Mass | Church, Definition, & Facts - Britannica

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Meaning of the mass

The mass is at once a memorial and a sacrifice. In the eucharistic prayer, the church commemorates Jesus Christ and his redeeming work, especially his sacrifice for the sake of all humankind through his crucifixion. The celebration also recalls the origin of the Eucharist in the Last Supper, when Jesus, anticipating his imminent death, offered his disciples bread and wine, saying, “Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my body, which will be given up for you,” and, “Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my blood,…which will be poured out for you.” Jesus instructed the disciples to perpetuate this banquet in his memory.

Holy week. Easter. Valladolid. Procession of Nazarenos carry a cross during the Semana Santa (Holy week before Easter) in Valladolid, Spain. Good Friday Britannica Quiz Christianity Quiz

According to church teaching, Christ’s sacrifice is not only recalled in the mass, it is also made present. In the eucharistic prayer, the priest asks God the Father to send the Holy Spirit upon the bread and wine on the altar so that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, they may become the very body and blood that Christ offered on the cross (see transubstantiation). That change having occurred, Christ is offered anew to God the Father, and the church unites with him in that offering.

Related Topics: traditional Latin mass Eucharist liturgy of the Eucharist liturgy of the Word (Show more) See all related content

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