After preparing the altar with the gifts to be presented to the Lord, it is now time for us to enter into the Eucharistic Prayer, which the General Instruction of the Roman Missal describes as “the center and high point of the entire celebration.” (GIRM, 78) The GIRM goes on to summarize the Eucharistic Prayer in this way:
The Priest calls upon the people to lift up their hearts towards the Lord in prayer and thanksgiving; he associates the people with himself in the Prayer that he addresses in the name of the entire community to God the Father through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, the meaning of this Prayer is that the whole congregation of the faithful joins with Christ in confessing the great deeds of God and in the offering of Sacrifice. The Eucharistic Prayer requires that everybody listens to it with reverence and in silence. (GIRM, 78)
The Eucharistic Prayer, though said by the celebrant of the Mass, involves the entire congregation. Even though we are called to “listen to it with reverence in silence”, our hearts must be active in uniting ourselves to the prayer. While the priest is exercising his ministerial priesthood, the rest of the faithful are exercising their common, baptismal priesthood at this point. As a priest who celebrates Mass, I know that the Eucharist is a necessary gift for me to grow in holiness, but I also know that my worthy celebration of these sacred mysteries is at the service of the congregation present, and the entire Church, both on earth and in Purgatory. When the faithful approach their participation at Mass with an understanding that they too are priests, the same dynamic is at play. Though we each benefit individually from the Eucharist, the exercise of our priesthood in the Mass benefits the entire Church. This is expressed beautifully in the faithful’s response to the invitation to prayer just before the Eucharistic Prayer begins: “May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands, for the praise and glory of His name, for our good and the good of all His holy Church.” No pressure, but the Church is depending on you to fulfill your priesthood well, so let us not let her down!
Perhaps I can touch on a somewhat sensitive topic as I conclude this article. You will notice, at certain masses, the priest is facing a different direction. This is called ad orientem which translated means: “to the East.” The east here is not necessarily true East, but what we would call liturgical East. The directionality of this posture expresses in a visible way what is happening during the Eucharistic Prayer. The priest along with the congregation are directing our prayers in the same direction – to God. As a priest, during the Eucharistic Prayer, I am not addressing the people in the pews, nor are you simply watching and listening to me pray. We are ALL praying to God, and when we are facing the same direction, that is what is being expressed. Even when I am celebrating Mass facing the people, you may notice that I never really look at the congregation except when the prayer is directed that way. Even though I may have many of the words memorized, I still keep my eyes focused on the Missal, on the crucifix on the altar, or the Eucharist in front of me, reminding me as the celebrant to whom I am directing my prayer. Regardless of which way I am facing, my focus (and yours) should always be on God.
I have heard it said that people do not like when the priest “turns his back on the people.” Might I suggest that if that bothers you, perhaps you are focusing too much on the priest and not enough on God? I do not mean to be insensitive with that comment, but I humbly ask you to consider what I have been trying to explain in this article and how it informs the option when a priest celebrates ad orientem. Regardless of how you feel about it, let us all receive these words as an invitation to put our priesthood into practice more intentionally by uniting ourselves with the priest in offering all of our attention and our prayers to God.