About the Mass

About the Mass

"You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge who is God of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel." (Hebrews 12:22–24)

Study of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal

As part of our Catechism Live adult faith formation series, in June of 2021, St. Brendan began studying the theology, meaning, and history of the Mass. The first part of this series examines the General Instruction of the Roman Missal for a summary of what the Church teaches about the Mass as well as a brief overview of the history of the Mass and brief look at the rationale for some of the changes to the Mass made following Vatican II in the 1960s. As the series progresses, we will examine different parts of the Mass and their meaning as well as a more detailed look at the actual words of Vatican II on the Mass.

Theology of the Mass

History of the Mass 1

History of the Mass 2

History of the Mass 3

The Mass 4

The Mass 5

The Mass 6

The Mass 7

The Mass 8

The Mass 9

The Mass 10

The Mass 11

The Mass 12

The Mass 13

The Mass 14

The Mass 15

The Mass 16

The Mass - Reading Vatican II 1

The Mass - Reading Vatican II 2

Commentaries on Eucharistic Chants

Commentary on the Lauda Sion, the sequence for the Feast of Corpus Christi, written by St. Thomas Aquinas in honor of the Eucharist.

Listen to this sequence sung here: http://youtu.be/eumFVhoMvgo

Commentary on the Verbum supernum prodiens, a hymn for the Feast of Corpus Christi, written by St. Thomas Aquinas in honor of the Eucharist.

Listen to this hymn sung here: http://youtu.be/USTpVAcRnfY

Before Mass

At Mass we use special liturgical books, such as the Roman Missal, Lectionary, Book of the Gospels, and Roman Gradual.

Various sacred vessels and linens are used at Mass, including the chalice, paten, cruets, lavabo dish, Communion patens, purificator, pall, and corporal.

For Mass, the priest wears sacred vestments: the amice, alb, cincture, stole, and chasuble.

The Order of Mass

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal on the entrance at Mass and the 4 options for the "Entrance Chant."

Examples:

Option 1) Antiphon from the Graduale Romanum for Christmas: youtu.be/gC1jJC3aBLQ

Option 2) Antiphon from the Graduale Simplex for Christmas: youtu.be/HglZS3ErMfY

Option 3) English translation of the Antiphon for Christmas: youtu.be/YnB1S-q2vuw

Option 4) English hymn for Christmas: youtu.be/nwyvWQxoVhk

Eucharistic Exposition

Eucharistic Exposition is the solemn display of the Blessed Sacrament for worship. Exposition provides a formal opportunity to extend the worship that we give to Christ in the Mass and allow the fruits of the Mass to extend more deeply into the rest of our lives.