THE MASS

The word 'mass' comes via French from the late Latin noun missa, derived from the curiously brusque  command  at the end of the mass sending the congregation out into the world: Ite missa est, (the grammatically incomplete phrase can be translated ‘this is the dismissal!’). The Greek term ‘Liturgy’ originally meant ‘public works’; in Christian terminology it refers to the participation of the ‘people of God’ '(the church) in the ‘work of God’.

The general shape of the Roman rite of the mass is essentially a product of the first five centuries of Christian history. It developed directly out of the Eucharist of the early church, which in turn has its origin in the Last Supper. At that final meal with his disciples, Jesus takes bread and breaks it saying ‘This is my body’ and after distributing it among his disciples, takes the wine and, pronouncing a blessing as was normal at Jewish meals, says that it is his blood, shed for many. Finally, Jesus tells his disciples to ‘do this in remembrance of me’.

From the beginning, it has therefore been understood as both a meal and a memorial, with varying emphases. The commemoration of Jesus’ sacrifice and the awareness of God’s power became more marked from the fourth and fifth centuries. Since the Second Vatican Council, the official teaching of the church has put a relatively greater emphasis on the aspect of a (symbolic) meal compared to the previous almost total stress on sacrifice.

There was initially no distinction between meal and prayer-meeting, because every Jewish meal included blessings and prayers. However, the meal aspect split off from the liturgical quite early, surviving a while as what was called an agape meal before disappearing in the fifth century. The Eucharist is anyway utterly unlike any meal you have ever attended or will ever eat. The invitation to this dinner comes from Jesus Christ, and the circumstances in which he issued it makes it particularly solemn.