Continuing our journey through Mediator Dei, we pick up with the pope teaching us that it is good for the lay people to become familiar with the Roman Missal. The missal is the book which the priest uses for Mass. In particular, he means it is good for the laity to have some grasp of what is going on and that various resources can be used to help them do that, including the use of books to help follow along. Remember that at this point they were still using the older Latin Mass and that that Mass can be celebrated in a very quiet and secretive way. It was unfortunately too common for Catholics to go a long time never actually knowing what the priest was saying and doing. The problem wasn’t the form of the Mass, but the failure of pastors to teach their people what was going on. There is a certain beauty and mystery to the quiet, secretive structure you would see in what was called “Low Mass.” But, if the people attending are oblivious to what’s happening and are simply biding their time instead of mentally and spiritually participating, it’s not good. So, educating the faithful is something the pope encourages. He’s clear that, even if the faithful are unable to read or grasp all the details of the Mass, they can still participate by simply meditating on mysteries of Jesus Christ. Even if they are praying different prayers – like the Rosary – they are still spiritually connected to the same basic reality as the Mass, which is the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. So yes, praying the rosary during Mass was a common practice, but it was not necessarily a bad thing if it was done with the right intention as the pope himself teaches us.
He also explains the concept of a “dialogue Mass,” which incorporates more back and forth between the priest than what was typically done at a low Mass. The pope is clear that this is an good practice but, like always, any changes to the liturgy must be done with the Church’s approval and guidance. Ultimately, this sort of approach to liturgy greatly influences the changes that gave us the Mass we have today.
Then Pius XII turns to the subject of receiving communion. He reiterates what the Church has always taught, that only the priest has to receive communion for the Mass to be complete. Nonetheless, it is very good for the laity to receive communion regularly, provided they are properly disposed for it. During the long process of liturgical research and reform, some people were starting to argue that real “high point” of the Mass was actually the communion of the people. This is not true. As we’ve covered already and as the pope repeats many times throughout this document, the highest point of the Mass it he offering of sacrifice, especially seen the doxology while the priest elevates the chalice and host: “Through Him, with Him and in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, almighty Father, for ever and ever.” As you can see, that quite literally sums up what we’re doing. This emphasis on that moment, by the way, is why I personally always sing it even if I sing nothing else. I want it to stand out as the peak moment.
While the doxology is the high point of the Mass itself, receiving communion is the highest form of participation in that offering, so we have to avoid a false dichotomy. The pope even makes it clear that he encourages pastors to distribute communion every time they celebrate Mass with people who want to receive. Remember that receiving communion every day was still not a common practice, so this is one example of the Church starting to encourage that. Pius particularly points out the value laborers finding strength in the Eucharist and of “husbands and wives” approaching communion so that they “may learn to make the children entrusted to them conformed to the mind and heart of Jesus Christ.”
Once someone has received communion, they are not finished. Pius XII is clear that someone who has received “is not freed from his duty of thanksgiving” and that simply being at Mass is not enough to complete this duty. He very clearly envisions that, once Mass is over, everyone who has received communion would spend a little time giving thanks to God for this great gift of His body and blood. The liturgy is a public ritual act, but all Catholics are required to foster a personal life of devotion and a private act of thanksgiving after Mass should be part of that. It can take many forms: verbal prayers, silent meditation on what is received, the reading of some devotional material related to the liturgy, etc. So, ideally speaking, when Mass ends, people shouldn’t be rushing to their cars but spending a few moments in this act of thanksgiving. I personally need greet people as they’re exiting but, when I’m doing what I should, I usually spend a few moments at the altar on my way back to the sacristy to offer my thanksgiving. I urge everyone to evaluate how they act after the final prayers/hymn after Mass and consider when and where they can make a deliberate act of thanksgiving. I’d love nothing more than to get to the door and turn around to see everyone still in Church – kneeling, standing, or sitting, whichever works – offering some act of thanksgiving. I highly value the communal conversations that take place after Mass, but I’m going to start publicly encouraging people to delay those a little and to move them outside so we can both honor the sacred space of the Church and provide an environment better suited to the kinds of devotion and thanksgiving that the Church asks us to practice after Mass. Please try to understand and help to cultivate that kind of culture in our community and I’ll see you next week.