In This Issue:
December, 2008
St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church
100 Oak Dr. South
Lake Jackson, Texas
LIGHT FOR THE WORLD
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In This Issue: |
PARTS OF THE MASS continued
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Entrance Procession
Entrance Song
Veneration of the Altar
Sign of the Cross: Greeting: Introduction
Penitential Rite
Invitation/Silence/Proclamation
Confiteor/Kyrie
(or Sprinkling Rite may take the place of the
Penitential Rite)
Gloria (Glory to God)
Opening Prayer (Collect)
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading
Responsorial Psalm
Second Reading
Gospel Acclamation
Gospel
Homily
Profession of Faith
General Intercessions
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Preparation of the Altar and the Gifts
Presentation of the Gifts
Offertory Song
Prayers At the Preparation of the Gifts
Mixing of Water and Wine
Lord God, We Ask You…
Incensation
Washing of the Hands
Prayer Over the Gifts and Its Invitation
Eucharistic Prayer*
(*featured in this issue)
Preface
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord
Epiclesis
Institution Narrative
Memorial Acclamation
Anamnesis
Offering
Intercessions
Final Doxology
COMMUNION RITE
Lord’s Prayer
Rite of Peace
Breaking of the Bread
Commingling
Lamb of God (Agnus Dei)
(Private Preparation of Priest and People)
Invitation to Communion
Distribution of the Eucharist
Communion Song
Purification of the Vessels
Silent Prayer/Song of Praise
Prayer After Communion
CONCLUDING RITE
(Announcements)
Greeting and Blessing
Dismissal
Veneration of the Altar
Recessional
The Eucharistic Prayer
(Paul Turner has written a series of commentaries on the Eucharistic Prayer for Modern Liturgy magazine. They will be used here with permission.)
The Eucharistic prayers used at Mass are in four categories. The first group, simply numbered one through four, contains the principal prayers for Mass throughout the liturgical year.
A second group is used for Masses of reconciliation. The two prayers of this group were originally composed for the holy year 1975 when Paul VI was pope, but they have been approved for general use, especially in penitential seasons and days when the Scriptures invite us to reconcile.
A third group is for Masses with children. These three prayers were originally composed with specific age groups in mind, but they are used interchangeably now for any group of preadolescents. These Eucharistic prayers are still lengthy, but they aim to engage children through a simplified vocabulary and the singing of additional acclamations.
The final group is for Masses for various needs and occasions. Masses may be offered for a variety of intentions, such as the church, society, weather, and family. There are four variations of the Eucharistic prayer for Masses for various needs and occasions, each with its own preface and intercessions.
Of the first group, Eucharistic Prayer I is recommended on Sundays, solemnities, and feasts of the saints mentioned in the prayer. It is also called the Roman Canon, and it was the only Eucharistic prayer used in the Roman rite for many centuries. Prayer II is based on a text from the third or fourth century. It is shorter and recommended for weekdays. Prayer III, newly composed after the Second Vatican Council, is especially fitting for Sundays and feasts. Prayer IV, which tells about salvation history, is especially suited for weekdays and Sundays in Ordinary Time. Its preface never varies.
DIACONATE (Dee-ACK-on-it; Latin diaconus, from the Greek diakonos - servant.)
From Pope St. Clement in the first century through the patristic age, the diaconate assumed a broadening variety of ministries,
always under obedience to a bishop. The number of deacons was
at first limited to seven for each diocese, and in Rome the tradition survives in the 7 cardinal deacons.
The duties of deacons included collecting and distributing alms, which made them influential in the Christian community. However, abuses in the office crept in, and successive councils restricted the exercise of their powers, and by the Middle Ages, the diaconate was practically reduced to a temporary – or transitional - status, preparatory to the priesthood.
Since the Second Vatican Council, the role of the deacon has returned to something of its function in the early Church. The Permanent Diaconate was restored in the Western Church by Pope Paul VI. Today, the diaconate is a ministry of service, and the lowest rank of Holy Orders, below the priesthood and the episcopate. The role of deacon is to assist priests in preaching, the conferral of baptism, witnessing marriages, burying the dead, blessing people and articles, the administration of parishes and similar duties. They have 3 missions: charitable works, preaching the gospel and assisting in the liturgy. A permanent deacon usually serves in the community in which he resides, but he serves at the discretion of the Bishop and may be assigned where most needed.
In the Eucharistic Liturgy, when a deacon proclaims the gospel, he is not just reading a story, he is giving us instructions on what to do next. He invites us to live the gospel we hear. A deacon instructs us to offer the sign of peace and dismisses us from the service. At Mass, the priest invites us to prayer (Let us pray); the deacon invites us to action (Let us bow our heads).
A married man can become a permanent deacon, but if his wife dies, he may not remarry. A single man may not marry after becoming a permanent deacon.
QUIZ
(TRUE/FALSE)
Q. A Cross must be on or near the altar during Mass.
(Click here for answers, or scroll down)
That the Advent Sunday Scriptures make no mention of the birth of Jesus until the Fourth Sunday?
Until then, we only read of images of a Messiah who is very obviously an adult. When we pray, “Come, Lord Jesus”, the Lord who will come again in glory will bring justice and peace to the world. The fully glorified and risen Jesus, God’s anointed One.
Jesus Christ gives Himself entirely to us; He unites His Sacred Body with ours; and, by this union, we become one and the same spirit with Him. As the food which we take nourishes our body, so the Holy Eucharist is the nourishment
of our soul. For even as our bodily food is changed into our substance, so the Holy Eucharist transforms us into Jesus Christ.
St. John Baptist de la Salle (1651-1719)
ADVENT
The First Sunday of Advent brings a new Church Year, starting a liturgical year that follows a familiar pattern: Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter, with Ordinary Time blended in.
Advent means “coming”, and we are waiting to celebrate the coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Church gives us this holy season for us to prepare – to get ready. So many hours are spent in shopping, decorating and entertaining, that it can leave us with less time to spiritually prepare for the Lord’s coming, both at Christmas and at the end of time when he will come again.
When the Lectionary was changed after Vatican II, the Church moved from a one-year Lectionary to a three-year one and added a reading from the Old Testament. During Advent, we hear readings of anticipation and hopeful waiting as we observe urgent longing for the fullness of the Kingdom.
Let your Advent observance deepen your awareness of the Lord’s presence within you. Try something different in your personal prayer life, pray individually, as a family and as a community. Join in a Liturgy of the Hours every Sunday evening during Advent.
Feast Days of Saints
DECEMBER
Dec. 3, St. Francis Xavier
Dec. 6, St. Nicholas*
Dec. 8, Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary Holy Day of Obligation
Dec. 9, St. Juan Diego
Dec. 12, Our Lady of Guadalupe
Dec. 13, St. Lucy
Dec. 25, Christmas Holy Day of Obligation
Dec. 26, St. Stephen, Proto-martyr
Dec. 27, St. John, Apostle and Evangelist
Dec. 28 (Sunday) Feast of the Holy Family (the 28th usually
celebrated as Feast of the Holy Innocents
Dec. 31 7th Day, Octave of Christmas, and Pope Sylvester 1
*St. Nicholas, (died c. 350) is thought to have been born in Patara, Lycia, Asia Minor (modern Demre, Turkey) was the only child of wealthy and devout parents, both of whom died when he was very young. He was named Bishop of Myra, a rundown diocese near Patara, and became known for his holiness, zeal and miracles, and from very early on, he was known as a generous giver, especially to those in need. Under the persecution of Christians by Roman Emperor Diocletian, Nicholas was imprisoned and tortured for his faith. He was present at the Council of Nicea (325) and was reported to have struck Arius (for whom the heresy Arianism was named) for denying the divinity of Christ.
Wishing to stress his holiness and generosity, many stories were told and embellished in the retelling, until it is difficult to separate fact from legend, but he has always been held in high esteem by the Eastern Church and regarded as a healer. He was a defender of children and protector of the innocent, intervening on their behalf, sometimes saving them from execution.
Pilgrims visited his tomb in Myra to pray, and some sick people were healed by the liquid (called manna) secreted by his bones.
In 1087, some sailors spirited away his relics to Bari, on the southeastern coast of Italy and it became a major pilgrimage destination.
By the 15th century, he became the most popular non-biblical saint in the Christian world, and throughout Europe, people remembered him on December the 5th, the eve of his feast, by making anonymous gifts of treats to needy children – a custom that recalled his generous heart.
St. Nicholas is the patron saint of storm-beset sailors, prisoners, and children, as well as Greece, Apulia, Sicily, Lorraine and Russia.
ANSWER:
A. True. “There is also to be a cross, clearly visible to the congregation, either on the altar or near it.” (GIRM 270)
Featured book of the month
BLESSED AND BROKEN
Ralph Kiefer
BX2230 .K36 148 pages paperback
This is an exploration of the contemporary experience of God in Eucharistic celebration. This is volume 3 in the eight-volume "Message of the Sacraments", which discusses the ritual practices and understanding in the individual sacraments of the Roman Catholic community.
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Understanding The Mass and Eucharist