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God Speaks to Us and Communicates Himself to Us at Mass
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November 2, 2022Following the Opening Prayer or Collect, the next part of the Mass is the Liturgy of the Word. This is made up of the readings from Sacred Scripture together with the chants (Repsonsorial Psalm and Alleluia Verse) between them, and finally the Homily concluded by the Creed and the Universal Prayer (Prayer of the Faithful).
In the readings from Sacred Scripture God speaks to his people. He tells them of His plan for salvation, of His mercy, and His love for all. Christ Himself is present in the proclamation of the Word and He speaks to us in a preeminent way in the proclamation of the Gospel at Mass. This serves as spiritual nourishment for us when we come to Mass.
The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council in the “Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation” (Dei Verbum) taught, “In Sacred Scripture, therefore, while the truth and holiness of God always remains intact, the marvelous ‘condescenion’ of eternal wisdom is clearly shown, ‘that we may learn the gentle kindness of God, which words cannot express, and how far He has gone in adapting his language with the thoughtful concern for our weak human nature.’ For the words of God expressed in human language have been made like human discourse, just as the Word of the eternal Father, when He took to Himself the flesh of human weakness, was in every way made like men.” (#13)
How beautiful for us to consider when we come to Mass that the Word of God expressed in human language, that is, the Books of Sacred Scripture, is the Eternal Word that was made flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary and born in Bethlehem, the Eternal Word that went to the wood of the Cross for us! This Word of God becomes incarnate for us, takes on our human flesh, and then on the altar at Mass is made truly present when bread and wine become his Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.
We see that the proclamation of the Word of God at Mass leads us directly to the flesh of the Incarnate Word in the Holy Eucharist. The Liturgy of the Mass is like an incomparable symphony whose many strains in the Sacred Scripture leads us to the crescendo, the summit of the celebration when through the offering of the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the altar, the Word Incarnate is made present in the Blessed Sacrament. He speaks to us in the Scriptures at Mass and then communicates Himself to us by His Body and Blood at the altar.
This should not surprise us at all since the words of consecration, “This is My Body…This is the chalice of My Blood”, which, when uttered by the priest make Christ present, are taken from the very Gospels themselves.
When we come to Mass, our hearts and our minds must be open to God’s voice speaking to us in the Word proclaimed and then open to the hand of God that gives His very Self to us in the Sacrament of the Altar. We say to Him, “Speak , Lord, for your servant is listening.” (I Sam 3:9). Then He says to us, “Take this and eat. This is My Body.” (Mt 26:26)
Most Reverend William J. Waltersheid
Auxiliary Bishop of Pittsburgh
