Holy Thursday

Today's Readings

"Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ" (cf. 1 Cor. 10:16)... "How shall I make a return to the LORD for all the good he has done for me? The cup of salvation I will take up, and I will call upon the name of the LORD." (Psalm 116: 12-13)

This night is more special than any other night, for on this night, the angel of death has passed over us, as we unite as one people of God, fed by the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, to become disciples who feed, and care for all the world!

Tonight, the Truth of our past is played out in the Exodus story of God's people, combined with the miracle of the present, here at the Eucharistic Feast of the Lord, so as to set up the promise for the future, which is life everlasting!  

This is the beginning of the Easter Triduum, 

and this is Holy Thursday.

It is the night that we gather in communion with the Passover Meal celebrated by Christ in the Last Supper.  This "blessing cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ" (cf. 1 Cor. 10:16), and it is also a communion with our Hebrew brothers and sisters, God's chosen people, who led the way for all of us through the desert and into the promised land!  Tonight we unite with untold thousands of generations who have praised the Lord for His good deeds, and sought His cup of salvation!  Tonight, we share not only a meal, but a task calling on us to serve in the example of Jesus' Washing of the Feet, for he says, "As I have done for you, so you must do." (John 13: 15)  

So let us begin as one!  

One people of God... 

One Body in Christ!

Oh, I can't resist...

"One love, one heart... Give thanks and praise to the Lord, 

and [we] will feel alright!" (Mr. Bob Marley)

The NEW Missal Makes a Direct Hit

This past weekend, the New Roman Missal made a direct hit on english-speaking parishes around the world. A new and what is thought to be a more vibrant and formal translation of the Mass landed in a pew near you. I am sure that some of my initial observations in my own parish are very similar to what greeted the Church around the world...

A LITTLE CONFUSION, BUT CERTAINLY NOT CHAOS:  Like most parishes, ours has a new hymnal with everything you need to follow along.  We've even added the follow along,  "red letter marks the changed language" script and the Mass Music Assembly Booklet.  Its all there, and its probably a tad too much to navigate, but it seemed to have taken only a small portion of the hour for folks to figure out where to look and what to follow.  The fun part was watching the faces of many, many well intended people simply fall back into the routine... "The Lord be with you"... And also with y--, oh.. um... your... And with your spirit!" :)

EVERY BIT OF THE PREPARATION WAS WORTH EVERY SECOND:  I'm sure many parishes within the Church worked very hard for many, many months to prepare for the weekend debut of the New Missal.  Some chose to begin practicing months ago, and others have been studying the reasons behind the changes for a year.  Our parish, like many others, worked throughout the last year praying and deciding on what to do, but began the using the new translation only within the past few weeks, focusing on the Gloria, the Confiteor, and the Nicene Creed.  We made the decision not to debut any new music until this past weekend as well.  I believe that like us, the parishes who waited until the official start time of this past weekend to "do the new Mass" were treated to the value of what comes with that newness and how it compliments the season of Advent.

"WHAT ABOUT THOSE BELLS?"  There a certainly a few nay-sayers in the pews, and some people that just aren't happy with the changes in the New Roman Missal.  Our parish has maintained a relatively "middle of the road" approach when it comes to celebrating the Mass.  The ringing of the bells has not been a usual practice at my parish.  While the use of the bells is certainly NOT part of the change of the Roman Missal, in other words, it is not a required element within the liturgy; adding the ringing of the bells at the two "elevations" of the Eucharistic Prayer came as a little bit of a shock to many in our congregation.  I would say that 85%-90% were pleasantly shocked, and enjoyed or could live with their return.  But like the usual "Bell Curve" (no pun intended), 10% just couldn't believe it.  When confronted by the unhappy, I was challenged to have to defend their re-placement within the liturgy because frankly I don't lose too much sleep over such things, but this is a great example of just how much we have to respect the 10%.  No, this isn't some "Occupy Rally", it's just a simple fact.  Many of our faithful, truly thought through, and have owned their style of worship.  No amount of training or prep classes in understanding the "New Stuff" was gonna make things any easier for these folks.  Their Mass was giving way to a new Mass!  One of our staff members put it quite nicely.  "I am now feeling what some of the older folks must have felt when I was younger, and those changes in the Missal "turned everything around".

So, I'll end by saying that while change is difficult, it is a part of growth, and that is exactly what's happening here... We, the living Body of Christ continues to grow!  We seek to perfect our worship because that's what is asked of us... Not by the Vatican, but by God.  We were created to love and worship Him.  He who fashioned us from the dust, and gave us the breath of life, has given us a chance to express our faith in the best way we know how... And that is what we'll do!

Pierce the Veil!

I have been participating in a wonderful Discussion Board on helping Catholic Youth understand the New Translation of the Mass that is coming later in the Fall. This is a closing thought that I shared with the group...

Our young people are being called FROM where they are; that is, their starting points vary, but all lead to the same joy and Truth in our Lord, Jesus Christ. Welcoming them into this journey, at whatever starting point they might be coming from, keeps them closer to the Church, calling us to be patient, and hopeful. I've heard it said that "no matter their tattoos, or dress, or opinions [at this point in their journey], as long as they are sharing those things HERE, in the Church, we have a better chance at putting them in a position to experience the Spirit, and begin their personal relationship with Christ. With that said, the rules, the gestures , the real expectations of what it means to mature in life and in faith are certainly crucial in our mentoring these youth to progress and move forward!

Now, with respect to the liturgy and the New Translation o

f the Mass, where are they headed? Why is it worth the effort? I asked my own Spiritual Director a very specific and pointed question this weekend. "Why do we go to Mass? Is it to receive the Eucharist, or hear the Word, or offer God our prayers and worship?" I expected an answer like "All of the above!" But what he said was, "We go to Mass to participate in the sacrifice given to us by our Lord, Jesus Christ. We pierce the veil that seperates time, heaven and earth, and we share in the love of God!" He went on to add that in the Mass, "when that veil is pierced, it is not Christ who comes to us, but it is we who are invited and able to come to Him!"

In the spirit of this past Sunday's readings, and with respect to what it is that we YM's do so well, we need to keep inviting young people to "come and see", knowing that where they are going, God's love is there to greet them! So be it Youth Group, or Bible Study, or retreats, or in this case Mass... Let us lead them to the sacrifice and the celebration of the love of God that is the Body of Christ. Remember to stay relaxed, for we are trying our best to attach words and gestures to that which we can never comprehend, but through our faith we can always attain.

I have enjoyed presenting, reading and participating in this experience with you, and I again thank Charlotte and Leigh and MTS for ALL of their amazing efforts and strength in bringing you this opportunity, because that is exactly what it is; an opportunity to come to a fuller understanding of what it is that Christ has in store for US! God bless you all, and good luck in your ministry this coming season. I look forward to our continued worship together, as the "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church" celebrates the love of God, yet again, at a Mass near you!

I Am Not Worthy!

This is a series of Blogs and reposts from a Discussion Board from an Online Course on the Implementation of the New Catholic Roman Missal with Youth...

A Question posted for me to answer:
Greg, (in a presentation I hosted for the MTS Course on the New Roman Missal) you specifically stated that we were not to make the connection of the roof of our mouths with the response of “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof…” Recently, we had a priest in residence who gave several talks about the new translation in which he contradicted that. He said that our bodies are temples in which we receive the Lord. Our mouths are the point of entry, with the roofs of our temples being the roofs of our mouths. I thought that made so much sense. Any comments?

That is a great and challenging question, for the explanation given by Father is a beautiful one, and certainly does make sense. So let me say at the outset that I do not "disagree" with the beauty of the explanation, I just think that the nature of Eucharist within the Mass is to heal AND adore. It can't be stressed enough, especially to young people, just how awesome it is to have Christ truly present in the Eucharist. But the prayer spoken before the reception of Holy Communion states, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed." This reference to the healing of the Centurion's servant (Luke 7: 1-10) focuses on the

reality that the Body of Christ heals those who seek Him.

"And Jesus went with them, but when he was only a short distance from the house, the centurion sent friends to tell him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof. Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed. For I too am a person subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him and, turning, said to the crowd following him, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” Luke 7: 6-9

I would therefore maintain, that its primary purpose is not only recognize that Jesus is in our midst, but also to begin the healing of hearts so that the end of the Mass, as "we go forth to love and serve the world", we do so with a NEW HEART, and a new outlook on life. After all, that was the result of the Lord's visit with the Centurion.

With regards to the "roof" being of the mouth, or the Temple, or the Church in which we celebrate, I would maintain that we are fed by the Body of Christ as ONE Church, so the "personal" encounter with Christ in the Eucharist, while amazing, is not why one goes to Mass. WE, the People of God assemble to give praise and thanks to our God, and in turn are fed by His Word, His Body, and His Blood.

I hope this post doesn't get me in trouble, for I am not speaking as a highly educated expert in liturgy... Just a former YM who is excited (and opinionated) about how things are evolving. I have to add a disclaimer that my opinion on this matter was skewed by the workshop I attended at last year's NCCYM, where it seemed to be stressed that the liturgical purpose was as I've stated, but probably not adequately enough... "I'm not worthy!" :)