In Sacramentum Caritatis, Pope Benedict XVI's recent apostolic letter on the Eucharist, the Pontiff offers much food for thought and spiritual nourishment. One thing he insists upon is that Catholics should come to understand and love better the Eucharistic prayer of Mass.
"The spiritual life of the faithful can greatly benefit from a better appreciation of the richness of the anaphora [another term for the Eucharistic prayer]," writes the Pope. "Its importance deserves to be adequately emphasized."
Because they hear this prayer every time they attend Mass, Catholics might easily take it for granted or even ignore it. But the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, the Church's official instruction manual for the celebration of the Eucharist, calls the Eucharistic prayer "the center and summit of the entire celebration."
So what is the Eucharistic prayer? And why does the Pope believe that all Catholics need to understand it better?
The Church's Prayer
The Eucharistic prayer is prayed from the altar by the priest celebrating Mass. It begins immediately after the prayer over the gifts, with a familiar dialogue between priest and people ("The Lord be with you." "And also with you." "Lift up your hearts." "We lift them up to the Lord.").
It concludes with the doxology ("Through him, with him, and in him…") and the "Great Amen" of the people. In between are the preface, Sanctus, prayers of thanksgiving, an epiclesis, the consecration, a prayer of offering, and prayers of intercession. (See below.)
The entire prayer has crucial significance to the worship, spirituality, and identity of every Catholic. The Eucharistic prayer, though prayed aloud almost entirely by the priest alone, is truly the prayer of the whole Church — meaning Christ and his body of which all the faithful are members.
That's why the entire congregation joins into the three acclamations — the Sanctus, memorial acclamation, and "Great Amen" at its conclusion. It is also why the words the priest prays are addressed neither to the people nor to Jesus, but to God the Father. In the Eucharistic prayer, the Church prays and offers itself to the Father with Christ and in Christ.
"Christ is presented once more to the Father, together with the prayers which we as Church offer alongside his infinite sacrifice," Father Edward McNamara, LC, professor of liturgy at Rome's Regina Apostolorum University, told OSV recently.
"In doing this we renew the covenant sealed in his blood and continue to establish the community of those who form God's people through participation in this sacrifice."
With this understanding of the Eucharistic prayer, the real meaning of participation at Mass, so strongly emphasized in recent years, becomes clearer. To participate at Mass is never simply to pay attention, to sing and respond, or to make a financial offering. Rather, true participation at Mass means offering ourselves with Jesus to the Father.
Hence the Second Vatican Council, in its Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, could speak of the participation of the lay faithful at Mass in this way:
[B]y offering the Immaculate Victim, not only through the hands of the priest, but also with him, they should learn also to offer themselves; through Christ the Mediator, they should be drawn day by day into ever more perfect union with God and with each other, so that finally God may be all in all (section 48).
"Someone who enters deeply into the spirituality of the Eucharistic prayer is learning to pray as the Church prays," Fr. McNamara said. "The prayer contains almost every form of Christian prayer: praise, thanksgiving, confession of faith, petition for the needs of ourselves and others.
"It also encapsulates the fundamentals of our loving relationship with God — creation, redemption, covenant — which in turn inculcate the essential attitudes of a Christian life, humility and charity."
A Rich History
Priests have the option of using four main Eucharistic prayers when they celebrate Mass. In the Sacramentary, the book of prayers used at Mass, they are numbered I, II, III, and IV.
Besides these, there are also two special Eucharistic prayers on the theme of Reconciliation, three more intended to be used in Masses for children, and four others "for various needs and occasions." But such variety has not always been the case.
Of course, the first Eucharist was offered by Jesus at the Last Supper, on the night before his crucifixion. As a Passover meal, that Eucharist included important prayers to be prayed and meanings to be conveyed. So the Eucharistic prayer has roots that go back many centuries before even Christ. At the Last Supper, Jesus gave the words new meaning and a central place in the life of the Christian Church forever.
In the first centuries of the Church, there was no official "script" that had to be recited by priests who celebrated Mass. The Eucharistic prayer was prayed spontaneously, though certain themes and words were always expected to be included.
Our first record of a written Eucharistic prayer is one composed by St. Hippolytus around 215 AD. But Hippolytus introduces his prayer by acknowledging that priests in his day ad libbed their own; his concern was that they did so according to the tradition form, rather than aberrations that apparently had begun to appear.
This same concern for avoiding what was not traditional led to a written Eucharistic prayer which the priest was required to read verbatim, as is the case today. Though a variety of prayers were used in various places at first, one prayer was preferred above all others by the fifth century.
Known as the Roman Canon, this Eucharistic prayer soon became normative throughout the entire Church. For more than 1500 years, it was the only Eucharistic prayer used throughout the world, right up until the Missal promulgated by Pope Paul VI in 1969.
"[The Roman Canon's] stability and sacredness in a way marked the lives of generations of priests, allowing them to feel in a special way the entrance into the communion of saints," Fr. McNamara said.
"It also gave a certain stability to society. It was something constant and recognizable. Even if the laity did not hear or understand the prayer, they knew they were before the great mystery of faith."
Changes after Vatican II
The Second Vatican Council's Constitution on the Liturgy did not call for new Eucharistic prayers or even a revision of the Roman Canon. But as the work of liturgical renewal progressed following the Council, this became one of the topics under consideration by the Consilium, the Vatican committee entrusted with the task of reform.
Though initially hesitant, Pope Paul VI gave the Consilium permission in 1966 to compose new Eucharistic prayers to be considered for use. (In truth, dozens of unauthorized new prayers were already being illicitly used in many countries throughout the world, particularly in Holland, France, and the United States.)
One new prayer that the Consilium presented to the Pope was a revision of Hippolytus' ancient Eucharistic prayer. In the new Missal, it became Eucharistic Prayer II. It is the shortest and simplest of the four main prayers in use, and certainly the one most often heard at Catholic Masses today.
Two other new prayers drew on different aspects of the Church's liturgical history.
Eucharistic Prayer III is the most modern composition, though it draws on several elements of Eastern rite liturgy. Since it can be used with any of dozens of different prefaces, it is well suited for the various Sundays and feast days of the year.
Eucharistic Prayer IV draws even more strongly on Eastern traditions. This is especially evident in the prayer's beautiful summary of salvation history. This is the longest prayer of the four, and probably the one least often heard in parishes today.
The Roman Canon was retained almost exactly as it had been and, like the others, could now be prayed in the vernacular. Among its many noteworthy aspects, its invocation of the prayers of many saints is particularly distinctive. It became known as Eucharistic Prayer I.
"The different Eucharistic Prayers contained in the Missal have been handed down to us by the Church's living Tradition and are noteworthy for their inexhaustible theological and spiritual richness," the Pope wrote in Sacramentum Caritatis.
It should be no wonder, then, that he insists, "The faithful need to be enabled to appreciate that richness."
The Parts of the Eucharistic Prayer
Though the Eucharistic prayers used at Mass today are different in many ways, they all share eight basic parts in common.
THANKSGIVING: The Church offers praise and thanksgiving to God. Thanksgiving is so important to Christian worship that it became known by that name very early: the Greek word for thanksgiving is eucharistia.
ACCLAMATION: Joining into the song of the angels themselves before the throne of God (see Isaiah 6:2 and Revelation 4:8), the people sing, "Holy, holy, holy Lord!…"
EPICLESIS: The priest asks the Father to send the Holy Spirit, so that the bread and wine may become the Body and Blood of Christ.
INSTITUTION NARRATIVE: The priest repeats the words of Jesus ("This is my body…. This is my blood"), and the consecration of the gifts takes place.
ANAMNESIS: The Church recalls the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus for our salvation.
OFFERING: The faithful offer Jesus, as well as themselves, to the Father in heaven.
INTERCESSIONS: The Church asks for the prayers of the saints and prays for the dead who are in need of prayers.
FINAL DOXOLOGY: The Church glorifies the Holy Trinity, concluding with the great "Amen!" of all the people.
September 10th, 2007 at 8:27 am
I have a question regarding the validity of the consecration if the priest uses an unapproved Eucharistic prayer. A priest at an Oratory I know of regularly does that. He also adds words to the institution narrative by adding "friends". My understanding is that if words are omited at this point or changed the consecration is invalid and there is no mass. However, if the institution words are accurate and added to, there is a sin on the part of the priest but the consecration is valid. I don't know if the mass is invalid if the Eucharistic prayer is invalid but the words of the consecration are correct. (I know this is a canon law issue.)
Thanks for this article. We need to be taught and reminded that the Church is a living organism. As such it grows and progresses, while never straying from the truth. Some people would look at the formal written prayer by Hippolytus and say, "See they can't be trusted. The Church is just made of human whims… My priest can ad lib just like the frist ones did." But your article shows that Hippolytus formalized the Eucharistic prayer precisely to protect it from aberations and heresy. As organizations mature, grow bigger, and get farther away from the original experience one would expect more structure as a way to protect what is essential.
By the way, I love the peace and comfort I feel when the familiar words of the various Eucharistic prayers settle into my soul during mass. It's like the lullaby which must remain constant to a small child. It provides authenticity and trust and allows me to unite myself to Christ as he is re-presented to the father.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:55 am
I thank Barry Michaels for his informative article on Sacramentum Caritatis. Would that the Church attached the importance to apostolic letters and other communications from the Holy Father that Mr. Michaels does.
The Church is unique among large membership institutions in delegating responsibility for communication on important matters to others, such as the media and catholic publishers. Further, the Church differs from most religious institutions by relying on the printed word for communication and education in this age of images and video. My fellow Christians of many other denominations have access to more effective communication in a variety of media in adult education classes or "Sunday Schools" offered by their churches.
However, none of the many Catholic parishes I have been a member of has offered an adult education program on Catholic beliefs and current issues, and none of the Catholic dioceses has required such programs. The diocesan newspapers I receive are filled with news of the clergy and parish happenings, but little content designed to educate.
One has to wonder about the bishop's priorities as we read about their frequent pontification on politics, but see no meaningful effort to inform and educate the Body of Christ.
September 10th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
The following is a list of adult formation classes offered at my neighborhood parish in the last few years. A group of three parishes start this and it has grown to include 5 parishes now.
CROSSROADS offerings: (2004 through Summer 2007)WHAT PORTION OF YOUR “GIFT OF TIME”HAVE YOU GIVEN BACK TO GODIN FORMING YOURSELF IN FAITH???Sacraments:Sin…Forgiveness 1/2006Eucharist 10/2005Fundamental Principals of Catholic Sacraments 1/2005Living Baptism Daily 10/2006Signed…Sealed…Sent… 10/2006Forgive Us Our Trespasses 11/2006Scripture:Introduction of Sacred Scripture 9/2004Pentateuch 10/2004The Birth of Christ – Matthew & Luke 11/2004Introduction to Synoptic 2/2005Uncovering the Parables 6/2005The Book of Revelation 11/2005Prophets 1/2006The Epistles 3/2006Introduction to Sacred Scripture 9/2006Advent – John The Baptist 12/2006The Gospel of John 2/2007The Pauline Epistles 2/2007Women of the Bible 5/2007Spirituality:Fundamentals of Spirituality 4/2005Devotions 4/2006The Value of Spiritual Direction inDeepening One’s Discipleship 9/2006The Practice of the Presence of God 10/2006The Practice of Discernment 11/2006God’s Face in the Cultures that Surround Us… 3/2007Catholicism:Fundamental Principals of Our Catholic Faith 10/2004A Conversion Journey – Alex Jones 11/2004Mary 1/2005Fundamentals of Morality 2/2005The Election of a Pope 4/2005Church History 7/2005A Look at Vatican II 9/2005Saint Making 10/2005Church History in Grand Rapids/Michigan 7/2006Catholic Teachings on Sexuality 8/2006Social Teachings:Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Social Teaching& Political Responsibility 10/2005The Fundamentals of Catholic Social Teaching 1/2006Immigration 6/2006Under the OverPass 1/2007Liturgy:A Walk Through the Mass 1/2005Miscellaneous:Parenting Teens 1/2006DaVinci Code 6/2006Settling for Less…What is the Prize –Choices for Healthy Living vs. Porn/Gambling etc 1/2007
"Do not try to please everybody. Try to please God , the angels, and the saints. These are your public. If you are afraid of other people's opinion, you should not have become Christian." St John Vianney
September 10th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
elkabrikir wrote: I don't know if the mass is invalid if the Eucharistic prayer is invalid but the words of the consecration are correct. (I know this is a canon law issue.)
I am not sure of the specific canon law issues here either (so I never dare "adjust" the Eucharistic Prayers), but there is another distinction other than invalid - a Mass may be illicit and still be valid. However, I do not know regarding the issues you bring up.
I know there are a number of strange things being done, even after the corrections required by Rome. If I were you, I would go to this priest and say something like: "I am not familiar with the Eucharistic Prayer you are using. Is there a copy I can get so that I can follow along better?"
If he can't produce one, it may be time to speak to his superior.
Remember: you have the right to a proper Mass. Don't let yourself be pushed around, but be respectful, as he may just be using one of those E.P.s for special occasions mentioned in the main article above, and it may not be something you heard before but may be valid after all.
Remember: you have the right to a proper Mass. We priests need to understand that the Mass is not "ours" to adjust as we see fit. I pray for a peaceful and right resolution to your dilema. God bless.
September 10th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
fjindra
I and many others have contacted the priest, his superior, the bishop, and Rome. Nobody has done anything about this priest's ongoing practice of using nonordained people,including women and noncatholics, to read the gospel and give the homily. He gives communion to noncatholics. He routinely adds to the words of the consecration and uses unapproved eucharists prayers (I've seen the book he uses). Non priests read the Eucharistic prayer in"private masses". (I was in his bible study for ten years and saw this happen twice a year. He passes the text around for each of us ladies to read. Even the words of the consecration and the elevation are carried out by the laity…only the Holy Spirit guarded my faith during those years.) He described our understanding of the Eucharist as "consubstantiation and transfinalization " instead of "transubstantiation". When I gave him the Pope Paul VI letter on the Eucharist, he gave it back to me the next week saying, "Thanks I'd forgotten about this." I know for a fact that this 50 something priest laughs about letters his superior receives regarding him!
My family finally left the diocese over this issue and others because this order of priests, Oratorians, has a permanent stranglehold over this and several other counties. The bishop is too–politically–indebted to them because they served this former mission territory well for a number of years prior to the heresies of the last 25 years.
Back to my issue, I've read a CUF answer to the invalidity of the mass if even one of the elements, bread and wine, is not concecrated due to the omission of words during the consecration (this is my body….)
I know we are owed in justice the mass as given to us by the GIRM. I feel very sad for those Catholics who can't participate in the mass as it is supposed to be celebrated. Souls are a risk! Nothing of the beauty and power and graces available should be lost for a single soul at a single mass!
As an aside, my 18 month old has just gotten into the powdered sugar. She grinned, a devilish grin I might add, at me….almost challenging me not to laugh. What should I do? She shows NO remorse!
September 10th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
Elka, try telling her "no", washing her up (at that age a great punishment!), and then putting the powdered suger either up so high she can't reach it or in a container she can't open…..yet.
September 10th, 2007 at 6:43 pm
We, also, had a priest (associate, thank God) who offered Mass "his way" because the way it was written was so "boring"…..! Several of us talked to him, then the pastor, then the bishop and nothing was ever done. We were told he was being "creative", and we should "go along to get along". When parish attendance dropped, so was he.
He comes back, occasionally, to offer Mass when our pastor can't be there (although our new one is finding "other alternatives"!), and somebody got through to him: he now does "THE 25 words" correctly.
My constant refrain during the dilemna was: I don't care if he does handsprings down the aisle for the Procession, or mumbles the Mass in Mongolian–all I want/need are those 25 words!
September 10th, 2007 at 8:52 pm
It's like some doctors who make light of their sick patients among themselves. They get bored and too familiar with it so it looses it's significance. It's up to the laity to bring them around. Elka, let the 18 mo. old indulge and see if you can arouse some remorse from those priests who think that it's cute to be a sugar daddy. I left a parish like that. There are always great priests out there, find them and support them.
September 10th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
I got out my camera and took a picture of the "sweet vixon"! It's my birthday so the mess is still there….at least until tomorrow!
I have sought out and do love my Holy and sweet (only because they're tough enough to set heaven and hell before me) priests.
Thanks!
September 10th, 2007 at 10:10 pm
Always mention birthdays in the first post, Elkabrikir. Happy birthday! All the more reason to allow the sweet little thing to sugar herself even more.
September 11th, 2007 at 6:42 am
Thanks, Goral!
September 11th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
I'm a day-late-and-a-dollar-short, but Happy Birthday, Elkabriker!!! In that case, I have a different advice for your "sweet vixen": put a candle on her head and lick her clean!!!!