Catholic Massterclass: All About Holy Mass

Sometimes you may see the tabernacle with a veil over it or in front of it. There may be something similar in front of the altar. What is that all about?

An integral part of our worship is lifting our voices in song and chant. This has been part of liturgical worship since the time of David the king and has been a vital part of Christian worship from the beginning.

In the Temple worship, the priest would receive the offering from the people and then turn to offer the sacrifice to God on their behalf. He would face the same direction, the same Person in worship, as the people. The priest in Mass offers the sacrifice of the Eucharist on behalf of the people, which may be done facing the same direction as the people, ad orientem.

This week we look more closely at incense. It is found in Old Testament worship and in the Heavenly liturgy. It is also found in Catholic Mass.

It points us to sacrifice.

It symbolizes prayers rising to God.

It brings greater dignity to worship.

It engages the senses.

It veils the holiness of God.

There were sacred vessels used in the Temple to carry out the particular sacrifices and offerings. We also use sacred vessels for Mass, which are truly holy and help us to recall the dignity of the Eucharist and of Mass.

We take a look at some of the core furnishings of the Temple and how they compare with some of the core furnishings of a Catholic Church.

This episode looks at the Jerusalem Temple and how itcompares to any Catholic church. There are some remarkable similarities.

In Exodus 28, God gives Moses some instructions about the vestments that the priests were to wear during their worship. The vestments of the High Priest were meant to be "for glory and for beauty" and they were. Catholic priests, sharing in the High Priesthood of Jesus, are also meant to wear vestments for beauty and for glory. They are meant to point to the beauty and glory of God.

How did the priests know what to say and do? Where did they get their instructions for worship? Surely they wanted to offer something that would be both acceptable and pleasing to God. Indeed they did! Jewish documents reveal that there were necessary parts of the worship, including what to say, what to do, what to wear, etc. Our Catholic documents reveal the same thing about our own worship offered to God.

This week we begin the second phase of our Massterclass, which focuses on connections between Old Covenant worship and New Covenant worship. Our first connection is between the Todah sacrifice in the Temple and the Eucharistic sacrifice of the Mass.

Why do Catholics worship according to this particular structure? This episode looks at the structure of the earliest generations of Christians. We'll notice something very striking: their worship followed a remarkably similar structure to what we have today.

Mass is substantially the same each and every time. Why is that so important? Why can't we be creative about how we worship?

This episode looks at the Catholic understanding of the Mass as a sacrifice instituted by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper in union with the Crucifixion.

This episode looks at the obligation to worship God on Sundays.

The most foundational understanding of Catholic Mass is as an act of worship. This episode begins to explore a deeper understanding of worship from a Catholic-Christian perspective.