5 (of 5) AVATAR Mar. 23, 1987 at 18:23 Eastern (15323 characters) LESSON FOUR THE DIVINE LITURGY, EAST AND WEST LESSON FOUR THE NATURE OF THE DIVINE LITURGY IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH I'm sure all of you listening are aware (if you are not, you *ought* to be, at least from your days in catechism class!) that in every Catholic Divine Liturgy, whether you call it "Mass," "Liturgy," or whatever other name, there are three essential parts without which it is *NOT* a "Mass." These three are called, in technical terms, the OFFERTORY, the CONSECRATION, and COMMUNION. It is, as you have all been told so many times before, the "Unbloody Sacrifice of Christ" performed in mystery, taken out of time and space, for all mankind to share, of whatever time, whatever place, whatever age, whatever clime. It is more than that, though. It is, on quite another level, a presentation of the *entire life of Christ*, visibly represented in living symbol. You have all been taught that we were redeemed by Christ's Death on the Cross. And, in a certain sense, it is quite true. It is true, so far as it goes. But in another sense, it is inaccurate, because it doesn't contain *all* the meaning of "redemption." For the *full* truth is that we were redeemed By *CHRIST*, not by death, or by anything else. It is a "WHO" who redeemed us, not a "WHAT." And in *that* sense of the term, Christ redeemed us, not *only* by His Death on the cross, but by His entire life! By His Birth, His childhood years, His years of teaching and ministering, His times of prayer and contemplation in the desert, His times of temptation, by His Resurrection and His Ascension, and, yes, by His Second Coming-yet-to-be. Should we forget or omit any portion of His life from our awareness, our awareness of the enormity of His Gift will be distorted as well, and will go without the recognition, gratitude and adoration due it. And we shall be the poorer for having deprived ourselves of it. And it is for this reason that the Church, under the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit, presents to our awareness in living cymbol, sound and movement, the entire life of Christ for our edification (in the classic sense of the term, from the Latin "Aedificare," "to build up, construct, as to construct an building, hence: an edifice." The term actually has connotations of CITY-building as well. One of the Latin terms for "city" is "Aedis." One wonders if that had any influence of St. Augustine's choice of titles for his "City of God.") and sanctification. Over the years there has been a deep controvebsy over the value of an iconostasis.[1] Many of our parishes have removed them "because the people cannot see the priest." Either the entire point has been missed, or it has been ignored. The iconostasis is the symbol zof faith; it tells us that what we are witnessing here is witnessed with the eyes of faith, not the eyes of the body. It is a tangible link to the Covenant made by God with mankind on Mount Sinai, in that it shadows the veil of the Temple of Solomon, in which that veil was "rent from top to bottom" at the Death of Our Lord. The associations are deep, plentiful and vital - for in forgetting the origins of our faith, the origins of our doctrines, the origins of our traditions we lie in deep danger of losing the faith which invigorates them as well. Traditions, as I have so often told you, are often the solutions to problems long forgotten because they worked so well. To rid ourselves of solutions without need is to run the risk of having the original problems back in our laps before we know what has happened. To my own mind, much of the division of the Church in current society is attributable to that careless and hapless tossing-away of traditions that overtook so many following the Second Vatican Council in the name of "reform." Over and above this, however, the Iconostasis has a definite practical role to play in the celebration of our liturgies. Without it, the processions lose much of their meaning, significance and (at least as important as anything else) their impact. What is meant to have solemn significance becomes little more than random gesture and meaningless movement on the part of the celebrant. The Divine Liturgy begins with the Rite of Preparation on the side altar. It is here that the priest prepares the sacred gifts which are to be consecrated and changed into the Body and Blood of Christ - the *living* Body and Blood of the *Risen and Ascended* Christ. The cymbolism of the side altar is to remind us of Bethlehem, which was a place apart from where Our Lord's mother and foster father lived, to represent Bethelehem. As Bethlehem was far from Nazareth, the home of Jesus, the Proskomedia (Altar of Preparation) table is also separated from the main altar. But as proof that it was *intended* to signify the place where Christ was born, there is also one part of the ritual taken at the Proskomedia table which instructs the priest to place the asterisk (A golden implement which raises a veil over the paten which contains the hosts, and has an "asteriskos", a star, dangling from its center) over the bread while he recites a prayer which says, in part: "And the star came, and stood over the place where the Child was." And, as Christ spent thirty years in Nazareth, "growing in grace and strength and beauty for God and men," so the gifts remain for a time on the side altar, while we, the People of Christ, begin also to prepare ourselves for the Coming of the Kingdom of God; to prepare to grow, ourselves, "in grace and strength and beauty before God and men." Listen closely to the prayers of the Great Litany, the Litany of Peace, and to the petitions it contains: "For Peace from on high; for this holy Church, and for those who enter it; for our deliverance from all affliction, wrath, and need," and so on. The Prayer of the First Antiphon asks that the Lord "look down upon us and upon this holy house, and grant unto us, and unto those who pray with us, the riches of Thy mercies and compassions." In other worse, increase in grace and strength. Immediately after this, in the Small Litany, we have constantly-repeated prayers for the mercy and the protection of God - "through thy grace." The Hymn of the Incarnation follows immediately, and its intent is most certainly clear enough! "O Only-Begotten Son and Word of God..." The Prayer of the Second Antiphon needs no explanation other than its repetition: "O Lord our God, save Thy people and bless Thine inheritance; guard all those who fill Thy Church, sanctify those who love the beauty of Thy house; reward them with honor by Thy divine power, and do not forsake us, who hope in Thee." And following it, the Small Litany *again* makes its appearance. The *same* petitions are made that we might grow in grace. And the Third Antiphon (on Sundays the Beatitudes) are recited to show us what those who have received this increase in grace are expected to accomplish and achieve. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are the meek, blessed are they who mourn, blessed are the clean of heart, blessed are the peacemakers, blessed are those who suffer persecution for justice's sake, blessed are you when men reproach you, and persecute you, and speaking falsely, say all manner of evil against you for My sake. Rejoice and exult, for your reward is great in heaven." And the Prayer of the Third Antiphon: "O Thou who has given us Grace for these common and united prayers, who didst promise to grant the petitions of two or three gathered together in Thy Name: do Thou even now fulfill the wishes of Thy servants, as much as it is good, supplying us in this present time with the knowledge of Thy truth, and in that which is to come, granting us everlasting life." Again and again and again, the petition for "grace" occurs. The Little Entrance and Proper Prayers Here the priest takes the Gospel Book in his hands, and proceeds in procession around the altar, where he finally calls the public's attention to it, having kissed it and held it up for the veneration of the people, by saying, "Wisdom! Arise!" This is the Word of God, spoken by the True Word of God, the Word of which St. John speaks in the first chapter of his Gospel, and as such it is only fitting that we should venerate it. In this book is contained the record of the Plan of God, the roads by which we may attain our eternal destiny, and the strength and wisdom of God to keep us on the right path. That path is Christ, who called Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This entrance celebrates in ritual, the entrance of Christ into His public ministry. As Christ began to teach His Chosen People at His Baptism in the River Jordan, which was His entrance into public ministry, so also, here at the Divine Liturgy, He begins to teach *us*, His New Chosen People, with His Own Words, contained in the Book of Life. Until now we have been growing in grace; Now, we will grow in wisdom and knowledge before God and men. And God Himself will teach us. The Wisdom and Knowledge in which we will grow is the Wisdom of God Himself. The Troparia and the Kontakia (hymns and songs proper [changing, depending on the dates and circumstances of the occasion] to the day or season) follow, short preparations for the hearing of the Gord of God - bringing to mind the strong exhortation of St. Paul that "faith comes by *hearing*," which is why the Church places such a heavy emphasis on the public reading aloud of the Scriptures, in addition to its exhortations to become privately familiar with the contents of the Bible. Then, the high point of the first part of the Liturgy, the Liturgy of the Word, the readings of the Epistle, the writings of the Apostles, and finally, the very words of Christ Himself, remembered and written down for our benefit by a loving follower. Today it is customary to follow the Gospel with some sort of explanatory sermon or homily, to apply the Gospel as read to modern-day life and circumstance, and this, too, is instruction from divine benevolence, for the priest has frequently been called "another Christ," and it is beyond any doubt in Catholic doctrine that, when offering the Holy Sacrifice, the priest does, indeed, take the visible place of Christ at the service. The Hymn of the Trisagion ("Thrice-holy," in Greek) precedes these events, however, and is, in addition to being a short expression of adoration, a petition for the grace to understand what is about to be taught us in the lessons which are shortly to come. "...Who didst make man to Thine own image and likeness, and who didst adorn him with all the favors of Thy grace; Who givest to him who asks for it BOTH WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING, and dost not despise the sinner, but hast ordained repentance unto salvation; O Thou Who hast granted to us, Thy humble and unworthy servants; to stand at this time before the glory of Thy holy table and to offer Thee due worship and honor: Do Thou, O Lord, receive from the mouths of us sinners, the Hymn of the Trisagion; and look down upon us in Thy goodness. And the Prayer Before the Gospel itself: "O Lord and Lover of mankind, make shine in our hearts the pure light of Thy divine knowledge, and open the eyes of our minds to the understanding of Thy Gospel's teaching. Instill in us the fear of Thy blessed commandments, that, trampling upon all carnal desires, we may enter upon a life of the spirit, choosing and doing all that is Thy good pleasure, for Thou art the light of our souls and of our bodies, O Christ God, and we render glory to Thee, together with Thine eternal Father, and Thy all-holy, all-good and life-giving Spirit, now and always and forevermore. Amen." Then follow the final prayers of the first part of the liturgy, the Liturgy of the Word, and the dismissal of the catechumens.(Those preparing for baptism.) In the early days of the Church, only the baptized, the "initiate" were permitted to witness the Liturgy of the Sacrifice and to partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. And it is doubtless this practice which gave rise among the pagan Romans to the charges that the Christians were practicing cannibalism and devouring the flesh of infants - a charge frequently made against them. The second portion of the Liturgy is sometimes called the Liturgy of the Faithful, as well as the Liturgy of the Sacrifice, because only the faithful, those already joined in membership, were permitted to be present at the "mysteries," as they are sometimes called, even today. And once again, this portion of the Liturgy is prepared for and begun with a Litany which once more implores the Lord to shower His grace down upon uc. These petitions will come with a predictable and ever- increasing regularity throughout the rest of the Liturgy. As it was necessary to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Word of God in the Scripture readings, so now it is even more vitally important to prepare ourselves for the Coming of the Incarnate Word of God, the ONLY True Word of God, in the Sacrifice of Calvary and in Holy Communion. I'll close this lecture with the same prayer that the Church uses in the Liturgy for the benefit of her catechumens. And I pray that the same might be made to apply to all of you here tonight: "O Lord, our God, Who dwellest on high, and yet beholdest the humble; Who didst send forth as the salvation of mankind Thine Only- Begotten Son, Our Lord and God, Jesus Christ: look down upon Thy servants, the catechumens who have bowed their heads unto Thee, and make them in due time worthy of the waters of regeneration, of the remission of sins, and of dhe robe of immortality. Unite them to Thy Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, and number them among Thy chosen flock. That they, too, with us, may glorify Thy most worthy and magnificent name, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, always, now and forevermore. Amen." Next: The Liturgy of the Faithful as the Re-Presentation of the Life of Christ in symbol. * * * * * [1] An "Iconostasis" is an "Icon-Stand" - a wooden partition which separates the nave fbom the sanctuary and simultaneously serves as a holder for a number if "icons," religious catechetical art which served in the early days of an illiterate public to portray visually the doctrines of the Church. There are still remnants of this custom in the West as well, in the presence of the "Rood Screen" (Rood=Cross) in several European Churches and in Westerminster Abbey.