The First Part of the Mass: “Here We Are, Oh Lord... Have Mercy!”

 (Fr. Andrew’s Homily for Sunday, August 18th 2024)

In the first reading, Wisdom, that is, the Son of God, calls us in this way: “Let whoever is simple turn in here... Come, eat of my food...! Forsake foolishness that you may live” (Proverbs 9:4-6). St. Paul explains wisdom’s call: “Therefore, do not continue in ignorance, but try to understand what is the will of the Lord. And do not get drunk on wine, in which lies debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:17-18). We are called to abandon foolishness, so that we may enjoy a spiritual food, so that we may be filled, not with worldly bread, but with the Spirit, coming to us through the Eucharistic Sacrament. “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life” (John 6:54).

Every Sunday we are reminded of Wisdom’s call and invited to respond appropriately. Wisdom’s call is not only a call to get together and eat, but also a call to abandon foolishness, a call to turn away from sin and towards the Lord. Only those who forsake foolishness and believe in Wisdom can enjoy God’s holy Meal.

This is why we begin the Holy Mass with an expression of our conversion from foolishness: we ask for forgiveness and mercy. We continue the Mass trying to “understand what is the will of the Lord” (Ephesians 5:17) through the readings and making an act of faith in what Jesus says. And we end up with Holy Communion, being filled with the Spirit and grace from Jesus.

I would like to reflect today about the first part of the mass. Let me say, first, something general about it and then go into the details.

1.  When you meet someone important, you show respect. Respect is a visible acknowledgement of who that person is for you and also of who are you before that person. If the other person realizes that you are not aware of his or her importance or, worse, that you are aware but you choose not to care about it, the other person is upset. He may not say, but he is upset. Other times, the important person becomes upset because we do not seem to realize how much we owe him or her. Again, we may do that without realizing, and the other person may not say anything, but my point is, meeting someone important requires a certain circumspection which is not so easy at times.

The first part of the Mass is designed to make us aware of who we are and who God is, as we enter into his presence.[1]

2.  Now, who are we? This is the first thing: even if each one of us has a personal relationship with God, we are a Church. Even when we pray by ourselves, we pray for each other, and if we have not forgiven someone, our prayer does not make it to God. We are saved as a community or we are not saved. This does not mean that you will not be saved if someone is condemned for his own sins: it means that, if we want to be saved, we must love one another as Jesus has loved us. God wanted to save us as a family, and this is why He established the Church.

- a) So, and to my point, the entrance song is meant to show that we are a family, a community who rejoices being together. We come to meet the Lord as a community of faith and of love, where we sing with one voice. This is why it is important that the entrance song can be sung by everyone and that we try to join, if possible. The entrance hymn may also help to set the tone for the particular celebration of the day.

- b) Then the priest says, “The Lord be with you,” which means, “May the Lord help you all to pray” and you respond, “And to you too.” We begin asking God for one another, so that we may celebrate this Mass in the best possible way, so that we may pray in a way that is pleasing to the Lord.

- c) Then comes the penitential rite, which has traditionally two parts but nowadays can be reduced to one only, with the same meaning. The first part is the Confiteor, in which we try to show God that we are aware of who we are and how much we owe Him: “I confess” we say all together. We acknowledge that we are sinners, that we have sinned, and ask God simply for forgiveness.

- d) After the Confiteor, we say three times: “Lord, have mercy.” We are not only sinners in need of forgiveness, we are also fragile and disadvantaged people in need of many other things. In the midst of this valley of tears, we cry out, “Lord, have mercy.” It’s acknowledging before the Lord that we are not here because we feel great about ourselves and in need of nothing, but because we have realized that without Him life is not good and we need Him. And, by doing it together, we express that we care not only about our own needs but also about the needs of everyone else in the church and beyond.

-- The first part of the Mass is supposed to set the tone of our encounter as a community with the Lord. It is about realizing that we are together, and about respect towards the One we are encountering as a community. If we do not start the Mass trying to realize who God is and who we are before Him, we risk celebrating the Mass as a baby birthday party, where people get together to eat but nobody pays much attention to the birthday guy. It is a good thing to get together, but we can get together at other venues as well. The best thing, and the thing we need the most, is encountering the Lord, and this is what the Mass is all about. Encountering the Lord, listening to Him, being fed by Him. May our celebrations become true encounters with the Lord, encounters in which we do not isolate ourselves but embrace in love our brothers and sisters.

 


[1] Cf. Aquinas, Sum of Theology, III, q. 83, a. 4; General Instruction of the Roman Missal, 46-52.

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