The Mass: Bite Size Explanations to Questions about the Catholic Mass

By JC Porto

The Mass: Bite-Size Explanations to Questions about the Catholic Mass is a book in the series, A Guy in the Pews. The book is about the rich Catholic faith and the Holy Eucharist found in the Mass. Written in easy-to-understand, one-page, bite-size explanations about the essence of the Mass, it details the essential faith basic of Catholicism and its history.

Many Catholics struggle to understand the words, prayers, and gestures of the Mass yet seek to deepen their understanding of the sacred liturgy. This book should be owned by every Catholic and read and reread until its insights remind us of our faith and the importance of meeting our Lord every time we attend Mass.

Candidates in their conversion into the Catholic faith will deepen their faith by understanding each step of the Mass, not just do these things because "that's the way we do it." Those outside the Catholic faith will understand the traditions of the Catholic Mass and how and why Catholics have a total change of attitude, values, priorities, and behavior. And further understand it is a journey of faith, ceremonies, beliefs, and a clear understanding of the place of scriptures in the Catholic religion.

It answers questions about the altar, tabernacle, the bright light next to the tabernacle, the bells and smells, colors that the priest and deacon wear, and probably the most often asked question, Is Jesus really present in the Eucharist? And what about transubstantiation? How is that possible?

Understanding the Mass will guide the reader to understand, appreciate, and take part in the ultimate of all prayers on a deeper level. Going to Mass will never be the same again once you really understand and appreciate the significance of every Mass at knowing that Jesus is in the house!

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781639610761

Book preview

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The Mass

Bite Size Explanations to Questions about the Catholic Mass

JC Porto

ISBN 978-1-63961-075-4 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63961-076-1 (digital)

Copyright © 2022 by JC Porto

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Scripture selections taken from the New American Bible with Revised New Testament, copyright © 1986. All rights reserved.

Excerpts from Vatican II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, edited by Austin Flannery, OP, copyright © 1988. Costello Publishing Company, Northport, New York. All rights reserved.

This book was not submitted for an ecclesiastical approval. Attention in the study, research and presentation of the contents were meticulous reviewed to be free of doctrinal or moral error.

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Introduction

Is It a Priest, Pastor, Padre, or Father?

The Deacon

Ushers and Greeters

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion

Lectors

Sacristans

Altar Servers

Biblical Origins of the Mass

Books Used during the Mass

Items Used in the Mass

Attending Mass

Inside the Church

The Tabernacle

The Sanctuary Lamp

The Altar

Holy Smoke

The Bells

Holy Water

Catholic Posture

Liturgical Colors

Vestments

Vestment Prayers

Cloths and Linen

The Mass, Part 1 The Liturgy of the Word

The Mass, Part 2 The Liturgy of the Eucharist

The Procession

The Penitential Rite

The Gloria

The First Reading

The Responsorial Song

The Second Reading

The Alleluia Verse

The Gospel

Is It a Homily or a Sermon?

Profession of Faith—the Creed

Prayers of the Faithful

Is It Offertory or Offering?

Preparation of the Gifts

The Preface and Holy, Holy, Holy

The Eucharistic Prayer

The Epiclesis

The Major Elevation

The Mystery of Faith

The Great Amen

The Lord's Prayer

The Sign of Peace

The Lamb of God

Lord, I Am Not Worthy

Holy Communion

Receiving Communion

Doing the Dishes

The Sending

About the Author

Bite-Size Explanations to Questions about the Catholic Mass

"Lord, like Saint Paul, I have been touched by your love,

And I have heard your command to go out and spread the good news.

I renew my trust in your companionship,

And I resolve to do all I can to bring your gospel to others.

Help me to keep my eyes on you forever."

Amen.

Introduction

There is a serious men and women crisis. One in every three men that have been baptized have left the faith, and 24 percent of baptized women do not consider active involvement in the church important. Their disengagement is even greater than that of their male counterpart. And I believe that if you lose women, you lose children. No one can doubt the formative role women have always played in the religious training of children.

You need to ask yourself the questions, Why am I here? Is it to know Christ, to love Him, and to serve Him? Not only does God have a plan for you and your family, so does Satan. The devil wants to destroy your family, but he must come through you! If you have been called to pass on the faith, you need to live and understand your faith. Every man and woman needs to walk into that break and begin to fight that battle, which means you have got to know the power of the Eucharist, the power of the Mass, and the power of prayer. We need to rise higher and see further. You need to climb the highest tree in this jungle and see if you and your family are heading in the right direction. If you are not, it is time to make adjustments. If you are heading in the same direction as Jesus, then continue to deepen your faith by learning more and more about your faith. But if you are in the wrong jungle, you need to get out now!

As I sit in the pews, I hear the comments from other parishioners: I don't understand why we do this during Mass or What's with the smoke and bells? and I can't follow the Mass. And my favorite: Mass is boring. I know parents have heard these statements from their children. But many adults likewise find the Mass boring. Many bring a consumer mentality to the church in their search of a message and worship service that will uplift them. Others like me used to attend Mass because I have to, not because I want to. Just last week, I heard, Why can't I bring coffee with me to Mass?

If you are a cradle Catholic, you may have had the same emotions and asked the same questions. We follow the technical exercises of the Mass because that is what we were taught, never asking why. It became a habit we performed every Sunday. Other Catholics attend Mass to make sure God sees us just in case things do not go very well for us while others do not understand what goes on during the Mass and why we do things the way we do. And others outside the faith looking in never had an understanding of the ins and outs of the Catholic faith. Others, a few of you, go to Mass to watch and not participate.

You see, the Catholic Mass is a recollection of the Last Supper, which took place the evening before Jesus died a cruel death on the cross. We can presume that this supper was a very serious event, with serious conversations and