Life-Giving Liturgy

The Elements of Life-Giving Liturgy, cont.

     It is said that the most important words in the Eucharist are hic et nunc—“here and now”. Why would this be so? After all, do we not retell the institution of the Eucharist during each Mass? Do we not praise God for the death and resurrection of Christ? Are these not historical events that occurred 2,000 years ago?

     That is all true, yet what we celebrate in each Eucharist is not so much those God-given events that occurred in temporal history, but, more importantly, we celebrate the salvific action of God that is occurring at this very moment, and will occur until Christ returns in glory.

     God’s work of salvation began at Eden, and will continue until the last judgement, of which we hear in Matthew 25. It is God’s desire that every person attain salvation, for God loves the creatures he has made, and wants all people to live with him forever in his heavenly kingdom. The Eucharist is a means of attaining that salvation, as it plants the seeds of charity in our hearts and, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, kindles in us a desire to bring the saving work of God to a world in need, working for justice and peace. This is the Sunday-Monday connection.

     As we begin to examine the various elements of life-giving liturgy we meet elements both tangible and intangible. There are ministries and rituals, and there are people who fulfill those ministries and perform the rituals. Yet it must always be borne in mind that “the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). One priest put it me this way: “People always come before the big red book.” Rubrics are good and necessary, but God made not rubrics but people, and people made rubrics. In any liturgical celebration, therefore, the pastoral care of the community is of primary importance, reverence and sacramental integrity being always understood.

     Here are liturgical ministries we will examine:

          The Priest Presider

          The Deacon

          Proclaimers of the Word (Lector)

          Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion

          Altar Servers

          Ministers of Hospitality

          Ministers of Music (including Cantor, Music Director and Choir)
          The Assembly.

     Once we have given an overview of these ministries we will begin to examine the temporal moments of the liturgy.