Chapter II

The Excellence of Holy Mass

The holy Mass is of such surpassing excellence that not even one of the highest angels can praise it aright. Let us hear what St. Francis de Sales says of it in his Introduction to a Devout Life: “Holy Mass is the sun of all spiritual exercises, the mainspring of devotion, the soul of piety, the fire of divine charity, the abyss of divine mercy, and a precious means whereby God confers upon us His graces.” It would take long fully to unfold the meaning of these beautiful words, and explain the glorious epithets of which the saint makes use. What he intends to say is this: Let him who desires to be truly pious and devout be assiduous in his attendance upon holy Mass, for this is the best means of obtaining divine grace.

The learned Father Osorius places the holy Mass before all the other mysteries of religion, for he says: “There is nothing in holy Church so sublime and of such inestimable value as the holy sacrifice of the Mass, for in it the adorable Sacrament of the Altar is consecrated, and offered as a sacred oblation to the most high God.” Fornerus, some time Bishop of Bamberg, says the same: “The holy Mass far surpasses in dignity all other holy sacraments and rites of the Church.” Again he adds: “The holy sacraments are sublime, but more sublime by far is the holy sacrifice of the Mass. For they are vessels of mercy for the living, whereas it is an inexhaustible ocean of divine bounty for both the living and the dead.” See how this writer praises and magnifies the holy sacrifice of the Matt, assigning to it a value far beyond that of the sacraments. We will now consider the reasons why the holy Matt it so superexcellent a thing.

First of all, the great excellence of the holy Mass may be inferred from the prayers and ceremonies appointed for the consecration of churches and altars. Any one who has been present at the dedication of a church, who has followed the prayers and understood the ceremonial made use of by the bishop, cannot fail to have been edified by what he witnessed. For the benefit of those who have never assisted at the consecration of churches and altars the ceremonies connected with it shall be briefly described.

The Dedication of Churches

The consecrating bishop, who, together with the congregation, has prepared himself by fasting on the preceding day, sets apart overnight the relics to be used in the consecration. On the morning of the day appointed he betakes himself to the place whither they have been carried, and after vesting pontifically recites with the clergy present the seven penitential psalms and the Litany of the Saints. He then goes in procession with the clergy round the outside of the church, the door of which is closed, sprinkling the upper portion of the walls with holy water in the form of the cross, saying • In the name of the Father +, and of the Son 4% and of the Holy + Ghost—the clergy meanwhile singing a responsory. On coming back to the church-door the bishop says a short prayer, and knocks with his pastoral staff at the door, saying: Attollitc portas,princtpes> vestrasf etc. (“Lift up your heads, ye princes, and be ye lifted up, ye eternal gates, and the King of glory will enter.”) He then goes round the church Again, sprinkling the lower part of the walls with the same words; and on returning to the door says a different prayer, and knocks with his staff as before. A third time he goes round the church, this time sprinkling the middle part of the walls; he then knocks three times with his staff at the door, saying: M Be opened t“And upon the door being opened he makes a cross with his staff on the threshold, saying:”Behold the sign of the cross; let the spirits of evil depart!“Entering into the church, he says:” Peace be to this house!“

In the middle of the church the bishop kneels down and intones the hymn Vem\ Creator Sptritus; this is followed by the Litany of the Saints and the canticle of Zachary: Benedictus Dominus Deus (“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel.”) While these are being sung he forms a cross with the letters of the Latin and Greek alphabets, which he inscribes with his staff on ashes wherewith the floor of the church has previously been sprinkled; then, kneeling before the high altar, he chants three times the words, Deusy in adjutorium meutn intendey etc. (“O God, come to my assistance,” etc.). Thereupon he blesses with the prescribed form of prayer ashes, salt, water, and wine, mixing them together and signing them repeatedly with the cross, and proceeds to consecrate the high altar and the other altars. Dipping his thumb in the preparation which he has just blessed, he makes a cross in the middle and in the four corners of the altar-stone, saying: “Let this altar be sanctified + to the glory of God, of the Virgin Mary, and all the saints, and in the name and commemoration of St. N. [naming the patron of the church], in the name of the + Father,” etc. These words are repeated five times. Thereupon he goes round the altar seven times, sprinkling it with holy water and reciting the Miserere

He next goes three times round the interior of the church, sprinkling the walls above, below, and in the middle whilst three psalms and antiphons are sung. He also sprinkles the floor of the church in each of the four corners, with certain prayers and the sign of the cross, and returns to the high altar. He then blesses chalk and sand, and mixes them with holy water, thus preparing the mortal for the laying of the altar-stone. Afterwards, going in procession to the place where the relics were deposited on the previous evening, he incenses them, and carries them with lighted tapers and smoking censers round the church. Pausing on the threshold, the bishop makes three crosses on the door, saying: “In the name of the Father*, and of the Son*, and of the Holy* Ghost, be thou blessed, sanctified, and consecrated.^

When the procession reaches the high altar, the bishop makes five crosses with chrism in the cavity of the altar, called the sepulchre, places the case containing the relics in it, incenses them, and closes the repository or sepulchre with a stone that has been blessed and the mortar prepared for the purpose. Thereupon he incenses the altar itself, and hands the censer to a priest, who goes round it incensing every part. Meanwhile the bishop makes five crosses with oil of catechumens on the table of the altar, one in the centre and one in each of the corners, with the same words employed when blessing the water, incenses the crosses, and goes round the altar incensing it. After the prescribed prayer and psalm have been recited he again anoints the altar, making five crosses upon it, saying: “Let this altar be blessed, sanctified, and consecrated.” He then again incenses the crosses and the whole altar. This ceremony is repeated a third time, whilst psalms are chanted by the clergy. Finally, the bishop pours oil and chrism over the whole altar “»*>bing it in with his hand. He then goes round the interior of the church, and anoints the twelve crosses upon the walls with the chrism, saying:” Let this church be hallowed and consecrated in the name of the Father, etc.,“and incensing each cross three times. Returning tr the altar, he blesses the frankincense, lays five grains of incense wherever the five crosses were made, forms five small crosses out of wax tapers and lights them. Whilst they are burning, he kneels down, as do all the clergy present, and intones the hymn Vent, Sancte Spiritus. This is followed by more prayers and a preface; the clergy chant Psalm lxvii. in thanksgiving for the graces received; the bishop makes a cross with the chrism below the table of the altar, and recites more and longer prayers. After that he rubs his hands with bread and salt, and washes them in water. The clergy wipe the altar with linen, cover it with an altar-cloth, decorate it as best they can, whilst psalms and responsories are sung. In conclusion the bishop incenses the altar three times, and proceeds to celebrate a solemn pontifical High Mass.

All who have been present at the dedication of a church cannot find words to express their surprise at the number of different ceremonies, anointings, benedictions, and prayers that appertain to the ritual. What is the object of all of these? It is in order to render the church a temple meet for the great and holy sacrifice offered up therein to the most high God, and to hallow and consecrate the altars whereon the spotless Lamb of God is to be slain in a mystical manner.

This is sufficient to convince any Christian of the sanctity of our churches and altars, and the great reverence we ought to pay to. them. Solomon’s temple was but a foreshadow and type of the Christian Church, and yet in what respect it was held both by Jews and heathen! How much the more should we reverence and respect our churches, hallowed as they are by so solemn a dedication! We read in the Third Book of Kings that Solomon, on the occasion of the dedication of his temple, offered up no less than two and twenty thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand rams. These animals were all slaughtered by the priests, purified, and laid in pieces on the altar. And while the king prayed aloud fire fell from heaven and consumed the victims. The whole temple wac filled with a cloud, and the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. And all the people, who beheld the fire and the glory of the Lord, filled with awe, fell upon their faces and adored the Lord. Thereupon King Solomon, standing on a high place in the sight of the assembly of Israel, spread forth his hands towards heaven and said: “Is it then to be thought that God should indeed dwell upon earth? For if heaven and the heavens of heavens cannot contain Thee, how much less this house, which I have built!” (hi. Kings viii. 27.)

Who, indeed, can fail to be amazed at this, and feel himself unable rightly to comprehend the dignity of that sacred temple? And yet that temple was but a type, an image, of our churches. In that there was nothing but the Ark of the Covenant, which only contained the two stone tables of the law, a basket of showbread, and Aaron’s rod that had blossomed. The sacrifices of the Jews were only animals that were slaughtered and burnt, besides offerings of bread, wine, cakes, etc., whereas our churches are dedicated by the bishops with incomparably greater solemnity; they are anointed with holy oil and chrism; they are blessed by being sprinkled with holy water and incensed with frankincense; they are hal lowed repeatedly by the sign of the cross, and consecrated finally by the oblation of the most holy sacrifice of the Mass. Instead of the Ark of the Covenant we hurt the tabernacle, where the true bread of heaven, the adorable Sacrament of the Altar, the body and blood of Christ, is continually reserved. If it is right to hold Solomon’s temple in honor, how much more ought we to reverence our consecrated churches, in which God dwells in person.

Our churches are called the house of God, and this in very deed they are, since God Himself dwells in them, and is always to be found in them* He is surrounded continually by a countless host of angels, who serve Him, who adore Him, who worship Him, who praise Him, who offer our prayers to Him. This was foreshadowed by the vision of the patriarch Jacob. Overtaken by night in the open country, he laid down to sleep, and in a dream he saw a ladder standing upon the earth, the top of which reached to heaven. By this ladder the angels of God were ascending and descending, and at the top of it he beheld God Himself. Jacob woke from his sleep trembling, and said: “How terrible is this place! This is no other but the house of God, and the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:17) He took the stone on which his head had rested, poured oil upon it, set it up for an altar, and on his return journey he offered sacrifice upon it to God. That was a type of the Christian Church, with its altar, anointed with holy oil and chrism, of which we can in truth say: “How terrible is this place! This is no other but the house of God, and the gate of heaven,” for here the angels ascend and descend, and carry up our petitions to heaven. Our churches are the place of which God speaks by the mouth of the prophet Isaias: “I will bring them [the people of the Lord] into My holy mount, and will make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their holocausts and their victims shall please Me upon My altar; for My house shall be called the house of prayer for all nations.” (Isaias 56:7)

From all this we learn the sanctity of our churches! and the respect we owe to them. It is because they are the house of God, and Jesus Christ dwells in person within them in the Blessed Sacrament, surrounded by innumerable angels, that we know not how to honor them enough, how to be sufficiently devout and recollected in prayer. If we had a living faith, we should enter a consecrated church with trembling; we should worship Christ present in the Adorable Sacrament with deepest reverence, and invoke the assistance of the holy angels who are there. Such was David’s custom, as he tells us in the words: “I will worship towards Thy holy temple; I will sing praise to Thee in the sight of the angels.” (Psalms 137:1,2) Therefore to be inattentive in church, or in any other way to displease God by disrespectful behavior, is an insult to the Divine Majesty and dishonor to the house of God. Let us firmly resolve on entering a church not to utter or listen to an unnecessary word, nor to look about us, but to behave reverently, to pray devoutly, to adore the Lord our God, to confess our sins and implore the divine mercy.

Furthermore, we may learn how excellent a thing is the holy Mass from the solemn ordination of priests and clerics. Every priest must be admitted to seven different grades of orders before he is empowered to offer the holy sacrifice of the Mass. The four minor orders indicate that he who receives them is taken into the service of the Church, and may assist the priest who celebrates Mass. But they do not confer the right so much as to touch the chalice, the paten, the corporal, or the purificator; for this the fifth order, that of the subdiaconate, must be received.

Only the subdeacon, the deacon, and the priest are entitled to handle the sacred vessels employed at the altar, or to cleanse them. It is of great importance that all the things that are required for the celebration of the holy Mass should be kept scrupulously clean and in good condition, as they are used in the highest act of divine service, and are brought into contact with the most sacred body and blood of the Lord. It is greatly to be deplored when proper and clean vestments and vessels are not provided, or when the congregation is backward in supplying the priest with the funds requisite for the purpose.

The Manner of Conferring Holy Orders

The three higher grades are the subdiaconate, the diaconate, and the priesthood. This last is conferred during the celebration of Mass, and in the following manner: The deacon who is to be ordained priest, vested in alb, amice, girdle, and stole, the latter being worn over the left shoulder and fastened on the right side, must present himself before the bishop, who occupies a chair on the top step of the altar, and kneel down at his feet. The bishop, in a lengthy and forcible address, sets before him the heavy duties of the office he is about to take upon himself, concluding with the words: “As oft as thou shalt celebrate the mystery of the Lord’s death strive to mortify in thy members all evil desires and concupiscences. Let thy doctrine be a spiritual medicine to the people of God; let the sweet savor of thy life rejoice the Church of Christ, so that by thy teaching and example thou mayst edify the house of God, and that both we, for conferring upon thee so weighty an office, as well as thou thyself, for assuming it, may receive from God, not the sentence of condemnation, but rather the reward of good works, which may God operate in thee by His grace. Amen.” The bishop then addresses the people, and asks their testimony to the worthiness of the candidate for this high office. If no one alleges any thing against him, the bishop kneels down and recites aloud the Litany of the Saints and other prayers, the deacon, who meanwhile lies prostrate upon his face, responding. Afterwards the bishop lays his hands upon his head, repeating a prayer over him, together with a long preface; he then places the stole round his neck and puts the chasuble over his head. Kneeling down, he pronounces another prayer, and the Vent, Creator Spiritus. This ended, he resumes his seat, and the deacon, kneeling before him, lays his hands open upon the bishop’s lap. The bishop proceeds to anoint the palms with the chrism in the form of a cross; he then touches each finger and both the hands separately, saying: “Vouchsafe, O Lord, to sanctify and consecrate these hands by this anointing and our benediction.” He also makes the sign of the cross over them, with a prayer that whatsoever they bless may be blessed, whatsoever they sanctify may remain sanctified, in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ. He then binds both the hands of the deacon together with a narrow linen cloth, gives him a chalice to hold containing wine and water, also a paten and (unconsecrated) host, saying: “Receive power to offer sacrifice to God and to celebrate Mass, as well for the living as for the dead, in the name of the Lord. Amen.” The hands of the newly-ordained priest are unbound; he washes them, the bishop meanwhile proceeding with the celebration of Mass. At the Offertory he delivers a lighted taper to the bishop, whose hand he kisses. Then, kneeling behind him, and holding a missal, he reads with him word for word the Canon of the Mass, receiving from his hand the sacred host at the time of the Communion. The newly-ordained priest has also to recite the Creed, whereupon the bishop confers on him the power to forgive sins by laying his hands upon his head with the words: “Receive the Holy Ghost; whosesoever sins thou shalt remit they are remitted, and whosesoever sins thou shalt retain they are retained.” Finally, he takes the oath of obedience to the bishop and his rightful successors, and the ceremony terminates with the following blessing: “The benediction of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, descend on thee; and mayst thou be blessed in the order of the priesthood, and mayst thou offer pleasing victims for the sins and offences of the people to Almighty God, to Whom be praise and glory forever and ever. Amen.”

Such is the ritual which must be observed in the ordination of priests in the Roman Catholic Church. If these ceremonies be carefully studied, we cannot fail to admire and prize highly the ancient formulae appointed by the Church for the devout and solemn administration of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Wherefore should so elaborate a ceremonial be observed at the ordination of a Catholic priest? For this reason, that he may be sufficiently cleansed, sanctified, and made worthy to offer to the tremendous majesty of God the most pure, most holy, most adorable and divine sacrifice of the holy Mass. Wherefore let us hold priests in honor because of their dignity and the consecration they have received; for Christ has said that those who honor them honor Him, and those who despise them despise Him.

The great excellence of the holy sacrifice may furthermore be seen from the number of things that are requisite if it is to be offered. It is necessary to have: (i) An ordained priest, who stands in the place of Christ. (2) A consecrated altar, which must in every church or chapel occupy an elevated position, because it represents the Mount of Calvary, whereon Christ, the guiltless victim, was immolated and lifted up upon the cross. (3) Sacerdotal vestments, namely: (a) The amice, which the priest passes over his head and places round his neck; this represents the linen cloth wherewith in the house of Caiphas the Jews covered Christ’s countenance, bidding Him in mockery: Prophesy to us, who is it that struck Thee? (b) The alb, which represents the white garment in which He was arrayed in the house of Herod, (c) The linen girdle with which the priest girds himself, and which represents the cord wherewith Christ was bound in the Garden of Olives by the Jews, (d) The maniple, which, placed on the priest’s left arm, represents the bonds wherewith Christ’s hands were tied, (e) The stole, which, placed around the neck of the priest and crossed upon his breast, represents the chains laid upon Our Lord after He was sentenced to death. (/) The chasuble, which represents the purple robe wherewith the impious soldiery clothed Him in derision at the crowning with thorns. The cross upon the chasuble represents the cross to which Christ was nailed; the pillar, the column at which He was scourged. (4) A consecrated chalice, which represents the grave wherein He was laid, or the bitter chalice of His passion, that He drank to the dregs. (5) A pall to cover the chalice; this represents the stone that closed His tomb. (6) A paten, or small silver plate, representing the vases containing the unguents used to anoint the body of Christ before His burial. (7) A corporal, or square of fine linen, which represents the shroud wrapped about His sacred remains. Furthermore, there is (8) the purificator, a small cloth employed to dry the chalice, representing the other cloths that were used at His interment; (9) the veil of silk to cover the chalice, representing the veil of the temple, rent in two from the top to the bottom at the moment of His death; (10) the two cruets, representing the vessels which contained the wine and the gall given Him to drink upon the cross. Besides these it is necessary to have (n) a host; (12) wine; (13) water; (14) two tapers; (15) two candlesticks; (16) a missal; (17) a stand or cushion, to support the missal; (18) three altar-cloths, to lay upon the altar; (19) a lavabo, or napkin, on which the priest dries his fingers after the washing of hands; (20) a bell; (21) a crucifix, to stand in the middle of the altar; (22) a server, to answer the responses. Almost all the things that have been enumerated are essential to the Mass; so much so that the priest who dispensed with any of them, except in case of absolute necessity, would be guilty of a grave sin. We will give an instance of this:

At the time that the Moors had subjugated the greater part of Spain it happened that a certain King of Caravaca, who held captive a large number of Christians, felt his heart touched with compassion for them. He ordered them to be set at liberty, and bade them all appear in his presence. He then asked each one individually what was his trade or handiwork, and gave him permission to exercise it. Amongst the released prisoners there was a priest, who, when asked that question, replied that his calling was that of one who was empowered to bring down Almighty God Himself from heaven to earth. And when the king expressed the desire that he should give proof of this power he replied that it would be impossible for him to do so unless he had everything that was required by Christians for the celebration of the holy Mass. The king then commanded the priest to make a list of everything that was necessary, and he would see that they were provided. The priest wrote down everything with one exception: he quite forgot the crucifix. He did not notice this omission until everything else had been procured, and he was about to begin the Mass. He was much concerned, and hesitated whether he ought to say Mass without it. The king, perceiving that there was something wrong, thought that he was not quite master of his art, and asked why he was troubled. The priest did not conceal the cause of his vexation, but told the king that he had omitted to mention the crucifix, and did not feel certain whether it would be right to celebrate the Mass without it While he was earnestly entreating the help of God in this difficulty, behold! the vaulted stone roof of the chamber in which the altar had been raised was cleft asunder, and two angels, shining like the sun and clad in costly raiment, descended from above, bearing a glittering crucifix of wood of considerable size. Placing it upon the altar, they bade the priest commence the Mass. The king and all who were present, filled with awe, fell upon their faces on the ground, nor did they dare rise until the celestial visitants, whom they took to be gods, had vanished. Then they no longer doubted that the priest had power to call down from heaven the omnipotent God, and they readily acknowledged the Christian religion to be the true one. Such was the origin of the holy cross still preserved and regarded with great veneration at Caravaca, in Spain. Every year on the anniversary of the event we have just recorded it is exposed for the veneration of the faithful; many sick persons have been cured by drinking water in which it had been dipped. This true story will serve to prove the great excellence of holy Mass, and how important it is that nothing should be wanting of the articles prescribed for the due and proper celebration of this most holy sacrifice.

The ritual which it is obligatory upon the celebrant to observe also gives evidence to the excellence of the holy sacrifice of the Mass. We will enumerate some of the principal ceremonies: Sixteen times does the priest make the sign of the cross on his own person; six times he turns to the people; eight times he kisses the altar;

eleven times he raises his eyes to hear en; ten times h< strikes his breast, and as many times he genuflects; n< less than fifty-four times he joins his hands; he bows his head or his whole person thirty times; he makes the sign of the cross over the oblation thirty-one times; sometimes he prays with arms extended, more often with folded hands; nine times he lays his left hand upon the altar; eleven times he places it upon his breast; eight times he raises both hands to heaven; eleven times he prays silently; thirteen times he prays audibly; ten times the chalice is covered, and uncovered; twenty times the priest moves to and fro before the altar.

These oft-repeated ceremonies and some hundred and fifty others are enjoined upon the priest who celebrates Mass. In addition the rubrics to be followed are four hundred in number; these the priest who says Mass according to the Roman ordo is bound strictly to observe, under pain of sin. For all this ritual has a mystic meaning, and contributes to the proper and reverent performance of this holy and sublime act. On this account Pope St. Pius V. strictly commanded that, in virtue of holy obedience, all cardinals, archbishops, bishops, prelates, and priests should say Mass in this and no other manner, without diverging in any way from it, either by addition or suppression. If a priest willingly and wittingly alters or omits any of these ceremonies, it is not to be reckoned as a slight carelessness on his part, but as a grievous sin, since it is not merely an offence against the honor and dignity of the highest act of worship, but a violation of the express law of the Church. Each time the priest curtails in any way the ceremonial of the Mass a fresh sin is laid to his charge.

Hence we may learn that the faithful owe no slight debt of gratitude to the priest who is bound to observe such strict rules in offering the holy sacrifice for them.

In virtue of this he earns an eternal reward, but we must not forget that a temporal one is also due to him. The customary offering of money must not be withheld, for, as St. Paul reminds us: “They that serve the altar partake with the altar.” (i. Cor. ix. 13.)

And if it be asked why the priest says Mass in Latin, an unknown tongue, instead of in the vernacular, we reply: The holy Mass is not a sermon, it is not intended for the instruction of the people, it is the offering for them of the sacrifice of the New Testament. There are good reasons why this should be done in a language which never can change. Some languages are called dead, others living: the former are no longer in common use, and are consequently unchanged; the latter are the modes of speech of the various peoples, and are subject to constant variation. If the Mass were said in one of the living languages, there would be great risk that as the meaning of words changed the original significance of the formulas would change also, and against this danger the Church must guard. As the integral part of religion cannot be altered, so the language of religion must ever remain the same. The unity of doctrine in the Catholic Church throughout the world is beautifully illustrated by the identity of the language she employs. In whatever part of the globe the Catholic finds himself there the great mystery of the faith he professes is celebrated in the same manner, in the same language. And lest the ordinary Christian should remain in ignorance of the meaning of the Latin prayers of the Mass, holy Church, in her maternal care for her children, provides that in the prayer-books they should be translated into the vulgar tongue of each country. She also enjoins, as we have seen, upon every one who has the care of souls frequently to explain to his flock the meaning of the prayers and ceremonies of the Mass, so that no one may fail fully to understand them.

The Great High Priest of the New Testament

From what has been said above some idea may be formed of the exalted dignity of the sacrifice of the Mass. We shall, however, comprehend this more fully when we consider who it is who offers this divine oblation. Who, indeed? Is it a priest, a bishop, a pope, an angel, a saint, or perhaps the blessed Mother of God? Not so; it is none other than the greatest of all priests and bishops, the only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, Jesus Christ, anointed by the Father a high priest, a priest forever according to the order of Melchisedech. This is what gives to the holy sacrifice of the Mass its immense, its all-surpassing excellence, and renders it in very truth a divine oblation.

St. Chrysostom testifies in the following words to the fact that in the Mass Christ Himself, the great High Priest, offers the holy sacrifice: “The priest is only a minister, for He Who sanctifies and transforms the Victim is Christ Himself, Who at the Last Supper changed the bread into His flesh. That He continues to do now. Therefore, O Christian, when thou seest the priest at the altar, think not that it is he who offers the sacrifice, but believe that *t is the hand of Chnst, invisible to mortal sight” In these words St. Chrysostom asserts unmistakably that Christ in person performs the great act of sacrifice; that He comes down, that is, from heaven, that He transforms the bread and wine into His own body and blood, that He offers Himself to God the Father for the salvation of the world, and as a faithful intercessor pleads for the welfare of His people. Priests are only His servants: they place at His disposal their lips, their voice, their hands, that through their instrumentality He may offer this divine oblation.

And lest any one should, perhaps, refuse to give credence to what St. Chrysostom says, we will adduce other evidence, which no one will dare question, for it is that of the holy Catholic Church, teaching us by the decrees of the Council of Trent: “The sacrifice of the cross and the sacrifice of the Mass are one and the same; the same now offering by the ministry of priests Who offered Himself on the cross.” In these words the Church teaches us, and commands us to believe, that priests are but the ministers of Christ, and that Christ immolates Himself upon the altar in like manner as He immolated Himself when hanging upon the cross. How great an honor, how unspeakable a privilege, how inestimable a benefit, it is for us that our divine Saviour should condescend to become our Priest, our Mediator, our Intercessor, and that He should offer and immolate Himself for us in person to God the Father!

Hear how St. Paul speaks of the greatness and glory of this act: “It was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the heavens: Who needeth not daily, as the other priests, to offer sacrifices first for His own sins, and then for the people s: for this He did once, in offering Himself. For the law maketh men priests, who have infirmity: but the word of the oath, which was since the law, the Son Who is perfected for evermore.” (Hebrews 7:26-28).

Such is the glowing language in which the Apostle sets before us the great love of our God for us, in that He appoints not a frail, sinful man to be our priest and mediator, but His one and only Son, perfect in sanctity and purity.

Let us now consider the reasons why Christ did not intrust to any mortal man the offering of that sacrifice which is His own. Principally it was because this oblation must be clean and spotless; witness the prediction of the prophet Malachias: “In every place, saith the Lord, there is offered to My name a clean oblation.” Concerning this the Church teaches: “This [the sacrifice of the Mass] is indeed that clean oblation which cannot be defiled by any unworthiness or malice of those that offer it.” Now if the earthly priest were in reality the one that offered the sacrifice, it might perchance be impure and defiled, and well might we doubt whether such an oblation would be pleasing to God. Therefore God the Father ordained that His most holy Son should retain for Himself the name and office of a priest; according to His own words: “Thou art a priest forever according to the order of Melchisedech.” (Psalms 109:4) Hence we see that although the priest says the Mass, he is not in. reality the one who offers the sacrifice: he is only the representative of the great High Priest Jesus Christ; and just as if a man were to give his servant a sum of money to be offered for him at some shrine, the fact that the servant whom he thus commissioned was in a state of mortal sin could not in any way diminish the value of the gift, so the priest cannot in any wise render that sacrifice unholy or impure which he offers only in the name of Jesus Christ.

But why, it may be asked, did not Christ commission either an angel or a saint to offer this sacrifice—not even His most pure Mother herself, who is immaculate and full of grace; who could not by any possibility render this oblation impure, but would offer it in a perfect manner?

The reason why Christ did not and could not leave the offering of the most holy sacrifice of the Mass to a© angel or a saint, much less to a sinful man, but retained the right to do so Himself, was in order that He might daily present to His heavenly Father for the salvation of mankind an oblation which should be ever the same, and should be offered up in so sublime and all-efficient a manner as to be pleasing and acceptable to the Most Holy Trinity.

Hence it follows that each Mass that is said is an act of such supreme dignity, performed by Christ Himself with such piety, reverence, and love, that neither man nor angel can fully comprehend it. This was revealed to St. Mechtilde by Our Lord Himself in these words: “I alone know, and perfectly understand, what this offering is that I daily make of Myself for the salvation of the faithful; it surpasses the comprehension of cherubim and seraphim, and all the hosts of heaven.” O my God, how glorious, potent, and beyond all price must be this sacrifice which Christ makes of Himself in the holy Mass, since the highest celestial intelligences are unable to grasp and comprehend it! O adorable Jesus, how unsearchable is this mystery, since Thy divine wisdom and understanding alone can know and appreciate it! Happy the man who assists at holy Mass, and thereby merits to participate in the sacrifice Thou dost offer up for him, the virtue, the efficacy, of which no created intelligence can fathom!

Let us, then, lay this to heart, and consider well of what great profit it is for us to hear Mass, because in the holy Mass Jesus Christ offers Himself up for us, and places Himself as a mediator between the divine justice and the sins of mankind, and either altogether averts, or at least arrests, the chastisement which is the due penalty of our daily offences. Did we but recognize this aright, how we should love holy Mass, how devoutly we should hear it, how reluctant should we be to allow anything to keep us from it! In fact, we should choose rather to suffer temporal loss than to deprive our soul of the benefit of assisting at this sacred and salutary sacrifice. Such was the fervor of the early Christians that they would rather lose their life than omit Mass. Baronius tells a striking story on this subject. The incident occurred about the year 303.

In the town of Aluta, in Africa, all the Christian churches had been destroyed, and the Christian worship proscribed by the emperor’s commands. In spite of this prohibition a number of Christians, both men and women, had assembled in a private dwelling to hear Mass. They were surprised by the pagans, seized, and dragged before the judge on the public market-place. The missal, as well as several other books which were found in the captives’ possession, were, amid general derision, thrown into a fire kindled on the market-place; they were, however, not consumed, for before the flames could reach them a shower of rain fell with such extraordinary violence as to extinguish the fire. The judge was so struck by this occurrence that he sent the prisoners, thirty-four men and seventeen women, to Carthage, to appear before the emperor. The Christians went quite cheerfully, beguiling the way with psalms and hymns. When they were brought into the emperor’s presence, the officer who conducted them said: “These mischievous Christians were apprehended by us, O emperor, in the town of Aluta, where, in defiance of thy decree, they were worshipping their false gods.” The emperor immediately had one of the prisoners stripped, placed on the rack, and his flesh torn with sharp hooks. Thereupon one of the others, Telica by name, said aloud: “Why, O tyrant, dost thou torture one alone? We are all Christians, and we all have heard Mass as well as he.” Then the emperor caused this man also to be stripped, and subjected to the same torment. “Whose doing was it that you held this meeting?” he asked. “It was the doing of Saturninus, the priest, and of us all,” was the reply; “but remember thou art acting contrary to all justice in torturing us on account of it.” “Thou oughtest to have obeyed our mandate, and abandoned the practice of thy false worship,” the emperor rejoined. But Telica answered: “I owe obedience to no command that is contrary to the commands of my God, for which 1 am ready to die.” Then the emperor ordered the martyrs to be unbound, and cast into prison without food or drink.

Meanwhile the brother of one of the prisoners, himself a heathen, came forward, and accused a senator of the name of Dativus of having been the means of inducing his sister, whose name was Victoria, to hear Mass. But Victoria spoke up for herself: “It was by no man’s persuasion, but of my own free will,” she said, “that I went to that house to attend holy Mass; for I am a Christian, and my crime is that I follow the law of Christ.” Her brother answered: “You are demented, and speak like a fool.” “I am no fool,” she replied, “but a Christian.” The emperor then asked if she would return home with her brother, but she answered that she recognized those as her true brethren and sisters who suffered for the name of Christ; nor would she abandon them, for she, too, had been present at Mass, and with them had received holy communion. The emperor urged her to save herself by following her brother’s counsel, for he wished to spare her, as she was a woman of rare beauty, and a member of one of the first families in the town; but, finding he prevailed nothing, he ordered her to be placed in confinement, and no effort to be spared to induce her to give up her faith. The parents of this maiden had desired her to marry against her will, and rather than submit to this she had sprung out of a high window, and, going to Saturninus, the priest, entreated him to admit her into the number of consecrated virgins.

’Finally, the tyrant addressed Saturninus himself, and inquired whether in defiance of the imperial decree he had assembled those people for worship. Saturninus replied: “I assembled them by God’s command, for His divine service,” “Wherefore didst thou do that?” the emperor asked. “Because it is obligatory upon us to offer the holy sacrifice,” the priest answered. And upon the emperor inquiring further whether it was at his instigation j and persuasion that the people assembled for this purpose, he acknowledged that it was so, and that he had himself said the Mass. The judge then sentenced him to be stripped, and torn with hooks until his bowels protruded through his flesh; afterwards he was thrown into the dungeon where the other prisoners were confined.

Emericus, another of the captives (who was subsequently canonized), was next led before the emperor. On being asked who he was he said that he was the one who was responsible for this meeting, for it was in his house that the Mass was celebrated; and he had caused it to be done for the sake of his brethren, because they could not be deprived of holy Mass. Thereupon he met with the same fate as the others. Then the emperor, addressing the remaining prisoners, said: “It is to be hoped that you will take warning by the punishment inflicted on your fellow-Christians, and not throw your lives away in like manner.” But they all answered as one man: “We are Christians: we are resolved to keep the law of Christ, though it cost us our blood.” Singling out one of those before him, Felix by name, the emperor said: “I do not ask thee whether thou art a Christian, but whether thou wert present when the Mass was celebrated.” “That question is quite superfluous,H

Felix replied; “a Christian cannot exist without holy Mass, any more than Mass can be celebrated without Christian people. I boldly avow that we met together with pious devotion, and offered our prayers during the time the Mass was being said.” At this the tyrant flew into such a rage that he caused the holy martyr *o be thrown to the ground and beaten to death.

After all the captives had been most cruelly tortured they were thrust together in one large dungeon, and their jailers were strictly ordered to give them no food whatsoever. Their relatives, hearing this, came to the prison, bringing provisions with them, but the jailers searched them, took everything from them, and ill-treated them into the bargain. The inhuman tyrant never relaxed his barbarity; thus the servants of Christ were left to perish of hunger and thirst in the prison.

This story, which Baronius takes from the ancient records, proves beyond a doubt that in the early Christian Church Mass was said, and that the faithful were present at it. We may also learn from it how great was the devotion which the pious Christians of the first centuries had for holy Mass, so that rather than desist from hearing it they were willing to suffer agonizing torture and the most cruel death. And whence was this fervor? It arose from their appreciation of the sovereign virtue of holy Mass, and their keen desire to share in its fruits. Let their example be a lesson to us, inciting us to hear Mass with greater devotion and more profit to our souls.

The Costliness of the Oblation Made in Holy Mass

All that has been said of the excellence of the holy sacrifice of the Mass is inadequate to express the worth of the victim which is offered up to the Most Holy Trinity in the Mass. St. Paul says: “Every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices” (Hebrews 8:3); therefore, as Christ has been anointed high priest by His Father, He must of necessity have a victim to sacrifice. The Apostle does not go on to say what Christ has to offer upon the altar; he leaves us to reflect upon it. Let us therefore ask what is the victim which Christ, in His character of high priest, immolates to God the Father.

The victim must be no mean oblation, but one of immense and priceless value; otherwise it would not be worthy to be offered to the infinite Deity. For in proportion to the greatness of him to whom it is presented must be the excellence of the gift that is offered. He who should offer a worthless and contemptible gift for the acceptance of a monarch, far from earning his thanks, would only merit his displeasure. Now we know Almighty God to be the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth, exalted far above all earthly kings and princes. Hear what the Wise Man says of Him: “For the whole world before Thee is as the least grain of the balance, and as a drop of the morning dew, that falleth down upon the earth,” (Wisdom 11:23) If the whole world is only as a drop of dew in God’s sight, what can be found in the whole wide world meet to be offered to His majesty? What is there in heaven or on earth that Christ can offer as a worthy and acceptable sacrifice to the Most Holy Trinity except a victim that is divine?

What, then, is it, do you imagine, that Christ offers up to Almighty God in the holy Mass? Listen, and marvel. In all the universe He found but one gift, one alone, meet to be offered up to the infinite Deity, and that was His sacred humanity, holy and immaculate, His adorable body and blood, His most pure soul. Concerning this St. Chrysostom says: “Christ was and is both priest and victim; He is the priest according to the spirit, the vie-tim according to the flesh. He is both the sacrifice and the thing sacrificed.“St. Augustine says much the same in his commentary on Ps. xxvi.:”Christ alone was a priest in such wise as to be at the same time the victim; for He sacrificed naught else but Himselfsince all the treasures of heaven and earth could furnish no victim fit to be sacrificed to the Most Holy Trinity.

The sacred humanity of Our Lord was the greatest and highest work of divine omnipotence. This the Mother of God revealed to St. Bridget in these explicit words: “Of all things that exist, or that have ever existed, nothing is so estimable and precious as the sacred humanity of Christ/’ For the bountiful hand of God endowed the human nature of His Son with treasures so rich and so innumerable of grace and virtue, of sanctity and wisdom—in a word, with such perfection, that nothing more or greater could be added to it And this not because God’s power in the bestowal of rare and priceless gifts is limited, but because Christ’s human nature was incapable of receiving anything greater. The Mother of God is possessed of a beauty, holiness, and excellence that surpasses our conception, yet in comparison to Christ’s sacred humanity she is but as a burning torch to the midday sun. And on account of this supreme excellence Christ’s sacred humanity is adored not only by pious mortals, but by the holy angels upon earth; and in heaven it is also the object of unceasing adoration, second only to God Himself, in virtue of the exalted graces and perfections wherewith Christ, as the head of the human race, has invested His human nature in a degree surpassing that of any other creature.

God, in His bounty and liberality, endowed the angels at their creation with great sanctity and other glorious attributes; He has also, out of pure charity, bestowed on many good people and eminent saints from their birth gifts and graces of no ordinary kind; above all, He conferred upon the Blessed Virgin Mary, both at her creation and throughout her life, extraordinary graces, privileges, and perfections in great abundance. But in the sacred humanity of Christ all these gifts and graces meet together, besides other inestimable prerogatives and celestial favors without number, which the Holy Ghost implanted in it at its creation. Hence we may judge how noble, how excellent, how glorious beyond all comprehension is Our Lord’s humanity, and what an un» fathomable ocean of perfections it contains within itself.

The most holy and exalted humanity of Christ is the precious oblation which the great High Priest, the only-begotten Son of God, daily in every Mass that is said, presents and offers up to the Most Holy Trinity. Nor does He offer this alone; with it He offers all that in this same sacred humanity He did and suffered during three and thirty years, to the greater honor and glory of the ever-blessed Trinity: all His fasts, vigils, prayers, journeyings; all His penances, preachings, mortifications; all the persecutions, calumny, contempt, the outrages to which He was exposed; the pains, the scourging, the crowning with thorns, the wounds, the torture and anguish He endured; His tears, His sweat of blood, the water that flowed from His side, and the crimson tide of His blood. All this Christ places before the Holy Trinity in every Mass that is celebrated, offering it up in no less valid a manner than He did when on earth in His holy life and bitter sufferings.

But the essential value of this sacrifice consists in this, that Christ does not offer up His sacred humanity alone, but in union with His divinity. For although in the holy sacrifice of the Mass it is not the divinity but the Humanity of Christ that is offered up to the Holy Trinity, yet the perfection wherewith this oblation is made is owing to the hypostatic union. Through this union the humanity is divinized, enriched with endless treasures of grace, and given a worth beyond all price. Hence we conclude how inestimable is the sacrifice which the Redeemer offers to the most high God in every Mass, since He offers up His sacred humanity in a marvellous and incomprehensible manner.

Finally, we must not fail to observe that Christ does not offer up His humanity glorified as it is in heaven, but in the lowly form under which it is upon the altar. The angels in heaven tremble before the glorified humanity of Jesus Christ, and they are lost in amazement when they behold the abasement of this same humanity upon our altars. Here it lies hidden, imprisoned, as it were, under the species of bread and wine. For so closely do these outward forms surround and conceal the sacred humanity of Our Lord that if they are moved to another place it is removed with them, and as long as the forms continue it remains present beneath them, no mortal power availing to separate it from them. Under so small, so humble, so lowly a form does Christ present Himself to the ever-blessed Trinity, offering Himself up in a manner which inspires all the heavenly host with profound admiration.

What impression can we suppose to be made upon the ever-blessed Trinity by the sight of this humiliation of Christ’s glorious humanity? Great honor accrues to the heavenly Father from this extreme abasement on the part of His well-beloved Son. It imparts great virtue to the holy sacrifice of the Mass, for that is the means whereby this divine mystery is accomplished. It is a source of salvation and of vast profit to mankind, for whose sake this most holy sacrifice is offered. It affords no slight solace and refreshment to the suffering souls in purgatory, for whose release Mass is frequently said.

This knowledge may serve to make us appreciate and value more highly the holy sacrifice of the Mass, and assist at it more frequently, with greater joy and deeper devotion. For the Masses offered daily are the weapons of divine grace, the fount of divine mercy, the sacrifice of atonement which is all-powerful, if we assist at it devoutly. On this account our heartfelt thanks are due to our adorable Saviour for having instituted for our sakes this efficacious and salutary sacrifice, wherein He offers Himself up for us daily, nay, hourly, to the Holy Trinity. We ought indeed to thank Him for having given us so powerful a weapon, whereby we may win divine graces, and, as it were, take by storm the citadel of His mercy.

In order to impress more deeply upon our minds the excellence of the holy sacrifice of the Mass let us recollect how Christ Himself consecrated the Chapel of Our Lady in the church at Einsiedeln. It is related in the life of St. Meinrad that eighty years after the death of that pious recluse, at the request of Eberhard, a man of noble lineage, Conrad, Bishop of Constance, came to consecrate the Chapel of St. Meinrad. During the night preceding the day appointed for the ceremony, Conrad, going into the church to pray, heard the voices of the angelic choirs chanting the antiphons and responsories of the ritual for the dedication of churches. On entering the edifice he beheld Christ the Lord in person, clad in sacerdotal vestments, attended by multitudes of saints and angels, performing the ceremony of dedicating the chapel. At this wondrous sight the saintly bishop could hardly believe himself in possession of his senses. Yet he heard and saw distinctly all that went on, and observed that Christ made use of exactly the same formulas and ceremonies which are appointed to be employed by bishops in the consecration of a church, while some of the saints acted as acolytes. The blessed Mother of God, in whose honor the altar and the chapel were consecrated, appeared above the altar resplendent with celestial glory, brighter than the sun, more dazzling than the light. The dedication ended, Our Lord Himself offered the holy sacrifice.

At the conclusion of the Mass all the heavenly company vanished from sight, and the bishop was left alone, entranced with joy and spiritual delight. When he awoke from his rapture, the footsteps which he perceived in the ashes strewn upon the floor, and the walls anointed with chrism, testified to the reality of what he had seen. The next morning the clergy and people assembled, awaiting the commencement of the ceremony. But the bishop declared he could not dedicate the church, as this had already been done by the denizens of heaven. As, however, every one thought he was laboring under a delusion, he was compelled to begin to perform the ceremony, when he was arrested by a voice from on high, which said three times, in the hearing of all present: “Cease, brother, the chapel has been divinely consecrated!” Thereupon St. Conrad desisted from his purpose, and sent a report of the miraculous occurrence to Rome.

This marvellous story bears fresh witness to the sanctity of the holy Mass, since Our Lord Himself condescended to celebrate it. Would that we could have been with Bishop Conrad at that time, and could have witnessed what he witnessed! What would have been our amazement, our delight, our devotion! But at any rate we may rejoice in the knowledge that Christ celebrated Mass in the same manner in which we are accustomed to celebrate it.

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