Between the Eucharistic Prayers and the Communion, the ‘Our Father’ is said and the congregation shake hands with the people around them. Saying the ‘Our Father’ is to ask for the food of ‘eternal life’ and for forgiveness. Shaking hands is a way of showing each other a sign of peace and unity, as everyone is going to be sharing the same bread and wine. The main point of the whole mass is the Communion; where the people of the parish receive the bread and wine. The Priest will say, “The body of Christ” or “The blood of Christ” to each person receiving the bread or wine, and then each person should simply reply “Amen”. The final part of the mass is the blessing, or dismissal. This is just a few words said by the Priest to round up the Mass; usually based on the theme and then telling everyone too, “Go to love and serve the Lord”.
There are many important holy people involved in each Mass. The most important person in a Mass is the Priest. His role is to act as a mediator between the parish and God. His main job is too lead Mass but he has many other things to do including; running funerals, baptisms, first communions, confirmations and weddings, providing individual help, guidance or counselling, visiting places like hospitals, homes or prisons and listening to people confessions. To be a Priest you must have certain skills or qualities to be able to do the job properly including having a strong sense of self-belief, having excellent listening and communication skills and being very caring.
In Mass there is a possibility that there will be a deacon. A deacon is someone who assists the Priest. He is ordained, not to the priesthood but to service. Sometimes, the Deacon is just on his way to becoming a Priest but sometimes, men prefer to stay as a Deacon. Other people included in the Mass are; the Altar servers who attend to supporting tasks at the altar, the Eucharistic Ministers who help to give out the Eucharist, the Lay Readers who are authorised to read certain readings in the mass and the Offertory Procession who bring the bread, wine and gifts to the Priest.
The church building itself has many things situated inside that enhance the worship of God. The water stoop in the entrance of the church is full of holy water, and people usually bless themselves when they enter and leave the church. This is to symbolise how we enter the church in Gods name, and how we are purified and cleansed on entrance. Another example is the Altar, this is because is it situated in the middle and centre of the church and this shows that it is the centre of our attention as this is where the bread and wine get transformed and also where the Priest stands a lot.
There are many things in the mass that symbolise something else, for example; the bread and the wine represent the body and blood of Jesus and the real presence of him being there. This is important because teachings say that God is everywhere and with you always, so it is nice to know that God is with us when we are celebrating and worshiping him. Another symbol in the mass is the bell that is rung during the consecration; this symbolises the transformation taking place and is also rung three times to symbolise the trinity.
Explain the importance for a Catholic to regularly attend Mass
A practicing Catholic should attend Mass frequently and most will go every Sunday; if not more. Catholics go to Mass for many reasons. Most Catholics say that going to mass gives them a sense of family and unity. Being part of a parish is an important part of many Catholics lives because of the sense of brotherhood and the friendships that are built there. The bible tells us the in book of Genesis that we should go to Mass. When Moses led the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt, during the Exodus he was given the Commandments by God. The fourth Commandment is ‘keep holy the Sabbath’ and for Catholics they do this by attending Mass. Another reason that Catholics go to Mass is to receive the Eucharist. Many Catholics believe that by receiving the Eucharist they are gaining strength and healing that they may need if they are having personal difficulties of any sort. Receiving the Eucharist is also a form of thanksgiving; thank God for everything he has done for us.
Each part of the Mass offers many benefits for the congregation. The first part of the mass; the Penitential Rite, is very important as it offers us Gods forgiveness for what we have done wrong. Sometimes, the Priest sprinkles people with holy water to symbolise their sins being washed away. Hearing the Homily helps people know how to live their lives and how they should act towards other people. This is because it is like hearing Gods words, and Catholics should follow his teachings and guidance. The most important part of the Mass for many people is the offertory and communion. The main benefit of the offertory is that is recognises our need to thank God for what he has done for us by giving him gifts like money and recognising how precious his body and blood are by blessing them and receiving them. The main benefit of the communion is that by reviving the Eucharist, Catholics believe that you are receiving the body of Jesus. In the book of the Corinthians it say; ‘the Lord Jesus took some bread, and thanked God for it, and he said,” This is my body which is for you; do this in a memorial for me”’. By receiving Jesus’ body Catholics believe that they are receiving real spiritual food for their soul and are re-living the last supper where the bread and wine were first received by the disciples.
It is written in many places that Catholics have to go to Mass. An important example is when St Paul wrote a letter to the Corinthians saying that every time they celebrate the breaking of bread they are doing it in memory of Jesus, and that every time we eat this bread we proclaim the Lord death. This is explaining how important and sacred the ‘body of Christ’ is and how Catholics should take going to church to receive this very seriously. Another example of how important receiving the Eucharist in the Mass is in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It says; ‘The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life’. This is explaining how the taking the Eucharist should be a very important part of a Catholics life.
Catholics make a commitment to attend Mass regularly from an early age. The first times they make this promise is when they receive the sacrament of initiation which is; getting baptised, making your first Holy Communion and getting confirmed. All these promises are made when Catholics are young, but promises are also made when they reach adulthood and are old enough to make decisions for themselves. For example; simply being a member of the Church is making a commitment to follow the Churches teachings and laws. Other examples are things like, listening to bible readings and receiving Holy Communion regularly.
“Praying to God in private is more important than attending services in Church”
Many people think that praying in private is more important that attending services to pray in church; but a lot of people would disagree. There are many valid reasons for agreeing with this statement and a lot of evidence in the bible that could be interpreted to support this view too. For example one of the Commandments says, “Keep the Sabbath holy” but doesn’t actually advice people to go to church. By stating this I am suggesting how by praying and worshiping at home on a Sunday it is still keeping the Sabbath holy. Another argument to support this view is you may want to pray privately about personal issues, and going to church might be a bit too public; especially if you are upset and worried about what you want to pray about. Praying at home is definitely more personal and people may find it easier to pray about a sensitive issue, than in front of many other people at church.
Children especially, find it hard to concentrate in mass and often get distracted by what’s going on around them. If a small prayer service was run at home then this wouldn’t happen as much; as the service wouldn’t go on for as long and there wouldn’t be as many things around them to distract them from what is important. Another example applying especially for children is that many get forced to go to church when they don’t really want to, and would much rather just pray in their bedrooms or with their family. Being forced to attend mass doesn’t really count as you don’t want to be there and is against your free will. Many children also find the services too complicated to understand or too boring. If their parents ran a small service on Sundays instead of attending church then they could do it in a more fun and exiting way to stimulate the child and keep them interested; as well as teaching them about God and his teachings.
On the other hand, there are many valid reasons for disagreeing with the statement too. There is also a lot of evidence in the bible to suggest that Catholics should attend Mass regularly. For example Jesus said “where two of three are gathered in my name so will I be there too”. This quote suggests that by gathering together at Mass we are not only following his teachings but inviting him to join us in prayer as well. A good example of how going to mass is essential is although many of the things you can do in Mass are available for you to do at home, you cannot receive communion or a blessing if you are praying at home.
Catholics may find it important to be close to God and going to church brings you closer to him, as it is said to be ‘consecrated ground’. Other reasons that going to Mass is important is that at church you can speak to the Priest about personal issues or difficulties you may need help or guidance with, you can listen to Gods word and the homily from the Priest and it is also seen as an expected thing for a Catholic to do.
In conclusion, I disagree with the statement more than I agree with it. This is because the statement is suggesting that praying in private is more important than at church, and I think that it is just as important and both should be expected of a Catholic. I think that Catholics should keep the Sabbath holy by doing both things, going to Mass and praying at home. This way, you can pray for personal issues at home and still attend Mass regularly.
