Introduction
Since its institution in the early first century AD, the Eucharistic liturgy has been the bedrock gathering and highest form of worship for Catholic Christians. Featuring six liturgical rites — five among the Eastern Catholic Churches and one Roman rite for Western Catholics — the twenty-four churches total, in communion with the Pope, all uphold the Eucharist as the sacramental “source and summit of Christian life” (CCC #1324).
Being that the Roman Eucharistic Liturgy is the most common among the Catholic faithful, this paper will explain three aspects of the Liturgy that the faithful should consider as a necessary foundation for spiritual growth: 1.) the meaning of the liturgy itself and its connection to the faithful; 2.) the ‘inner disposition’ that leads to living out the liturgy’s meaning; and 3.) the importance of being an outward sign of the liturgy and an overall witness to the Gospel.
The Meaning of Liturgy
Beginning with the Roman Liturgy itself, referred to as ‘Mass’, the two central components, the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist, are “so closely interconnected that they form but one single act of worship” (GIRM #28). Namely, as Mass is the time when Catholics come together to have a worship-centered encounter with the risen Christ, whose body and blood are made present in the Eucharistic meal, the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist lead the faithful through a re-telling of God’s salvific plan for humankind (Ofrasio 27, 28).
In fact, just as the Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life, Mass is its own source and summit for believers to participate in the spiritual sacrifice that they connect back to their own their own lives and their fellowship as one ‘body’ within Christ’s one, holy, apostolic Church (Ofrasio 24). By first partaking in Sacred Scripture, the faithful hear and contemplate the Word of God, sing Psalms, receive the Gospel, and listen to a homily that typically weaves together the overarching message from the readings, while helping the faithful appreciate the greater message of God’s loving relationship with his spiritual family (SC #24).
In the transition from the Liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the Paschal Mystery is fully realized and presented: “When the fullness of time came, God sent His Only-Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to fulfill his promise of salvation” (Ofrasio 28). As Christ’s own Passover meal is remembered during the consecration of the bread and wine at the altar, Christ’s one time sacrifice on the cross at Calvary is re-presented (CCC #1362, 1366).
Shortly after, and once the bread and wine have been transubstantiated into the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ, those who go up to receive the Eucharist are then fully in communion with Jesus (CCC #1391), receiving him in a spiritually intimate manner, experiencing nourishment that strengthens love and grace with God, and unifying the entire body of believers who are present together in worship (CCC #1394, 1396).
The Holy Mass, overall, is where the faithful are spiritually refreshed and strengthened so that they can continue growing deeper in their relationship with God. Each Mass, in its divine purpose, “draws the faithful into the compelling love of Christ and sets them on fire” (SC #10). Thus, Mass is not a Bible study, nor is it a lecture seminar. Nor is it about having a scholarly discussion. Rather, it is about the faithful coming together in full praise and worship and becoming one with Christ in the Eucharist (DD #41). And in worship, the entire Mass should be one that “leads to a conscious, active and full participation of the faithful both in body and mind, a participation burning with faith, hope, and charity” (GIRM #18).
Inner Disposition
Because the faithful must allow themselves to be immersed into the worship experience and Eucharistic celebration at Mass, this includes recognizing the need to have Jesus present. After all, as baptized believers know that they initially received God’s sanctifying grace because of Christ’s one-time sacrifice and subsequent resurrection, the encounter with Christ at Mass must involve the need to treasure the “salvific power of the sacrifice of Jesus, his every word, his ever gesture, glance, and feeling…” (DD #11). Living out a sacramental life — being in tune with the sacraments as gifts, as visible signs of God’s grace — means living out a spiritually intimate, covenantal love-based relationship with God.
At and outside of the Eucharistic Liturgy, spiritual intimacy requires getting in touch with one’s inner disposition. That is, are the head, heart, and soul joined together during spiritual experiences? Are there any distractions, such as mobile devices, idle chit-chat, or meandering thoughts preventing the experience from being totally immersive? Is there a true desire to have a meaningful encounter with God? (Ofrasio 25, 26).
Just as Jesus teaches to have faith like a child (Matt 18:3), being immersed into a relationship with Christ, while reflecting upon the Paschal Mystery, means living out the spiritual life with a sense of astonishment and wonder — though not in an overly abstract or dumbfounded manner. Rather, being in utter astonishment means “marveling at the fact that the salvific plan of God has been revealed in the paschal deed of Jesus, and the power of the paschal deed continues to each of us in the celebration of the ‘mysteries'” (DD #25).
When combined with wonder, applying the Eucharistic Liturgy to the spiritual life compels believers to pay acute attention to all the symbols displayed in the Liturgy (DD #26), whether it be the vestments the priest wears, the altar, the crucifix, images of the saints, or the chalice and ciborium that contain the body and blood of Christ. Given that the Holy Mass is supposed to be a joining together of heaven and Earth (SC #8), all spiritually related imagery within the sanctuary reflects the transcendent God who makes himself known to the faithful, while the faithful become more spiritually in-tune with themselves (DD #44). Even the human body itself is a symbol “because it is the visibility of the spiritual soul in the corporeal order” (DD #44).
In addition, gestures made during the Liturgy and while engaged in certain prayer routines reinforce the power of symbols. For example, the Sign of the Cross, which is a prayer in itself, not only shows the symbol itself (DD #47), but the deliberate gesture is a call to the transcendent, triune God: in that brief moment, the prayer is like receiving an embrace from the Trinity while affirming the connection between the symbol and the triune God.
On the subject of prayer, the inner disposition is not complete without having an active prayer life. Although the many prayers said at Mass help edify worship and draw together the body of believers, frequent prayer outside of the Eucharistic Liturgy helps believers nourish their relationship with God and continue meditating on the salvation that Jesus Christ made possible (SC #12). Moreover, prayer outside of the Liturgy can be celebratory in its own right: Even when it does not involve the Eucharistic celebration, it is still an opportunity to praise God and grow in spiritual intimacy (DD #50).
Outward Expression
Along with having a richly spiritual, inner disposition, it is also necessary to manifest this disposition as an example to others and particularly as a witness to the Gospel message. Moreover, baptized believers are called to share the Gospel and be an enduring spiritual model to a world carrying the wound of Original Sin. In baptism, through the power of the Holy Spirit, believers share in a three-fold ministry: priestly, prophetic, and kingly (LG #31).
Within the priestly ministry, believers become “spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (LG #34). Whether participating in worship during the Eucharistic Liturgy, facing and spiritually discerning the many challenges that life presents, or trying to be a spiritual example of Christ’s sacrificial love, believers are called to offer up their sacrifices, consecrate themselves to God, and “be a sacrament of Christ to the world” (Tkacik 21; LG #34). And though the priestly role relates more to one’s inner disposition, being a living sacrifice also outwardly signals to others the commitment to taking up the Cross and following Christ (Matt 16:24).
Next, believers engage in the prophetic role by either being a witness to the Gospel in everyday acts of charity, or by proclaiming God’s plan of salvation through various forms of evangelization: street, online, conversations with friends and family, etc. (LG #35). In sharing the Gospel with the world, the faithful help in the “renewal and building up of the Church” (Tkacik 23), while also educating society on the negative effects of subjectivism or distorted forms of Christian belief, such as Gnosticism and neo-Pelagianism (DD #17).
Therefore, carrying out the prophetic role entails being bold against ideas that can damage or demolish the relationship between Christians and God, including the meaning of the Eucharistic liturgy. In a Gnostic sense, the liturgy becomes “my truth” versus God’s salvific plan. It changes the language of “we” — per the Catholic Christian understanding of the Paschal Mystery — to individualistic preferences. And in the Neo-Pelagianism sense, salvation changes from the gift of grace we receive from God into ‘earned salvation’ or just subjectively ‘be a good person’ (DD #19, 20). Bearing these distortions in mind, the spiritual life is crucially strengthened when the prophetic role aligns exactly with the Catholic Eucharistic Liturgy.
Lastly, through the kingly role, believers further fortify spiritual growth by helping usher in the kingdom of God and moving towards the reign of sin being eradicated once and for all (LG #36). Yet the kingly role does not mean wielding earthly power. Rather, “governance in the Christian sense must be understood in terms of service, for this is the example and model of Jesus” (Tkacik 25). In effect, a life of Christ-like service to one another not only brings about social harmony, but it makes charity, which is fortified when receiving the Eucharist, a driving virtue in the spiritual life.
In summary, the Eucharistic Liturgy is a lifeforce that can invigorate the faithful to be spiritually alive and energized during worship, continue to develop their interior response to the Liturgy and ongoing piety, and be a Christ-like example to the world by flourishing in the tri-fold role received through baptism. Collectively, this ongoing spiritual growth is always embedded in the Paschal Mystery celebrated at every Mass, remembered in everyday faith life, and preserved by the Church through Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.
In short, “God’s salvific action through Christ thus still continues in the Church, and we continue to be saved and to experience this salvation every time we celebrate the liturgy and the Eucharist” (Ofrasio 29).
Works Cited
Catholic Church. Catechism of the Catholic Church. Online: https://usccb.cld.bz/Catechism-of-the-Catholic-Church/
Francis, Pope. Desiderio Desideravi: Apostolic Letter on the Liturgical Formation of the People of God. Online: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_letters/documents/20220629-lettera-ap-desiderio-desideravi.html
Ofrasio, Timoteo J. M. “Liturgy and the Eucharist in Light of the New Evangelization.” Landas, vol. 29, no. 2, Dec. 2015, pp. 21–31.
Second Vatican Council. Lumen Gentium. Online: https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html
Second Vatican Council. Sacrosanctum Concilium. Online: https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html
The Holy See. “General Instruction of the Roman Missal.” Vatican City, 2002: https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20030317_ordinamento-messale_en.html
Tkacik, Michael J., and Thomas M. McGonigle, O.P. Pneumatic Correctives: What is the Spirit Saying to the Church of the 21st Century? Lanham: University Press of America, 2007.