Throughout the Mass, there are various roles that are fulfilled by different members of the assembled congregation.  You will have the ordained clergy who have a specific role in leading the worship, while the rest of the lay faithful fulfill other roles pertinent to the prayerful celebration of the Mass.  As we work our way through these reflections, when something that is unique to me as a priest (or as a member of the clergy), I will provide some thoughts as they can help all of us in better praying at Mass, not just those who perform those specific actions and words.

One of the first things that you might notice is when the priest and deacon enter the sanctuary, we kiss the altar.  Personally, I try to be mindful of having this kiss represent my desire to be as faithful to Christ as possible, whether it is in how I celebrate Mass, or how I live as a priest.  I never want that kiss to be like that of Judas, whose kiss was a sign of betrayal.

Although only ordained ministers kiss the altar, all of us can unite ourselves with the priest and deacon as they reverence the altar as a way of showing our reverence to Christ, asking Him that we, too, might be as faithful to Him as possible, especially through our full, active, and conscious participation in the Mass.

Although at present, nothing is said with this kiss, though historically, there was a prayer associated with the kissing of the altar that went something like this: “We beseech you, O Lord, by the merits of your saints, whose relics are here, and of all the Saints, that you would pardon me all my sins.”  Masses in the early Church were celebrated over the tombs of martyrs and other saints as a sign of our special connection to them in the Mass, and our seeking their intercession for us as we continue our journey which we pray will one day conclude by joining them in Heaven.

Therefore, the kiss is a sign of reverence for the relics that are typically placed in an altar when it is consecrated by a bishop.  Here at the Cathedral, the relics in our main altar are: a Relic of the True Cross, St. Isaac Jogues, St. Maria Goretti, St. Charles Lwanga, St. George, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and St. John Vianney (whose feast day was this past Friday).  Even if there were no relics in the altar, as is the case with some newer altars, the kiss is still relevant as the altar represents Christ Himself, though obviously not in the same way as He is present in the Eucharist. 

The presence of these relics reminds us of another important point, that when we are gathered together at Mass, we are united not just with those gathered in the physical church, we are united with all of the Catholics throughout the world, for every celebration of Mass is a re-presentation of the one sacrifice that Christ offered on the Cross.  We are also united with the Church in Heaven, who gather around the throne of the lamb in unending worship.  In fact, right after the opening Sign of the Cross, the priest offers a greeting, such as: “The Lord be with you”, to which all respond: “And with your spirit.”  The General Instruction of the Roman Missal says about this greeting: “By this greeting and the people’s response, the mystery of the Church gathered together is made manifest.” (GIRM, §50) The mystery being expressed is what I just mentioned, that the ENTIRE Church, past, present, future, near, far, on earth, in Purgatory, and in Heaven are all gathered together as we enter into this greatest prayer of the Mass.  

Feast Day: August 10^th | Patronage: Rome, Comedians, Archivists, Librarians, Students, Miners, Tanners, Chefs, Chefs, BBQists, Firefighters, the Poor | Iconography: Wearing Deacon’s Dalmatic, Surrounded by the Poor, Holding or Martyred by Gridiron

St. Ambrose tells us our saint story this week. He recounts the final days of the Deacon Lawrence in a work entitled “On the Duties of the Clergy” – modeled after a famous discourse of the Roman Orator, Cicero, “On Duties” – both of them expositions on morality, on what is honorable, virtuous, and right. Ambrose’s work is the first true synthesis of Christian morality, integrating what was good and true with secular moral systems (like stoicism) with Christian revelation and grace. He makes this plain in his opening lines, “Just as Cicero wrote for the instruction of his son … so I also write to teach you, ,my children. For I love you, who I have begotten in the Gospel”. These are words addressed to his young priests, but certainly not limited to them (Augustine would pass this work onto his flock, and it has been promoted ever since as an enduring summary of what the Christian life calls all of us to.

And let us not pass by St. Lawrence, who, seeing Sixtus his bishop led to martyrdom, began to weep, not at his sufferings but at the fact that he himself was to remain behind. With these words he began to address him: “Where, father, are you going without your son? Where, holy priest, are you hastening without your deacon? Never were you wont to offer sacrifice without an attendant. What are you displeased at in me, my father? Have you found me unworthy? Prove, then, whether you have chosen a fitting servant. To him to whom you have entrusted the consecration of the Saviour’s blood, to whom you have granted fellowship in partaking of the Sacraments, to him do you refuse a part in your death? Beware lest your good judgment be endangered, while your fortitude receives its praise. The rejection of a pupil is the loss of the teacher; or how is it that noble and illustrious men gain the victory in the contests of their scholars rather than in their own? Abraham offered his son, Peter sent Stephen on before him! Father, show forth your courage in your son. Offer me whom you have trained, that you, confident in your choice of me, may reach the crown in worthy company.”

Then Xystus said: “I leave you not, nor forsake you. Greater struggles yet await you. We as old men have to undergo an easier fight; a more glorious triumph over the tyrant awaits you, a young man. Soon shall you come. Cease weeping; after three days you shall follow me. This interval must come between the priest and his levite. It was not for you to conquer under the eye of your master, as though you needed a helper. Why do you seek to share in my death? I leave to you its full inheritance. Why do you need my presence? Let the weak disciples go before their master, let the brave follow him, that they may conquer without him. For they no longer need his guidance. So Elijah left Elisha. To you I entrust the full succession to my own courage.”

Such was their contention, and surely a worthy one, wherein priest and attendant strove as to who should be the first to suffer for the name of Christ. … But here there was nothing to call holy Lawrence to act thus but his love and devotion. However, after three days he was placed upon the gridiron by the tyrant whom he mocked, and was burnt. He said: “The flesh is roasted, turn it and eat.” So by the courage of his mind he overcame the power of fire. [St. Ambrose, De Officiis Ministrorum, Chapter 41, Paragraphs 214-216]

– Fr. Dominic has always found the story of St. Lawrence’s martyrdom to be humorously daunting: How can I have the courage to not only embrace martyrdom, but to fearlessly joke with whoever is torturing me: “turn me over, I’m done on this side…”?? Yet St. Ambrose does not propose Lawrence as an “over the top” example of martyrdom, but an exemplar of authentic Christian discipleship. This deacon was willing to obey his Pope, St. Sixtus II, even above his own desire for martyrdom. We will not be asked at our judgement “did you have the guts to be martyred?”, but “did you obey Christ and His Church?” I cannot choose to be martyred, but every day I have the choice to obey fully and joyfully, and only one of those things will determine whether I enter heaven or not. Do I risk asking God what His plans are for today? When someone walks up in need, do I try to evade the request, or see them as sent by God? Am I content with the vocation and mission given me, or do I look elsewhere for tasks, fulfillment, or success?

I just wanted to give a big “thank you” to our parishioners and community members who helped to welcome the Biking for Babies crew to the Cathedral on July 14 and 15. I got to know B4B two years ago when the Cathedral hosted them for the evening and I was the celebrant at the evening Mass. They were a joyful bunch and gave great witness to their cause of promoting life and pregnancy resource centers. My week of Biking for Babies was an incredible week – physically demanding, but spiritually uplifting. On July 14, I biked around 100 miles from Charleston to the Cathedral. I was so happy to have my teammates and new friends at the parish where I am serving in my fourth year. The guys slept at SHG where I also serve. It was two worlds colliding – B4B and my Springfield life! After Mass, dinner was a joy on Friday evening as several of us shared stories and testimonies about how God has used Biking for Babies in our life. On the morning of July 15^th, I celebrated Mass at 3:30 (yes, in the morning…I was tired) before the teams had breakfast and departed between 4:30 and 5. We had a 130-mile ride to Manchester, MO, so we had to get an early start. Thank you to our generous parishioners who made food, hosted riders, and got up early to feed us and send us on our way. Biking for Babies is changing lives, starting with the missionaries and spreading to the pregnancy resource centers we support. As a group, we have raised over $250k this year and hope to reach $300k soon. Personally, my goal was to raise $5,000. As of the end of July, I have surpassed $12,000. Thank you to those who supported me financially and spiritually! As I said before, please continue to support our local pregnancy centers, First Step and Springfield Right to Life financially. Biking For Babies was founded in response to John Paul II telling young people, “Woe to you if you do not succeed in defending life!” Thank you all for being shining examples of defending life. Let us never lose hope in our proclamation of the Gospel of Life!   

Now that we have reflected on our preparations for Mass, both before arriving at the church and after, we are ready to actually enter the Mass itself.  The Mass is divided into five sections, the first of which is called the Introductory Rites.  The first element of the Introductory Rites listed by the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) is The Entrance.  Here is what the document says:

When the people are gathered, and as the Priest enters with the Deacon and ministers, the Entrance Chant begins. Its purpose is to open the celebration, foster the unity of those who have been gathered, introduce their thoughts to the mystery of the liturgical time or festivity, and accompany the procession of the Priest and ministers. (GIRM, §47)

Most parishes choose to use an Entrance Hymn that the congregation can join in singing, though some places will sing a chant.  For our weekday masses, we simply recite the Entrance Antiphon that is designated for that day.

Notice how this beginning of the Mass is described as an opportunity to foster unity and prepare our thoughts for the mystery we are about to celebrate.  Unity is fostered when we all join in the singing of the Entrance Hymn together.  Some, because they don’t like to sing, or claim that they can’t sing, choose to exempt themselves from this part of the Mass, preferring to just stand in silence.  Might I suggest that you at least open the hymnal and follow along with the words, at a very minimum listening to them and uniting your heart with them in prayer?  Doing so helps to foster unity as we all do the same thing.  Plus, paying attention to those words can actually benefit us as the words help to prepare our hearts for what we are about to celebrate.

In this regard, I still have vivid memories of masses that I would celebrate for the Catholic high school where I was a Chaplain several years ago.  I would process in, usually singing, then I would look up during the hymn, only to see the vast majority of the students not singing, not even having their hymnals open.  Furthermore, their facial expressions said: “I do not want to be here.”  On one occasion, I had some of those students saying something about not getting anything out of Mass, and I brought up my observation from the Entrance Hymn.  I said to them, somewhat out of frustration, but with utter sincerity: “If you don’t put anything into Mass, how can you expect to get anything out of Mass?”  To be honest, I do not know how many people actually sing during the Entrance Hymn here at the Cathedral.  I try not to look lest I get frustrated and start Mass in a bad mood!  I say that with a little sarcasm, but not totally.  I do, however, urge us all to consider how it is we participate during the Entrance Procession of the Mass, seeing it for what it is – a time to foster unity among ourselves and prepare to enter into the greatest prayer of the Mass.

Up to this point, I have been providing some reflections and suggestions of how I think about approaching the preparation for and praying of Mass, but I realize I do not possess the definitive answer on these.  Many of you have been preparing for and praying at Mass longer than I’ve been alive!  So, I offer an open invite for you to share with me anything that you have found useful in your experience with preparing for and praying at Mass.  I will be happy to share those as I work through this series.  Just send me an e-mail so that I can remember them.  If you just tell me after Mass, I’m afraid I might forget!

Feast Day: August 7^th | Patronage: Popes, Martyrs | Iconography: Arrayed in Gold Vestments, Wearing Papal Tiara, Holding a Book, Staff, or Processional Crucifix

From a letter of St. Cyprian about the martyrdom of St. Sixtus [Epist. 80: CSEL 3, 839-840]. St. Cyrian would be martyred several months later in the same persecution.

Dear brother, the reason why I could not write to you immediately was that all the clergy were embroiled in the heat of the conflict. They could not possibly leave, all of them having prepared themselves for divine and heavenly glory. But now the messengers have come back, those whom I sent to the City to find out and report the truth of whatever decrees had been made about us – for people have been imagining all sorts of different possibilities. Here, then, is the truth:

Valerian [the Emperor of Rome at this time] sent a rescript to the Senate, saying that bishops, presbyters, and deacons should all receive immediate punishment; that senators, knights, and other men of importance should lose their rank and their property, and if they still persisted in being Christians, they should lose their heads; and that matrons should be deprived of their property and be sent into exile. Members of Caesar’s own household, whether they had confessed their faith before or were only confessing it now, should be deprived of their property, bound in chains, and sent as slaves to his estates.

To this command, Valerian attached a copy of the letters which he had sent to the governors of the various provinces about us; and we daily await the arrival of these letters, bracing ourselves, each according to the strength of his faith, for the suffering that is to be endured, and looking forward to the help and mercy of the Lord and the crown of eternal life.

You should know, however, that Sixtus was martyred in the cemetery on the sixth of August, and four deacons with him [St. Lawrence the famous jokester and deacon would outlive his fellow deacons for four more days, and whom we will get to know next week…] Moreover, the prefects in the City are daily pushing forward this persecution, and anyone who is presented to them is martyred and all his property confiscated by the state.

I beg you to make these things known to the rest of our colleagues, so that through their encouragement the whole brotherhood may be strengthened and made ready for the spiritual conflict – so that each one of us may think less of death and more of immortality – so that everyone, dedicated to the Lord with full faith and total courage, may rejoice in this confession and not fear it, for they know that the soldiers of God and Christ are not destroyed, but crowned.

Dearest brother, always fare well in the Lord.

– Fr. Dominic recently had the chance to visit his sister in the convent and at one funny moment she asked if he were available to do Exposition the following morning at “ten of six”. Unfamiliar with monastery jargon, I puzzled over the turn of phrase for a moment to the humor of my sister, “willing to get up that early??” Of course, 5:50 AM is a bit of an ask when one is trying to rest and relax with family … but I had to surrender my desire for a full night’s sleep and agree to the early start. If a Christian’s life is meant to look like Christ, I should expect crucifixion, and getting up before 6 is nothing like what has been asked of many Christians down through the ages.