Introduction to the Liturgy

1. Introduction to the Liturgy CCC : 1066-1075

2. Liturgy Accomplishes God’s Plan (CCC 1066-1067) • The Work of the Trinity. • The Father gives humanity his Son and his Spirit to accomplish his "plan of mystery“: the salvation of all people. • Christ achieved this by his Death, Resurrection and Ascension. • The Liturgy Proclaims These Mysteries so that: • The faithful may live and bear witness to them • Redemption is accomplished in the liturgy, especially the Eucharist. • Sharing in God's Work (1069) • Christian Liturgy is God's People participating in God’s work. • Through it Christ continues his work in the Church.

3. Actions of Christ (1070) • Liturgy is about • a. worship • b. proclaiming the Gospel • c. acts of charity. • The Church fully shares in • A. Christ's worship, • B. Christ’s proclaiming the Gospel, • C. Christ’s acts of service. • In liturgy, full public worship is performed by the Mystical Body. They are actions of Christ and his Church. They surpass all other actions.

4. Actions of the Church • Church liturgy is a visible sign of God’s communion with man. • It needs to be preceded by evangelization, by faith, and by conversion. Then it produces new life in the Spirit. • Liturgy is a participation in Christ's prayer to the Father. • All Christian prayer finds its heart in the liturgy. • From Visible to Invisible (1075) • Liturgy leads people through visible signs (sacraments) to invisible realities (the mysteries).

5. Blessings of God and Man • God’s blessing is a life-giving action. • Man’s blessing is about adoration and surrender to the Creator. • Old Testament Blessings • From the beginning, God blessed all living beings, especially man and woman. • In spite of man's sins, God renewed His blessing with Noah, and then with Abraham. Through blessing God entered and redirected human history, moving humanity from death back toward life. • When Abraham, "the father of all believers" embraced this blessing, salvation history was began. • The Old Testament records many blessings: the escape from Egypt, the Promised Land, the Law and the Prophets... • The Psalms recall these blessings and are a response of praise.

6. Liturgy HAS Two Dimensions (1082-1083) • 1. The Church blesses the Father "for his inexpressible gift" by adoration. • 2. The Church presents BACK to the Father his own gifts until the end of time. • The Church asks the Father to send the Holy Spirit upon the offering, upon the Church and upon all the faithful.

7. Making the Paschal events Present (1084-1085) • Christ, now in heaven, sends his Spirit through the sacraments. • They provide the grace they signify. • In the liturgy, Christ makes actually present his own death and Resurrection. • Jesus predicted these events. They are unique because they do not pass away like other human events. • The Paschal events do not remain only in the past. • All that Christ did transcends all time and draws everything toward life.

8. Set in Motion (1086) • As Christ was sent by the Father. • He sent his disciples to proclaim that his death and Resurrection brought us into the Father's Kingdom. • The paschal sacrifice and sacraments set in motion what they preached. • The liturgy is centred around this. • When Jesus said "Receive the Holy Spirit" (Jn 20:21), he gave the apostles the power of the Spirit. • They gave this same Spirit to their successors.

9. Always Present (1088-1089) • Christ is present in all liturgical celebrations: • In the Eucharist at the Mass. • Baptising in baptisms. • Speaking in the Scriptures • Praying when the Church prays. • Christ always unites himself to the Church (his Bride) as she worships the Father.

10. Sharing in Heaven's Liturgy (1090) • The earthly liturgy is united with the heavenly Liturgy, where Christ is the Minister. • Through the liturgy all the faithful on earth sing with those present in heaven: angels and saints.

11. Keeping Old Testament Images (1093-1095) • The liturgy keeps many elements of the Old Covenant: readings from the Old Testament, praying of Psalms, recalling of the saving events, especially the Exodus and the Passover. • The Church reveals the mystery of Christ hidden in Old Testament images. • E.g. The flood, Noah's ark, the crossing of the Red Sea symbolizing Baptism. The water from the Rock Moses struck prefigures the spiritual gifts of Christ; the manna prefigures the Eucharist, "the true bread from heaven" (Jn 6:32).

12. Jewish Source. Christian Faith. (1096) • The Liturgy of the Word originates in Jewish prayer. • The Eucharistic Prayers draw inspiration from the Jewish tradition. • Both Christians and Jews celebrate the Passover. • The Jews see it as history. • Christians see the Passover as fulfilled by Jesus' death and Resurrection

13. The Spirit and God's Word (1099-1102) • Scripture is very important in the liturgy. • It provides the readings, inspires the hymns and prayers, and gives meaning to the actions. • The Spirit gives a spiritual understanding of God's Word.

14. Making the Mystery Present (1104-1105) • Christian liturgy makes present the events that save. • SO Christ's Paschal mystery is celebrated, not repeated. • The Holy Spirit makes the mystery present. • At the invocation (epiclesis) the priest asks the Father to send the Spirit upon the bread and wine so that they become the body and blood of Christ.

15. Fruits of the Liturgy (1108-1109) • In every liturgical action, the Holy Spirit (the sap of the Father's vine) brings about fruit. • He makes the Church itself the great sacrament of divine communion. • This "fellowship of the Holy Spirit" transforms the faithful and allows them to take part in the Church's mission.