Chapter VI

In the Holy Mass Christ Renews His Life on Earth

If we were to contemplate attentively the great mysteries of holy Mass, and impress forcibly upon our minds that the officiating priest as the representative of Jesus Christ, arrayed in the garments of gladness, reproduces before our eyes the mysteries of the wondrous life and death of the Saviour, we should surely hasten to church at the first stroke of the bell, eager to assist at this consoling spectacle, because, as Sanchez says: “In this sacred drama the merits of our Redeemer are bestowed upon us and given us for our very own.’*

If our eyes were enlightened by faith, this sacred spectacle would fill us with intense joy. For holy Mass is a brief compendium of the whole life of Christ, and a renewal of all the mysteries comprised in it; not, indeed, a fictitious portrayal of past events, but a real and actual repetition of all that Christ did and suffered upon earth.

Thus in holy Mass we have the same child lying before us Whom the shepherds beheld wrapped in swaddling-clothes, but under a form still more lowly, that of bread and wine; yes, the same child to Whom the three kings paid homage, and Whom Simeon took in his arms, is before us upon the altar, and we may adore Him piously and embrace Him lovingly, as did they. In the course of the Mass the Gospel is preached to us; it is, indeed, the voice of the priest that we hear, but the words have the same weight as if Christ Himself uttered them. Furthermore, we see Him perform a greater miracle than the one He wrought at Cana in Galilee; for there He changed water into wine, here He changes wine into His sacred blood. In the Mass the scene of the Last Supper is reenacted, for the bread and wine undergo a change similar to that they then did. Christ is also slain anew by the hand of the priest, and by him offered up to God most high. Father Sanchez, writing on this subject, says: “He who desires to profit by holy Mass will be able to obtain forgiveness of sins and the gift of divine grace just as readily by assisting at it devoutly as if he had in person witnessed all these mysteries.” Hence it will be seen how salutary is this solemn service, and how much may be gained by those who are present at it.

Let us hear how Denys, a pious Carthusian, explains the representation of the mysteries of Our Lord’s life in holy Mass. He says: “The whole life of Christ which He led upon earth was one long celebration of Mass, He being Himself the altar, the priest, the victim.”

It may be said that Our Lord put on the sacerdotal vestments when, hidden from sight in His Mother’s womb, He took our flesh and assumed the garb of mortality. Issuing thence, on the night of the nativity, as from the sacristy, He began, on His entrance into the world, the Introit, which is the commencement of the Mass. The cries He uttered in the crib were the Kyrie Eleison. The Gloria was sung by the angels who appeared to the shepherds and accompanied them to the stable at Bethlehem. The Collects represent the petitions He offered when He spent the night in prayer, imploring for us the mercy of God. The Epistle represents the instructions He gave on the prophecies of Moses ai d the prophets, showing how they were fulfilled in Himself, He read the Gospel when He traversed the country of Judea proclaiming His divine doctrine. The Offertory was when He daily made an oblation of Himself to God the Father for the redemption of mankind as a propitiatory victim. The Preface represents His daily tribute of praise to God the Father, His thanksgiving for the benefits conferred upon man. The Sanctus was sung by the Hebrew people on Palm Sunday, when they cried: “Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9) The Consecration took place at the Last Supper, when He changed bread and wine into His body and blood. The Elevation was when He was lifted up upon the cross and made a spectacle to angels and to men. The Paternoster represents the seven words He uttered upon the cross. The Breaking of the Hosty the separation of His sacred soul and body. The Agnus Dei was spoken by the centurion and those who were with him when, smiting their breasts, they said: “Indeed this was the Son of God.” (Matthew 27:54) The Communion represents the anointing of Our Lord’s body and laying it in the tomb. The Blessing at the conclusion of Mass represents the benediction He gave to His disciples when about to ascend into heaven.

Such was the great act of worship which Christ performed upon earth, and which He enjoined upon His apostles and their successors to repeat daily, in a short form. Fornerus says: “Holy Mass is a brief epitome of Our Lord’s life; a recapitulation in one short half hour of what He did during the thirty-three years He spent upon earth.” Thus we, who have the opportunity of hearing Mass, may deem ourselves equally fortunate with the contemporaries of Our Lord; nay, more fortunate than they, since they could only hear and see one Mass, and that a very long one, whereas we may hear more than one every day, and, at small cost to ourselves, share in the fruits of Christ’s life and passion. In further explanation of the manner in which Our Lord reenacts in holy Mass the mysteries of His life on earth, we will relate the following anecdote. It occurs in the writings of Thomas of Cantiprat, Suffragan Bishop of Cambrai.

In the year 1267, a priest at Douai, whilst giving communion at Easter in the Church of St. Amatus, suffered one of the hosts to fall to the ground. To his great amazement he saw it rise from the ground and remain suspended in the air. Taking it in his hand, he carried it to the altar, and, kneeling humbly before it, he begged pardon of Christ for the indignity that had been done to Him. Whilst he was devoutly contemplating the Adorable Sacrament, he was astounded to see the form of the host disappear, and the form of a beautiful child take its place. So great was his emotion that he could not restrain his sobs and tears. The clergy present in the choir drew near to ascertain what was the matter, and they too saw the fair infant. Deeply touched by the sight, they broke out into exclamations of joy and delight. Then the congregation in their turn approached to behold the miraculous appearance, which afforded such convincing proof of Christ’s real presence upon the altar. But lo! another wondrous change took place! The people could not see what the clergy had seen, for they had beheld a tender child, whereas now Christ stood before them in the form of a man, in the splendor of His divine majesty. Fear and amazement fell upon all, the sanctuary was thronged with eager spectators. For a considerable time Our Lord remained thus visible in His sacred humanity; He then withdrew His corporal presence, and the host was deposited by the priest in the tabernacle. The report of what had happened spread far and wide, and reached the ears of the bishop, who relates the occurrence. He immediately went to Douai, and inquired of the dean whether what he had heard was true. The dean replied: M It is not only true that Christ was seen by a great number of persons in the sacred host, but He is still seen by many in His human form.“” Then “—thus the bishop writes—u a burning desire to see this same sight took possession of me: I begged the dean to show me the miraculous host. We went together to the church, followed by a multitude of persons, who hoped that Our Lord would again show Himself to them. The dean unlocked the tabernacle with trembling awe; he reverently took out the Blessed Sacrament, and with it blessed the people. Marvellous to relate, they all began to sob and cry aloud: * Jesus, Jesus!’ I asked what all this meant and they said: 4 We see our Lord and Saviour with our bodily eyes.’ But I saw nothing, only the host unchanged; and I felt deeply grieved, for I thought some sin had rendered me unworthy to beheld my Saviour. I examined my conscience, without, however, finding anything special wherewith to reproach myself, so with tears I besought Our Lord to vouchsafe to show Himself to me. My petition was granted; I too was privileged to see, not, as many of those present did, the form of a child, but that of a full-grown man. After I had gazed for a short space of time upon the Saviour in the surpassing beauty of this appearance, my heart being meanwhile suffused with joy and happiness on account of the kindness wherewith He regarded me, a change took place, and I saw Him before me as the Man of sorrows, I beheld Him wearing the crown of thorns, disfigured by the streams of blood that veiled His sacred countenance- Overcome with compassion at this sorrowful sight, I shed bitter tears over the sufferings of my Redeemer; so vividly did I realize them that it seemed as if the thorns that crowned His head pierced my own temples, A confused murmur ran through the multitude who had assembled, for each one saw something different at the same moment. Some perceived Our Lord in the form of a lovely infant, others beheld Him as a beautiful boy, as a youth just attaining man’s estate, as a man in the prime of years, or, again, as He was at the time of His passion. The emotions that stirred the hearts of the people, the feelings that were kindled in their breasts, the tears that flowed from their eyes, must be left to the imagination of the reader, for words fail to describe them.M

This beautiful, encouraging, and consoling story cannot but lead each one of us to wish that we had been privileged to witness so touching a spectacle; to desire that the grace of seeing the Saviour with our bodily eyes under these several appearances had been granted to us also. What would have been the joy, the consolation, the sweetness we should have experienced! O Lord Jesus, although I have never seen Thee in bodily shape in the sacred host, yet I firmly believe that Thou art present there, and dost present Thyself before the Eternal Father under the varied appearances Thou didst assume on earth. And as Christ in a marvellous and incomprehensible manner assumed those mortal shapes, so in every Mass does He reproduce all the mysteries of His life and passion in the sight and to the satisfaction of God the Father and God the Holy Ghost, of His blessed Mother and all the choirs of angels and the saints, just as when these solemn mysteries were enacted during His lifetime on earth. Thus there is incomparably more joy in heaven on account of one single Mass than because of any other good work or act of worship in the world.

This joy is not occasioned simply by the vivid representation of the life and passion of Christ, but also by the honor which the sacred humanity renders to the Godhead in holy Mass. For in every Mass that is said.

with all the might of His divinity, with all the power of His humanity, with all the force of His human heart, Christ honors, praises, loves, worships, and magnifies the adorable Trinity in so sublime and incomprehensible a manner that the glory rendered to the Godhead by angels in heaven, by saints on earth, is immeasurably inferior to the glory which He then renders to it. Hence we see how exalted an act of worship holy Mass is, and how much we can prevail with God every time that we celebrate or assist at it.

Before concluding this chapter let us consider the great profit and spiritual advantages we may gain from holy Mass. Christ, our precious Saviour, during the three and thirty years in which He labored upon earth, laid up a vast store of merits, not for Himself, but for us, His children. Nor are His labors yet at an end, as He Himself testifies: u My Father worketh until now, and I work.“(John 5:17) He continues His work, not that He may earn more, but that He may qualify us to receive what He has earned for us. On this account He renews His sacred life in every Mass that is celebrated, and in each one enacts afresh what it took Him thirty-three years to accomplish. This He presents to the Eternal Father, to effect our reconciliation with Him. By it God is well pleased, and His wrath at our transgressions is appeased. He offers all His merits to God in payment of our debts, and when we hear holy Mass He bestows on us as much as we are capable of receiving, that we may thereby make atonement for our sins.

Give thanks, therefore, O Christian, to this thy true friend, Who has labored for thee and laid up for thee so rich a store of treasures. Acknowledge His great charity towards thee in offering these treasures for thy acceptance, and bestowing them upon thee freely. See that thou hear Mass daily if possible, in order to appropriate to thyself a large portion of these riches. Thou wouldst spare no pains and grudge no time if thou couldst acquire temporal riches as easily as thou canst acquire wealth for thy soul. Why, then, remain so careless in regard to the eternal treasures, and by thy indifference allow them to escape thy grasp? May God enlighten thy blindness, convert thy sloth into diligence, and inspire thee with true fervor; and when this happy change is effected thou wilt then hear Mass frequently and to thy soul’s profit

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