Transcript

Man is an embodied soul.

There are both visible and invisible elements to our lives.

They're not simply on this side and on the other, but interconnected such that we ascend from bodily to spiritual things.

The sacraments are perfectly attuned to our embodied nature.

What they do is they use things and actions and words in order to give the very grace of God.

So the liturgy leads man by the hand to the very heights of his happiness, ultimately to heaven.

We see this in a particular way at the mass.

We begin with the proclamation of the Word.

There, the Lord Himself enlightens our mind by revelation of His mysteries.

He excites devotion within us and desire for the very things of God described in the sacred text.

From there, we make a kind of ritual entry into the saving action by postures, and words, and gestures.

Throughout the course of the Eucharistic liturgy, we sit and stand, we sit and kneel and stand, and all over again and again.

In Holy Communion, at the end of mass, we receive the very flesh of God, His body, blood, soul, and divinity, all present in us as we possess Him and He possesses us.

So before such a great mystery, you might very naturally ask, How do I get more out of mass?

You might think perhaps there's a shortcut.

Perhaps the mystics, the saints, holy people have found some way to get more out of what can perhaps be a little bit boring.

I'm here to tell you that there's no shortcut.

The only trick is to remain faithful.

What's beautiful is that the sacraments themselves, provided that you show up, and consent, and cooperate, will actually make you holy.

They do the work of salvation, so you need only offer your heart.

The Second Vatican Council encouraged Catholics to a full, conscious, and actual participation in the liturgy.

What we mean here isn't a kind of frantic involvement such that we need be running around at every moment of the mass, nor do we need to be heavily involved in the planning and execution of the liturgy.

You don't have to be a lector.

You don't have to be an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion.

You don't have to be an usher or a greeter.

All of those are good things.

But we pause to recall that what is first most important is to pay attention.

To pay attention to the sacrifice of the mass offered on the altar, and to give ourselves more wholly to that.

We can do this first by simply paying attention to the words.

From the words, we proceed to the sense of the words, and finally, to the goal of the things themselves described.

Let's pause then to consider a few practicalities.

So first, you might consider, Where do I attend mass?

It's a great spiritual good, of course, to build up our parish community and to attend faithfully at the place where we live.

But you may have the experience, perhaps you work farther from home, or you have the opportunity to attend at other parishes.

In so doing, it's good to kind of take account of what is available in this place versus that.

So first, is the sacrament dealt with reverently?

Did the priest give care to the precious body and blood of our Lord?

Is this a place where people pray, where they observe silence?

You might consider next, Is this a place where preaching is done well?

Preaching can, of course, really benefit our appreciation of the sacraments and of the mysteries on offer therein.

They help us to make entry.

Also, the beauty of the place is significant.

It's sometimes just easier to pray in a church that looks like a church.

Also, consider again the music.

Music can be very helpful for attuning our hearts to the praise and glory of God.

Also, community is very significant.

Is this a place where I can make holy friends who will encourage me to love and serve the Lord and to grow in my faith?

It can also be helpful in attending mass to use some kind of worship aid.

So, many parishes have something in the actual pew themself that will help to lead you through Sunday Mass.

But perhaps as you attend Mass more regularly, you might wanna buy a hand missal.

A hand missal is just a book that contains the prayers and the readings such that you can follow along with Father and with the lectors as the various texts are proclaimed.

Sometimes these are arranged helpfully in monthly publications.

So you have the prayers and the readings, and sometimes they add different lives of saints or pious reflections that help us to kind of enter in to the particular text of the day.

It's also helpful to arrive for Mass early.

It almost goes without saying that life in the modern world can be busy, it can be hectic, it can be a bit stressful.

So by arriving early, we're able to set aside those things to prepare our hearts, to make an intention for Mass, and maybe even to read the readings, such that when it comes time to enter in, we are more so prepared, more so attentive to what is on offer.

Obviously, there is no substitute for regular Mass attendance every Sunday, but it's also possible to go more frequently.

Sometimes people don't realize that Mass is said every day, which is a source of innumerable graces.

By receiving Holy Communion more and more frequently, that sacrament takes hold of your soul, increases in you the life of charity, gradually frees you from sin, and gives you a kind of taste, a kind of savor for the things of heaven.

So perhaps it's possible to work it into your work schedule, or perhaps you can make a sacrifice during a season, perhaps of, of Lent, to attend more regularly.

We also have the great grace of being able to worship the Eucharist outside of Mass.

So in a practice called Eucharistic adoration, the consecrated host is placed in a metal fixture called a monstrance, which displays that before the people so that they can pray, sometimes silently, sometimes with music.

It's very privileged because in that act, we're able to see the Lord face-to-face.

And Eucharistic adoration often proves to be a time of great healing and of rejuvenation.

We are refreshed by the vision of the Lord as you look at Him and He looks at you.

So how great a mystery then that our divine Friend gives us His very flesh and blood for the building up of our spiritual lives.

We would be fools not to seize the opportunity to visit Him, to consume Him, and to partake of Him often.