VBS Day #3 @ St. Apollinaris Church

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL - DAY #3
JUNE 21, 2017
9:00 AM - 12:00 NOON
SACRED MYSTERIES (YOUTH ROOM)
THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST (PART 3 OF THE MASS)

Today we move into the third, and the LONGEST part of the Mass, the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Like the Introductory Rites, the Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with a song.

A lot of what we're going to cover today are things that are ALL happening at the same time. You might be sitting in your seat, holding an envelope, waiting for the usher, listening to the choir, or joining in the song. You might even be going to the back to bring up the gifts.

With so much going on already, you may miss the actions at the altar.

So, now the gifts are brought to the altar. They may come from the back of the church, or may just come from behind the sanctuary. But they eventually land at the altar.

The priest takes the bread and says a simple blessing prayer.

Then the wine is poured into chalice(s) and mixed with a little bit of water. In the Creed, we said that Jesus is "true God and true man." God is represented in the large quantity of wine; where the drop (or small amount) of water represents humanity. This is reflected in the prayer:

By the mystery of this water and wine,
may we come to share in the divinity of Christ,
who humbled himself to share  in our humanity.

Then the priest takes the chalice of wine and says another simple blessing prayer, similar to the one said over the bread.

Then the priest bows at the center of the altar and says a prayer silently ("With humble spirit ...") You may never hear this prayer – even if your at the altar. But it is said by the priest.

Next the priest washes his hands. There are three reasons:

1. Historical: People used to give livestock and produce, and the priest had to clean up.
2. Spiritual: The prayer ("... cleanse me from my sins ...") shows the spiritual meaning.
3. Practical: Handling money, incense, and sticky wine can leave residue on the priest's hands.

The priest turns to the people and says: "Pray, brethren, that my sacrifice and yours ..."; and the people respond: "May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands ..." This is an admonition for everyone to pray for the priest, who now all alone will re-enact in a non-bloody way, the Sacrifice of Christ, as Jesus asked His disciples to do at the Last Supper. And the people agree to pray for the priest, themselves, and the entire Church.

The priest prays the Prayer over the Offerings for the particular day, and the people respond: Amen.

Now we enter the Eucharistic Prayer. Before the priest prays this most important prayer, he greets the people and calls them to more fervent prayer:

The Lord be with you.
     And with your spirit.
Lift up your hearts.
     We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
     It is right and just.

Then the priest prays the Preface. The beginning and the end of most prefaces are the same or similar, and at the end the people respond with the Sanctus, which is the same in all Catholic liturgies in many languages and customs: Holy, holy, holy Lord God of Hosts ...

Then the priest prays the Eucharistic Prayer alone (sometimes helped by other priests at parts.)

There are four main prayers that are used:

1. The Roman Canon – from the 4th century
2. St. Hippolytus – adapted from a 2nd century Roman prayer
3. The Roman Anaphora – adapted from the Roman Canon in the 1960s
4. St. Basil – adapted from a 4th century Eastern Church prayer  

There are other prayers, written in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s that have been added for use at Masses for Reconciliation, Children, and Various Needs as well.

No matter how old or how long a Eucharistic Prayer is, it contains four elements:

1. Epiclesis: A prayer asking the Holy Spirit to come upon the gifts to make them the Body and Blood of Christ; as well as another prayer for the Holy Spirit to transform the People of God into the Mystical Body of Christ in the world.
2. Consecration: The words of Jesus "This is my Body," and "This is my Blood," spoken by the priest acting in persona Christi – in the person of Christ over the bread and wine, transubstantiating them into the Real Presence of Jesus: Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.
3. Prayers for the Church, the World, the Living, and the Dead.
4. Doxology: The closing words of all the prayers are identical.

The Doxology is the following words:

Through Him, and with Him, and in Him; O God, Almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is Yours, for ever and ever!

And the people respond, "Amen!" in what is called the "Great Amen."

We're now halfway through the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Tomorrow, we'll cover the last half, known as the Communion Rite.

Here is a link to the 11 x 17 cards in PDF format.