breaking of the bread continues to be used by Luke in the Acts of the Apostles.

The Fellowship of the Believers
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Acts 2.42-47

Eutychus Raised from the Dead
On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight. There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered. And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer. And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third storey and was taken up dead. But Paul went down and bent over him, and taking him in his arms, said, “Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.” And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while, until daybreak, and so departed. And they took the youth away alive, and were not a little comforted.

Acts 20.7-12

Breaking bread in a storm
As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have continued in suspense and without food, having taken nothing. Therefore I urge you to take some food. For it will give you strength, for not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you.” And when he had said these things, he took bread, and giving thanks to God in the presence of all he broke it and began to eat. Then they all were encouraged and ate some food themselves. (We were in all 276 persons in the ship.) And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, throwing out the wheat into the sea.

Acts 27.33-38

Trying to understand and account for what is being described in scripture is not always straightforward!

Very many would, without hesitation, see the reference in Acts 2 to the breaking of bread as a reference to the first believers celebrating Eucharist (in one form or other).

And it is regularly suggested that the gathering at which Eutychus quite literally drops off during Paul’s preaching (or at least speechifying) was a Sunday gathering for Mass.

However what about what happens in the third episode? There is quite a lot of what we take now to be eucharistic language in Luke’s account: ‘he took bread and giving thanks (in Greek ‘eucharistein)’he broke it and began to eat. With all of that language employed Luke seems to imply this is a very eucharistic moment, (even in our later sacramental understanding of the term) and surely something more is going on than Paul was simply telling everyone to have a bite to eat and pull themselves together. But was he celebrating Eucharist? Did he share it with others?

Interpreting the words of scripture, scholars will sometimes push the evidence towards more or less tentative conclusions so as to test out their theories. But for others us it is often enough to notice ‘the grey areas’, and value the resonances, the points of connection, between what is said and what we – in a very different age and in very different circumstances – say and do, without demanding to know ‘was it Mass or wasn’t it?’

The word eucharistein – giving thanks noted above in that somewhat problematic account of Paul in the boat – gives us our English word ‘Eucharist’. The noun is used c 150AD by Justin Martyr in his Frist Apology – of which more in some weeks time.

And this food is called among us Εὐχαριστία [the Eucharist], of which no one is allowed to partake but the man who believes that the things which we teach are true, and who has been washed with the washing that is for the remission of sins, and unto regeneration, and who is so living as Christ has enjoined. For not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Saviour, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh. For the apostles, in the memoirs composed by them, which are called Gospels, have thus delivered unto us what was enjoined upon them; that Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, said, “This do youe in remembrance of Me, this is My body;” and that, after the same manner, having taken the cup and given thanks, He said, “This is My blood;” and gave it to them alone. …

Justin, First Apology 66.1

By the time of Justin Eucharist has taken on a technical meaning (and the Eucharistic Rite, as we will see has taken on what is to us a very recognisable form). But in the New Testament, and in the First and early Second Century, at least, there is also a good deal of fluidity. The Eucharistic controversies, and the centralisation of Church authority, that it has helped (and sometimes hindered?) our appreciation of the Eucharist – and certainly brought a forensic clarity to what is considered valid and invalid, licit and illicit – lie far in the future.

There is evidence of -at least – ritual diversity in the Eucharistic practice of the early Church – some may have had rituals using bread only; others with bread and water; others with bread and water and wine. We have no need to judge the propriety of what they did. It is enough to note what they did, these people who sought to live in communion with the risen Christ and understood themselves to eat and (generally, also) drink their communion in his Body, of his flesh.

What did matter in these formative times was that whether or not the breaking of bread, for example, was done in communion with Jesus, in memory of him, and under the uniting power of the Holy Spirit. The niceties of ritual practice seem to have been of less importance, at least for a while.

While there clearly was variety, the dominant tradition which has been handed on to us, is that first expounded in Paul. But for Paul too – though he knows Eucharist as a ritual  that involves bread and wine and which echoes what Jesus did at the last supper – Eucharist is also more than the ritual. It is thanksgiving, and it is about a life of thanksgiving, a life lived in Communion with Christ, and with his Body the Church.

So Paul eucharistises – he give thanks (and uses the language of eucharistein) – for the Church in Corinth (1 Cor 1.4); he partakes with thanksgiving (again he uses eucharistein) over most any food set before him (unless he knows it has been offered in sacrifice to false gods (1 Cor 30); and he urges those he writes to eucharistise always and everywhere (cf Eph 1.16, 1 Th 5.18 and 2 Th2.13), as well as at the meal that is specifically memorial of Christ.

If we allow ourselves to loosen up a little with regard to what Eucharist has been for others, we have the opportunity to broaden our appreciation of what it is that we are part of when we celebrate Eucharist today. For all of the wonder of how Eucharist engages us in what happened in the Upper Room at the Lord’s Supper, and what Christ suffered and achieved at Calvary, there is more too.

Next week we look at some of that more – in the Gospel accounts of other meals that Jesus shared with his disciples, and in some of the earliest non-scriptural accounts of Eucharistic prayer.

Acknowledgements

• Translation of Scripture: English Standard Version (c) 2001-9, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
• Quotation from Justin Martyr taken from https://earlychurchtexts.com/public/justin_eucharist.htm 
• Photographs. (c) 2005, Allen Morris, First Station, Clifton Cathedral. (c) 2017, Allen Morris, Eutychus, Chester Cathedral; (c) 2018, Allen Morris. Glass fragments, Coventry Cathedral. Stained glass, Hull Minster; (c) 2014, St Paul, St Trophime, Arles, France.
• Text (c) 2021, Allen Morris.

Prayers at the Eucharist II: Eucharistic Prayer II

Eucharistic Prayer II, the shortest of the four Eucharistic Prayers in the Order of Mass, is the one that is easiest to break down into its various constituent parts.

Looking at its structure and variety can help us to a better sense for what the various parts of the prayer are about.

It also helps us become familiar with some of the technical terms it will be useful to use when we look at other prayers from the Church’s Eucharistic treasury – be those ancient or contemporary prayers.

The analysis below is structured as follows.

1. Name of part of the prayer

2. Brief introduction to it / commentary on it

3. The text of the prayer

---

1. Preface Dialogue

This Dialogue between the priest and the congregation is the first part of the Eucharistic Prayer.

The same text is used in all the Eucharistic Prayers of the Roman Rite and, with minor variations, appears in virutally all Eucharistic Prayers East and West, Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant/Reformed.

In one of his homilies, St John Chrysostom said that this exchange was so important that without the congregation’s affirmation and response to the priest’s invitations the priest lacked the authority to proceed with the Church’s prayer.

Priest         The Lord be with you.
All              And with your spirit.

Priest         Lift up your hearts.
All              We lift them up to the Lord.

Priest         Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
All              It is right and just.

2. Preface

In books the Preface is often a sort of ‘take it or leave it’ introduction. The Preface of the Eucharistic Prayer, in contract, is an integral part of the Eucharistic Prayer.

It gives the particular reason or focus for the prayer being offered. In the Roman Rite, in most cases, the Preface is variable, and different text is provided for when the Eucharistic Prayer is used in different liturgical seasons (Advent, Christmas etc) or according to the category of saint being celebrated in a particular Mass (eg martyr, bishop, religious etc). Some Eucharistic Prayers can only be used with their own proper fixed Preface, which tends to restrict the occasions on which those particular prayers can be used – for example, Eucharistic Prayer IV, because of its fixed preface, cannot be used during the Church’s principal Liturgical seasons

The Preface that follows is given as part of Eucharistic Prayer II but it may be replaced as required.

Priest:          It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks, Father most holy,
through your beloved Son, Jesus Christ,
your Word through whom you made all things,
whom you sent as our Saviour and Redeemer,
incarnate by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin.

Fulfilling your will and gaining for you a holy people,
he stretched out his hands as he endured his Passion,
so as to break the bonds of death and manifest the resurrection.

And so, with the Angels and all the Saints
we declare your glory,
as with one voice we acclaim:

3. Sanctus

The largest part of the Eucharistic Prayer is spoken or chanted by the priest. He prays the prayer in the person of the Church even as he serves in persona Christi.

The rest of the congregation, generally, prays silently, associating itself with what is proclaimed to God on the Father on its behalf. However there are particular parts of the prayer  – the acclamations – in which all members of the congregation are to join their voices with the priest.

These acclamations – the Sanctus (the ‘Holy’), the Memorial Acclamation and the Great Amen – are of their nature song, and they should be sung, even if other parts of the Eucharistic Prayer are not.

All:              Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

4. Post Sanctus

This is the part of the prayer that immediately follows after the Sanctus. It generally sets this prayer of the Church in a broader context than does the Preface, particularly where there is a variable Preface.

In Eucharistic Prayer II the Post Sanctus is very brief! 

The Priest, with hands extended, says:
You are indeed Holy, O Lord,
the fount of all holiness.                         

5. Epiclesis

Epiclesis is a term that comes from the Greek and means to call down upon, or to invoke. Here the priest asks the Father to send the Holy Spirit on the gifts of bread and wine to make them holy.

The priest holds his hands extended over the gifts, as if symbolising the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove over the gifts. He joins his hands and, holding them extended over the offerings, says:
Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray,
by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall,

He joins his hands
and makes the Sign of the Cross once over the bread and the chalice together, saying:
so that they may become for us
the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

He joins his hands.

6. The Supper (or Institution) Narrative

This section of the prayer, as its title suggests, relates the key events of the Last Supper – as related by St Paul and in the Synoptic Gospels. These are understood to be how Jesus ‘instituted’ the Eucharist.

In the prayerful remembrance of Jesus’ taking, blessing and breaking of Bread that becomes his Body, and of Jesus’ taking, blessing and sharing of Wine that becomes his Blood, the priest consecrates the elements of bread and wine that has been brought to the altar.

In the formulas that follow, the words of the Lord should be pronounced clearly and distinctly, as the nature of these words requires.
At the time he was betrayed
and entered willingly into his Passion,

He takes the bread and, holding it slightly raised above the altar, continues:
he took bread and, giving thanks, broke it,
and gave it to his disciples, saying:

He bows slightly.
TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND EAT OF IT,
FOR THIS IS MY BODY,
WHICH WILL BE GIVEN UP FOR YOU.

He shows the consecrated host to the people, places it again on the paten, and genuflects in adoration.

 After this, he continues:
In a similar way, when supper was ended,

He takes the chalice and, holding it slightly raised above the altar, continues:
he took the chalice
and, once more giving thanks,
he gave it to his disciples, saying:

He bows slightly.
TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND DRINK FROM IT,
FOR THIS IS THE CHALICE OF MY BLOOD,
THE BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT,
WHICH WILL BE POURED OUT FOR YOU AND FOR MANY
FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS.

DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME.

He shows the chalice to the people, places it on the corporal, and genuflects in adoration.

7. The Mystery of Faith

In the language of the Church a Mystery is not something hidden, something waiting to be discovered, as in a ‘Murder Mystery’.

In this context a Mystery is something revealed by God, something rich and deep and loving.

In this case the Mystery referred to is the Paschal Mystery – the Mystery of the Lord’s Passion, Death and Resurrection. These are the events by which Jesus overcame death and sin, and through which we are freed from sin and saved from death.

As noted above, this acclamation is intended to be sung.

Then he says:
The mystery of faith.

And the people continue, acclaiming:
We proclaim your Death, O Lord,
and profess your Resurrection
until you come again.

Or:
When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup,
we proclaim your Death, O Lord,
until you come again.

Or:
Save us, Saviour of the world,
for by your Cross and Resurrection
you have set us free.

8. The Anamnesis or Memorial

The word anamnesis is a Greek word. It continues to be used in English, not least because its meaning is not easy to express in other words.

Anamnesis has to do with memory, and the Church’s faith is that the memory of Jesus’ Paschal Mystery, is a living memory.

In the Mass past, present and future connect. The saving events of the Paschal Mystery offer us unity with Christ now and for ever.

Then the Priest, with hands extended, says:
Therefore, as we celebrate
the memorial of his Death and Resurrection,
we offer you, Lord,
the Bread of life and the Chalice of salvation,
giving thanks that you have held us worthy
to be in your presence and minister to you.

9. Epiclesis

As in 5. above, in this the second Epiclesis, the priest calls down the Holy Spirit, in this case invoking the Spirit to come down on the gathered Church.

At Mass, it is not only bread and wine that is expected to be changed. We are to be changed too, to be made one, with Jesus and with each other also.

Humbly we pray
that, partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ,
we may be gathered into one by the Holy Spirit.

10. Intercessions

At this point of the Eucharistic Prayer, we pray for the living and the dead.

The love of God is not for us alone, and we pray that God’s love might be made available and fruitful for the whole Church.

We pray for the Pope, with whom we are united in faith and love; and for our Bishop, the shepherd of our diocese, the local Church.

We pray for those who have died. And, yes, we pray for ourselves too.

Remember, Lord, your Church,
spread throughout the world,
and bring her to the fullness of charity,
together with N. our Pope and N. our Bishop
and all the clergy.

Remember also our brothers and sisters
who have fallen asleep in the hope of the resurrection,
and all who have died in your mercy:
welcome them into the light of your face.

Have mercy on us all, we pray,
that with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God,
with blessed Joseph, her Spouse,
with the blessed Apostles,
and all the Saints who have pleased you throughout the ages,
we may merit to be coheirs to eternal life,
and may praise and glorify you.

He joins his hands.
through your Son, Jesus Christ.

11. The Doxology

Again, the word ‘Doxology’ comes to us from the Greek, this time from  doxa meaning ‘glory’ and logos meaning ‘word.

The Doxology – this paragraph, this word of glory – gathers together all the praise and thanksgiving of the Eucharistic Prayer and directs it to the Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Christ offered himself in sacrifice at the Cross. We now offer this Sacrifice of Praise to the Father, with Christ, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit.

He takes the chalice and the paten with the host and, raising both, he says:
Through him, and with him, and in him,
O God, almighty Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honour is yours,
for ever and ever.

12. The Great Amen

Amen

Amen.

It doesn’t look much on the page, that single word. But we are told that in days gone by those standing in the hills round the city of Milan could hear the Great Amen echo around them so enthusiastically did the people of that city pray their Amen at the end of the Eucharistic Prayer.

These days, for one reason or another, we are generally less demonstrative. And left to our own devices the Great Amen can fall flat.

The priest is encouraged to sing the Doxology and we are encouraged to sing the Great Amen – that way our spoken prayer is supported by music and our Prayer is brought to a more noble conclusion.

The people acclaim:
Amen.

Reflection questions

• Did the analysis of the prayer highlight any aspects of the Eucharistic Prayer you had not particularly noticed before?
• Are there particular parts of the Eucharistic Prayer that have particular significance for you?
• What is your experience of praying with this Prayer during Mass?

A log with links to previous postings in this series is kept here.

Acknowledgements

• The Roman Missal (c) 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.
• Photographs. (c) 2019, Allen Morris. Stained glass, Hull Minster.
• Commentary. (c) 2021, Allen Morris.

Prayers at the Eucharist I: What Eucharistic prayers do we have?

Looking at particular prayer forms can easily become quite technical and somewhat ‘geeky’ – of keen interest to the specialist but bewildering to everyone else.

I hope we can avoid that in this series of articles which will begin by looking at the Eucharistic Prayers of the Roman Rite.

There are perhaps more such prayers than we may be aware.

Most people will be aware that there are 4 Eucharistic Prayers available for regular use by the Church. These – Eucharistic Prayers I, II, III and IV are included in the Order of Mass (the standard pattern for Mass provided in the Roman Missal).

However the Missal also includes two different Eucharistic Prayers for Reconciliation; and a Eucharistic Prayer for use in Masses for Various Needs.

The Eucharistic Prayers for Reconciliation may be used in Masses which focus on reconciliation in one form or another, as well as during the season of Lent.

The Eucharistic Prayer for use in Masses for Various Needs is a single prayer but exists in four major variants – the first headed ‘The Church on the Path of Unity’; the second headed ‘God Guides His Church along the Way of Salvation’; the third, ‘Jesus, the Way to the Father’; and the fourth, ‘Jesus, Who Went About Doing Good’. This prayer is not designed to be used on Sundays or the principal feasts of the Church but for Masses for Various Needs (eg for the Church or her minsters, or a spiritual gathering; for vocations, for charity, and for relatives and friends; for Evanglization and for persecuted Christians; In time of famine, for those in prison and for the dying).

In addition there are three Eucharistic Prayers for Masses with Children (One of which exists in two forms one for use during Eastertide and the other outside of Eastertime) – designed for use with children who have not yet received their first Holy Communion. And finally there is a Eucharistic Prayer which is for use at Masses with people who are deaf, and may only be used when the Mass is signed as well as spoken.

That is quite a variety, especially for the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church which, until the changes to the Rite following Vatican II, had only one Eucharistic Prayer (the present Eucharistic Prayer I) – although then as now it was varied by a multitude of alternative Prefaces (ie the first part of the Prayer which comes after the Preface Dialogue and before the Sanctus or Holy).

This variety ought to mean that those responsible for preparing the Church’s Liturgy for celebration will always give thought as to which of these various prayers is the most appropriate for use at a particular celebration. Circumstances may preclude particular prayers for use, for one reason or another, but there is always a choice to be made, and always some choices are going to be more appropriate than others.

Over the coming months there will be opportunity to consider these various prayers in more detail. But next week there will be another post giving an analysis of Eucharistic Prayer II into its various distinct parts – including Preface Dialogue, Preface and Sanctus!

This analysis will introduce some technical language – hopefully avoiding too much geekiness – as this is likely to prove helpful as we look at further particular prayers – both in this series of ‘Eucharistic Prayer’ postings, but also, the week after, when we turn back to the ‘Origins and influences’ series of postings on this blog, and look at some of the very earliest texts for Eucharistic Prayer.

A log with links to previous postings in this series is kept here.

Acknowledgements

• Translation of Scripture: English Standard Version (c) 2001-9, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers
• Photographs. All (c) Allen Morris: 2011, Missal; 2016, Stained glass, Kings Lynn Minster,
• Commentary: © 2021, Allen Morris

Origins and influences IV: the Last Supper and communion in Christ

Christians are very familiar with the idea of Jesus’ last supper – principal source of our Mass – being a Passover.

Each Palm Sunday we hear readings from a synoptic Gospel of the year – Matthew, Mark or Luke – which tells us this meal was a Passover. Indeed the Gospels go into some detail about the careful preparation for the meal, as in the following verses from Luke’s Gospel.

The Passover with the Disciples

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him…

Luke 22.7-14

Each Gospel then continues with words from the Lord in which Jesus interprets ritual actions in terms of his forthcoming death – and, in Luke’s account, asks the disciples to take, break and share bread (his body) in remembrance of him.

Institution of the Lord’s Supper ?

And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Luke 22.15-23

So far, so straight forward? Well not exactly. Luke tells us of a meal with a cup before and after the sharing in bread. That might come as a bit of a surprise. And surprising too, perhaps, that we are not told anything particular to the celebration of Passover, most notably the feasting on the lamb sacrificed and roasted for the household’s meal.

When we compare Luke’s account to those of Matthew and Luke there are more things to note. Most notably there is no mention there of a cup shared before the words over the bread, and there is no command ‘Do this in remembrance of me’.

No-one seems to doubt that by the time these Evangelists were writing their Gospels the Church was celebrating the Lord’s Supper, the Eucharist.

Our earliest account comes from a letter of St Paul, dated maybe 30 years before the Gospel of Luke.

I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

I Corinthians 11.23-25

Paul’s account includes the words at the breaking of bread about ‘do this in remembrance of me’, indeed he adds something similar after the cup.

We do not know what the domestic Passover ritual was at the time of Jesus, so it is speculation as to whether or not there was a sharing in two cups. But it is interesting that there is such variation in the accounts of the last supper.

Many scholars suggest that writers’ accounts of the last supper meal will have been influenced not only by their authors’ knowledge of an oral tradition about what Jesus did and said; and knowledge of other written accounts (for example, possibly an influence of Paul on Mark and Matthew); but also possibly – even probably – by the way Eucharist was celebrated in their local community. This perhaps explains why Luke’s account varies from the others – Eucharist was celebrated in a ritual including two cups, perhaps because Luke knew a celebration of Eucharist which included not only ritual involving bread and wine, but even perhaps a full meal which began with the blessing of wine. On this joining of Eucharist and meal there is more below.

We often seem to assume all early Christians would do the same thing at celebrations of Eucharist, and any variation would be deviation from the norm. However it is at least plausible that different communities celebrated ‘the breaking of bread’, their sharing in the Body and Blood of Christ, in somewhat different ways, according to their circumstances – indeed given the variations of all sorts noted in other early sources this may the more likely case.

In particular sometime early in the history of the Church one major change took place in how Eucharist was celebrated. We may not know the full ritual content of the last supper, but we do know there was a meal.

We also know that at the time of Paul the particular rites which were the sharing in the Body and Blood of Christ were still being celebrated in the context of a meal. We know that because Paul was scandalised by the unchristian way in which the Corinthians conducted themselves at this meal.

When you come together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not…

…

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another— if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment.

I Corinthians 11.20-22, 27-34

It is suggested that Matthew and Mark were familiar with their local Church celebrating the Lord’s Supper separate from any other community meal; and that maybe Luke’s community had not yet, or at least had only more recently separated the two ‘meals’.

By the 2^nd Century AD that separation was commonplace – if not, perhaps, yet universal. But this Blog will come back to how Eucharist was celebrated in the 2^nd Century in a month or so. Over the next few Sundays this Blog will spend a little time looking at how, in the Roman Rite, we presently begin our celebration of Mass, in the Roman Rite, and then looking at the pretty much standard pattern of the Eucharistic Prayers of the Roman Rite.

But first to just notice the very different way in which John’s Gospel deals with the last supper.

Now you do as I have done to you

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”

John 13.1-20

Clearly what John presents is not a Passover meal – for this is a meal before the Feast. John tells us that Jesus was killed at the time that of the sacrifice of the Passover lambs. Scholars have all sorts of suggestions to account for this difference between John’s Gospel and the others. Perhaps John was linked with a different Jewish grouping, the Essenes, that followed a slightly different calendar (a little like the Orthodox Church today follows a different calendar, celebrating Easter and Christmas on different days to the rest of the Church, in the secular calendar).

Or maybe John is varying the narrative to make a symbolic point – that truly Jesus is the Passover sacrifice or, maybe more properly, that Jesus fulfils all that is promised in Passover, and that for those who acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Saviour there is now no need to celebrate Passover. John knows that Christians are to live in communion with Jesus, to eat his flesh and drink his blood (cf John 6). It is conceivable that John knows of a ritual meal that is Eucharist, but maybe, just maybe, for John what matters more than any such meal is mutual service. Without such mutual service, then perhaps John like Paul would say whatever you do by way of ritual or worship is not the Lord’s Supper, but brings judgement on ourselves.

The point was forcefully made by Saint Pope John Paul II when proposing a Year of the Eucharist to the Church.

There is one other point which I would like to emphasize, since it significantly affects the authenticity of our communal sharing in the Eucharist. It is the impulse which the Eucharist gives to the community for a practical commitment to building a more just and fraternal society. In the Eucharist our God has shown love in the extreme, overturning all those criteria of power which too often govern human relations and radically affirming the criterion of service: “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all” (Mc 9:35). It is not by chance that the Gospel of John contains no account of the institution of the Eucharist, but instead relates the “washing of feet” (cf. Jn 13:1-20): by bending down to wash the feet of his disciples, Jesus explains the meaning of the Eucharist unequivocally. Saint Paul vigorously reaffirms the impropriety of a Eucharistic celebration lacking charity expressed by practical sharing with the poor (cf.1Cor 11:17-22, 27-34).

Mane Nobiscum Domine, 28. John Paul II.

Questions for reflection

• What does it seem to you makes for communion with the Lord?
• The phrase ‘practicing Catholic’ is a familiar one. Often this is used to distinguish those who go to Mass from those who don’t. What four or five characteristics do you think that, together, might make for a better definition for a practicing Catholic?
• What variations in celebrations of the Lord’s Supper are you familiar with in contemporary Christian communities?
• What would might be the advantages/disadvantages of once more combining Mass with a community meal?

Acknowledgements

• Scripture: English Standard Version (c) 2001-9, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers
• Photographs. All (c) Allen Morris. (c) 2015, Last Supper, Sacred Heart, Coleshill, Birmingham; (c) 2015, Vasily Perov, ‘Monastery Refectory’ and Icon detail, Russian Museum, St Petersburg;
• Commentary: © 2021, Allen Morris
  

Gospel reading for Mass on 13th January

Mark 1:29-39

On leaving the synagogue, Jesus went with James and John straight to the house of Simon and Andrew. Now Simon’s mother-in-law had gone to bed with fever, and they told him about her straightaway. He went to her, took her by the hand and helped her up. And the fever left her and she began to wait on them.

That evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were sick and those who were possessed by devils. The whole town came crowding round the door, and he cured many who were suffering from diseases of one kind or another; he also cast out many devils, but he would not allow them to speak, because they knew who he was.

In the morning, long before dawn, he got up and left the house, and went off to a lonely place and prayed there. Simon and his companions set out in search of him, and when they found him they said, ‘Everybody is looking for you.’ He answered, ‘Let us go elsewhere, to the neighbouring country towns, so that I can preach there too, because that is why I came.’ And he went all through Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out devils.

Acknowledgements
~ Translation of Scriptures: the Jerusalem Bible © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman  &  Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of  Random House, Inc.
~ Photograph: (c) 2013, Allen Morris. The healing of Peter’s mother in law. Church at House of Peter, Capernaum, Galilee.