Mass Thoughts

He died as our redeemer for the sins we committed against His Father's will.

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples said, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26:26:28

He is with us today.

"I am the bread of life."
"Whoever eats this bread will have everlasting life."

    Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me ill never thirst." John 6:35

    "I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bead that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." John 6:51

    "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will life forever." John 6:53-58

Who can describe the meaning of the Mass better than the saints and holy men and women who seek to understand and act upon God's great love in their lives. Christ was sent to redeem us by His death on the cross, and through his example of love bring us closer to Him and His Father. Our life's mission is to announce God through our words, works and example. Strength is found through the Holy Spirit, the reception of the sacraments and above all, the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Redeemer.

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

He is called 'the Lamb' because of his gentleness when suffering; and 'Lamb of God', because in his passion he was sacrificed to God. I was as a meek lamb, that is carried to be a victim. He is that lamb who was slain for all the elect from the beginning of the world.

In order to hear Mass with devotion, it is necessary to know that the sacrifice of the altar is the same as that which was once offered on Calvary, with this difference that on Calvary the blood of Jesus Christ was really shed, but on the altar it is shed only in a mystical manner.

We honor God when we join with the priest to offer the person of Jesus Christ, both God and man, to him, the Eternal Father.

In the Mass we give God greater honor than he would receive from the offerings of the lives of all men and all angels.

Through the offering of Jesus Christ in the Mass, we offer to God a complete satisfaction for all the sins of men, and especially for the sins of hose who are present at Mass; to whom is applied the same divine blood, by which the human race was redeemed on Calvary.

If you knew that while you pray to the Lord at Mass, the divine Mother, along with the whole of paradise, united with you, with what confidence would you pray?

There is a great difference between sacrificing and offering. To the priest alone belongs the right to sacrifice, whereas all those who are present may offer the sacrifice.

If we but paused for a moment to consider attentively what takes place in this Sacrament, I am sure that the thought of Christ's love for us would transform the coldness of our hearts into a fire of love and gratitude.

A single Mass offered for oneself during life may be worth more than a thousand celebrated for the same intention after death.

When I am before the Blessed Sacrament I feel such a lively faith that I can't describe it. Christ in the Eucharist is almost tangible to me. I kiss his wounds continually and embrace Him. When it's time for me to leave, I have to tear myself away from his sacred presence.

There is nothing so profitable to mankind, so efficacious for the relief of the suffering souls, nothing so helpful for the attaining of spiritual riches, as the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

How I wept when I heard your hymns and canticles, being deeply moved by the sweet singing of your church. Those voices flowed into my ears, truth filtered into my heart, and from my heart surged waves of devotion.

If every day you receive Holy Communion, Jesus will be always with you, and you will always advance in divine love.

When the priest consecrates the Body and Blood of Christ, He offers up to God the Victim of the Passion, the Sacrifice of our Ransom. This is possible because by pronouncing the words of consecration, the priest is doing the same thing which we done by Christ before him. He is carrying out the command given to the Apostles and their successors by Christ Himself at the Last Supper: Do this for a commemoration of Me.

Christ said, "Do the same same that I have done. I have offered My death; you shall offer My death. But did Christ at the Last Supper offer up to God His Passion and Death for the redemption of mankind? He said "This is My Body, which is delivered up for; this is My Blood which is shed for you unto the remission of sins." The sacrifice which Christ offered at the Last supper and the sacrifice of the Cross are not two sacrifices, but one and the same sacrifice.

By the words: "Do this for a commemoration of Me," He gave His Apostles and their successors not only the power, but the command also, to do what He Himself had just done. He made them priests and thereby perpetuated the Sacrifice of our Redemption in His Church.

Recognize in this bread which hung on the cross, and in this chalice what flowed from His side... whatever was in many and varied ways announced beforehand in the sacrifices of the Old Testament pertains to this one sacrifice which is revealed in the New Testament.

As they shed their blood for their brothers, the martyrs provided the same kind of meal as they had received at the Lord's table. Let us then love one another as Christ also loved us and gave Himself up for us.

Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you, and for many for the forgiveness of sins, do this in memory of me.

To partake of the Holy Body and Blood of Christ is good and beneficial; for He says quite plainly, "He that eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life," who can doubt that to share continually in life is the same thing as having life abundantly.

The Holy Mass would be of greater profit if people had it offered in their lifetime, rather than having it celebrated for the relief of their souls after death.

We know that the souls of those who have died are alive in the resurrected body of the Lord. The Lord's body shelters them and carries them toward the common resurrection. In this body which we are permitted to receive, we remain close to one another, and we touch each other.

The Mass is the true and real sacrifice of the New covenant in which Jesus Christ, through the priest, offers His body and blood under the appearances of bread and wine in a mysterious and unbloody manner to God, the Father.

Holy Mass consists essentially in the transubstantiation and in the repetition of all that Christ Himself said and did when He celebrated the First Holy Mass and consecrated His Apostles to be priests. At that He instructed them to "do this in commemoration of me."

It is not until the consecration that the priest becomes the representative of Christ. He repeats Christ's words spoken at the Last Supper, not, however, in his own name, but in the person of Christ. He does not say: "This is Christ's body or Christ's blood, but: ":This is my body, this is my blood." It is Christ Himself Who appears upon the altar, offering Himself to the heavenly Father, the priest being none other than an agent of the Eternal High Priest.

According to the testimony of St. Paul, the Old Covenant is incomplete, because of the impotence of the Levitical priesthood; therefore it was ordained by God that another priest should arise, according to the order of Melchisedech, our Lord Jesus Christ, Who alone could be able to perfect and sanctity all those who were to become holy.

Our Lord and God offered Himself once upon the Altar of the Cross as sacrifice to God, the Father, thus becoming the Cause of eternal salvation for every individual. But since His Priesthood was not to cease with His death, it was His desire to leave His beloved Bride, the Church, a visible sacrifice at the Last supper upon the eve of His betrayal. This sacrifice was to correspond with human nature, representing that bloody sacrifice wrought once upon the Cross, which was to preserve His memory till the end of time, bringing healing and the forgiveness of our daily sins.

He said of Himself that He was to be a priest forever, according to the order of Melchisedech. He offered up His body and blood to God under the appearances of bread and wine, giving them to the Apostles whom He ordained to be the priests of the New Covenant, at the same time commanding them and their priestly descendants to offer up this sacrifice with the words: "Do this in commemoration of me."

This has always been so understood and taught by the Catholic Church. He instituted the sacrifice of the New Easter Lamb, Himself, on the plan of the old sacrifice, which was a remembrance of the exodus of the Israelites from the Land of Egypt. He was to be sacrificed by the Church through the priests under the visible appearance, in remembrance of His departure from this world, when He redeemed us through the shedding of His blood, snatching us from the world of darkness into His everlasting Kingdom.

Every Holy Mass is a repetition, through the priest, of that which took place at the Last Supper. Through the same words of command spoken by Christ at that time, the bread continues to be transformed into His body and the wine into His Precious Blood. Through His almighty hand, this bread is continually broken for us. In those days He was the principal figure of that sacrifice which we now attend daily; it was then that He spoke the authoritative words which are reiterated at every sacrifice of the Holy Mass, words which, however, only possess miraculous power when uttered by a consecrated priest at the altar, performing the same ceremony performed by Christ at the Last Supper. Christ is and remains our High Priest for ever according to the order of Melchisedech. It is He Who sups with us every day; day after day He breaks for the bread of life.

Every Holy Mass is the renewal of the Sacrifice of the Cross. "Upon the Cross Christ's blood was drained from His body, and this was the cause of His death. In Holy Mass, however, His blood is not separated from His body, for Christ does no more; but the separated species symbolize the sacrifice of the Paschal Lamb. The priest pronounces the words over the bread in the name of Christ: 'This is my body,' and over the wine: 'This is my blood.' On the strength of these words, the consecrated bread becomes His body and the consecrated wine His blood, each in its turn. Thus the separation of Christ's body and blood is represented through the separated species, renewing the commemoration of the real blood-shedding upon the Cross." But, Holy Mass is not a mere symbolical representation of Christ's death on the Cross, as a painting or a crucifix visualizes the life and the death of the Savior; on the contrary, it is an actual renewal of this sacrifice because Christ is actually present under both appearances. This is the deepest mystery of our faith. Faith penetrates deeper than sight, revealing to us that Christ renews the Sacrifice upon the Cross in an unbloody manner in every celebration of the Holy Mass.

The Sacrifice of the Cross and that of Holy Mass are one and the same Sacrifice. In both, Christ is the Victim and the Offerer. The only difference is that the Sacrifice upon the Cross was a bloody one; upon the altar His is sacrificed in an unbloody manner because it is no longer possible for Him to suffer and undergo death.

Holy Mass and the Sacrifice of the Cross, are intimately associated. Upon the Cross, God was offered in atonement for the sins of the entire world, the price which was paid for the attainment of all grace. Holy Mass is a renewal and perpetuation of the Sacrifice on the Cross, Christ offering Himself to the heavenly Father for our sakes and bestowing upon us all the grace of the redemption which He merited by His bloody death.

The Church is the living body of the Lord inasmuch as He is daily present in her through the Eucharistic Sacrifice, and it is through the Church that He is able to bring supernatural life to His mystical members.

The celebration of holy Mass is the chief and central act of Catholic life and worship; it is the triumph of the victorious Redeemer, the inexhaustible river of grace flowing through the City of God.

In the holy Sacrifice of the Mass we offer God the highest form of adoration, the most sublime worship that it is possible for man to render his Creator. And as this Sacrifice is of such infinite value, the celebration or hearing of Holy Mass is a work surpassing all other good works in excellence. It is the most perfect Sacrifice of praise, thanksgiving, atonement and supplication.

In Holy Mass, the Savior comes to help us in our weakness and inadequacy; He acts as our Mediator, offering the heavenly Father an infinitely pleasing Sacrifice of veneration and thanksgiving.

In Holy Mass, the Offerer and Victim are of infinite value, being none other than the Son of God Himself. Here the sacrificial intention is the most pure and sublime that can be imagined: the divine and human love of our Lord Jesus Christ. In every respect, therefore, Holy Mass is of infinite value.

The glory given to God in one single Mass is greater than that accruing to Him from all the good works of the saints, for the glory they give Him is finite, whereas the glory He receives in the Mass is infinite because here Christ Himself is both Offerer and Victim.

Our Savior offers Himself again to the heavenly Father as a sacrifice of atonement, bestowing upon individuals the grace of the redemption which He merited for all upon the Cross. Holy Mass as an offering of propitiation contains within itself infinite stores of grace. Our sins are not directly remitted either through this oblation or through Christ's Sacrifice on the Cross, but both prepare the way for the remission of sins by propitiating God and by giving us the grace of conversion. It blots out the temporal penalty due to the sins of the living and the dead through the infinite merits of the Sacrifice on the Cross.

Every one who follows Holy Mass with reverence is united with the priest, thereby receiving particular benefit from the fruits of the Sacrifice. Holy Mass is the common Sacrifice of Christ, the Church, and the faithful who are present.

It is through a devout hearing of Holy Mass that Christ's spirit and life are transmitted to us. Our religious life can only then be genuine when we really participate in the life of Christ.

Our participation in the Holy Sacrifice is perfected through our participation in the sacrificial meal of Holy Communion. Here we imbibe the water of life at the never-failing source, the waters of which circulate through the entire Mystical Body of Christ.

God, when He descends upon the altar, does no less than He did when He became man the first time in the womb of the Virgin Mary.

The Mass is a compendium of all God's love, of all His benefits to me, and each Mass bestows on the World a benefit not less than what was conferred on it by the Incarnation.

God appears to do no less a thing when He deigns daily descend from heaven upon our altars than He did when He came down from heaven and took upon Himself our human nature.

One day when I was assisting at the Holy Sacrifice, I saw an immense number of Holy Angles descend and gather around he altar, contemplating the priest. They sang heavenly canticles that ravished my heart Heaven itself seemed to be contemplating the great Sacrifice. And yet we poor, blind and miserable creatures assist at the Mass with so little love, relish and respect!

Through him and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.

Catechism of the Catholic Church
Part Two: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery
Section Two: The Seven Sacraments of the Church
Chapter One: Christian Initiation
Article 3: The Sacrament of the Eucharist

From the beginning, the Church has remembered the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them; above all, the Eucharistic Sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God. The Church also commends alms giving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead (Paragraph 1032)

The Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life. In the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch. Paragraph 1324

The Eucharist is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of that communion in the divine life and that unity of the People of God by which the Church is kept in being. Paragraph 1325

It is the culmination both of God's action sanctifying the world in Christ and of the worship men offer to Christ and through him to the Father in the Holy Spirit. Paragraph 1325

By the Eucharistic celebration we already unite ourselves with the heavenly liturgy and anticipate eternal life, when God will be all in all. Paragraph 1326

At the heart of the Eucharistic celebration are the bread and wine that, by the words of Christ and the invocation of the holy Spirit, become Christ's Body and Blood. Paragraph 1333

In order to leave the apostles a pledge of his love, in order never to depart from his own and to make them sharers in his Passover, he instituted the Eucharist as the memorial of his death and Resurrection, and commanded his apostles to celebrate it until his return . . . Paragraph 1337

The command of Jesus to repeat his actions and words "until he comes" does not only ask us to remember Jesus and what he did. It is directed at the liturgical celebration, by the apostles and their successors, of the memorial of Christ, of his life, of his death, of his Resurrection, and of his intercession in the presence of the Father. Paragraph 1341

. . . from that time on down to our own day the celebration of the Eucharist has been continued so that today we encounter it everywhere in the Church with the same fundamental structure. It remains the center of the Church's life. Paragraph 1343

The Eucharist is a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Father, a blessing by which the Church expresses Her gratitude to God for all His benefits, for all that He has accomplished through creation, redemption, and sanctification. Eucharist means, first of all, 'thanksgiving.'" (Paragraph 1360)

The Eucharist is the sacrifice of praise by which the Church sings the glory of God in the name of all creation. This sacrifice of praise is possible only through Christ: He unites the faithful to His person, to His praise, and to His intercession, so that the sacrifice of praise to the Father is offered through Christ and, with Him, to be accepted in Him. Paragraph 1361

The Eucharist is also a sacrifice manifested in the very words of institution: "This is my body which is given for you" and "This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood." Christ gives us the very body which he gave up for us on the cross, the very blood which he "poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Paragraph 1365

The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one single sacrifice: "The victim is one and the same: the same now offers through the ministry of priests, who then offered himself on the cross; only the manner of offering is different." And since in this divine sacrifice which is celebrated in the Mass, the same Christ who offered himself once in a blood y manner on the altar of the cross is contained and offered in an unbloody manner . . . this sacrifice is truly propitiatory." Paragraph 1367

In the Eucharist the sacrifice of Christ becomes also the sacrifice of the members of his Body. The lives of the faithful, their praise, sufferings, prayer, and work, are united with those of Christ and with his total offering, and so acquire a new value. Christ's sacrifice present on the altar makes it possible for all generations of Christians to be united with his offering. Paragraph 1368

To the offering of Christ are united not only the members still here on earth, but also those already in the glory of heaven. In communion with and commemorating the Blessed Virgin May and all the saints, the Church offers the Eucharistic sacrifice. In the Eucharist the church is as it were at the foot of the cross with Mary, united with the offering and intercession of Christ. Paragraph 1370

The Eucharistic sacrifice is also offered for the faithful departed who "have died in Christ but are not yet wholly purified. Paragraph 1371

As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity, which tends to be weakened in daily life, and this living charity wipes away venial sins. Paragraph 1394

My eyes, I have filled with Jesus upon Whom I have fixed them at the Elevation of the Host at Holy Mass and I do not wish to replace Him with any other image.

The Church wishes to point out that there is but one sacrifice: the immolation which is accomplished mystically on earth is one with the offering that Christ our high priest makes of himself in the bosom of the Father, to whom he offers for us the satisfactions of his Passion.

Just as if someone were to twist two pieces of wax together and melt them with a fire, so that the two are made one, so too through participation in the Body of Christ and in His precious Blood, He is united to us and we to Him. In no other way can our corruptible nature be made alive except by being united bodily to the Body of Him who is, by His very nature, Life: that is, the Only-Begotten.

Do not regard the bread and wine as simply that, for they are, according to the Master's declaration, the Body and Blood of Christ. Even though the senses suggest to you the other, let faith make you firm. Do not judge in this matter by taste, but be fully assured by faith, not doubting that you have been deemed worthy of the Body and Blood of Christ.

When we participate in the Eucharist, we are made spiritual by the divinizing action of the Holy Spirit, who not only makes us share in Christ's life, as in baptism, but makes us entirely Christ-like, incorporating us into the fullness of Christ Jesus.

Just as by melting two candles together you get one piece of wax, so, I think, one who receives the Flesh and Blood of Jesus is fused together with Him, and the soul finds that He is in Christ and Christ is in Him.

Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

Jesus Christ said over the consecrated elements, "This is My Body." You say, "No, It is not His body!" Whom am I to believe? I prefer to believe Jesus Christ.

Love always tends toward perfect union; but how can a soul be more perfectly united with Jesus than in the manner of which he speaks himself, saying: He that eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me and I in him.

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

The Bread that we need each day to grow in eternal life, makes of our will a docile instrument of the Divine Will; sets the Kingdom of God within us; gives us pure lips, and a pure heart with which to glorify his holy name,

And this food is called among us the Eucharist, of which no one is allowed to partake but the man who believes that the things which we teach are true, and who has been washed with the washing that is for the remission of sins, and unto regeneration, and who is so living as Christ has enjoined. For not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Savior, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh.

God is everywhere, in the very air I breathe, yes everywhere, but in His Sacrament of the Altar He is as present actually and really as my soul within my body; in His Sacrifice daily offered as really as once offered on the Cross.

O Lord, we cannot go to the pool of Siloe to which you sent the blind man. But we have the chalice of Your Precious Blood, filled with life and light. The purer we are, the more we receive.

I adore You, Lord and Creator, hidden in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I adore You for all the works of Your hands, that reveal to me so much wisdom, goodness and mercy, O Lord. You have spread so much beauty over the earth and it tells me about Your beauty, even though these beautiful things are but a faint reflection of You, incomprehensible Beauty. And although You have hidden Yourself and concealed your beauty, my eye, enlightened by faith, reaches You and my souls recognizes its Creator, its Highest Good, and my heart is completely immersed in prayer of adoration.

By one Mass which we hear in the state of grace, we give God more and pleasure and obtain for ourselves more benefits and favors than by the longest and most painful pilgrimages.

Holy Mass, is a brief epitome of our Lord's Life, a recapitulation in one short hour of what He did during the thirty-three years He spent on earth.

In what, does our Lord's Priesthood since His Crucifixion consist? In heaven, it consists in presenting Himself to His Father directly and immediately, to plead the merits of His Death and Passion in our behalf; but on earth it consists in representing that Death and Passion in a mystical action which we call the Eucharistic Sacrifice of the Mass.

The offering which takes place in the Mass is the very same that was made on Calvary, only it is made in a different manner. On the Cross, that offering was made in a direct and absolute manner, it was a bloody Sacrifice; in the Mass, it made in a mystical and commemorative way, without blood, without suffering, without death. That which gave the Blood of Christ its value, which made it a Sacrifice. was the interior dispositions of the Soul of Christ. It was by the obedience of Christ, an obedience practiced through His whole life, but of which His Death and Passion were the fullest expression, that Christ, as our elder brother, repaired our disobedience.

In the Mass, the Son of God in His Human Nature worships the Father for us. He prays for us; asks pardon for us; gives thanks for us; adores for us. As He is perfect man, He expresses every human feeling; as He is perfect God, His utterances have a complete perfection, an infinite acceptableness. thus, when we offer Mass, we worship the Father with Christ's worship.

Our Savior has instituted the most august sacrament of the Eucharist, which contains his flesh and blood in their reality, so that whoever eats of it shall live forever. therefore, whoever turns to it frequently and devoutly so effectively builds up his soul's health that it is almost impossible for him to be poisoned by evil affection of any kind.

Our Savior can never be seen more amiable and more tender, in all that he has done for us, than in the Holy Communion, in which he, so to say, annihilates himself and becomes food, that he may unite himself to the hearts and bodies of his faithful.

Your great intention in communicating should be to advance, to strengthen, and to console yourself in the love of God. You must receive through love that which love alone caused to be given to you.

When the bee has gathered the dew of heaven and the earth's sweetest nectar from the flowers, it turns it into honey, then hastens to its hive. In the same way, the priest, having taken from the altar the Son of God (who is as the dew from heaven, and true son of Mary, flower of our humanity), gives him to you as delicious food.

When you have received Him, stir up your heart to do Him homage; speak to Him about your spiritual life, gazing upon Him in your soul where He is present for your happiness; welcome Him as warmly as possible, and behave outwardly in such a way that your actions may give proof to all of His Presence.

Every day; He humbles Himself just as He did when He came from His heavenly throne into the Virgin's womb; every day He come to us and lets us see Him in lowliness, when He descends from the bosom of the Father into the hands of the priest at the altar.

Let the entire man be seized with fear; let the whole world tremble; let heaven exult when Christ, the Son of the Living God, is on the altar in the hands of the priest. O admirable height and stupendous condescension! O humble sublimity! O sublime humility! that the Lord of the universe, God and the Son of God, so humbles Himself that our our salvation He hides Himself under a morsel of bread.

Man should tremble, the world should quake, all Heaven should be deeply moved when the God of God appears on the altar in the hands of the priest.

In this world I cannot see the Most High Son of God with my own eyes, except for His Most Holy Body and Blood.

"In the Eucharist is all the power that created the universe and all the love that redeemed it!"

Through him and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.

For each Mass we hear with devotion, Our Lord sends a saint to comfort us at death.

The Mass is uniquely powerful to procure for us all the graces and helps we need at the hour of our death. It applies to our souls the merits of Christ's own Blessed Passion and Death. It rescues the departing soul from the powers of evil, cleanses it from sin, obtains for it mercy and gives it a portion in life eternal.

I am about to celebrate Mass and to call into being the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Without shame and without doubt, eat the flesh and drink the Blood of Christ, if you are desirous of true life.

Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

For He says Himself, My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. (Jn. 6:55-56) As to the truth of the flesh and blood there is no room left for doubt. For now both from the declaration of the Lord Himself and our own faith, it is truly flesh and truly blood. And these when eaten and drunk, bring it to pass that both we are in Christ and Christ in us. Is not this true?

The Eucharist makes the Church Christ’s Body and allows us to become one with the Father.

In the Old Covenant there were loaves of proposition [the bread of the presence], but they being of the Old Covenant, have come to an end. In the New Covenant there is a heavenly bread and a cup of salvation that sanctify the body and soul. For as the bread exists for the body, so the Word is in harmony with the soul. Therefore, do not consider them as bare bread and wine; for according to the declaration of the Master, they are Body and Blood. If even the senses suggest this to you [viz. that they are only bread and wine], let faith reassure you. Do not judge the reality by taste but, having full assurance from faith, realize that you have been judged worthy of the Body and Blood of Christ.

God conquered the ancient serpent by His Son's humility, not His power. By giving His body and blood to sanctify those who believe; and so the heavenly Father delivered Him up to the Passion for the redemption of the peoples and conquered the ancient serpent through Him in humility and justice. He did not want His son to conquer by His power and strength for God is just and does not will inequity.

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

Try to gather more frequently to celebrate God's Eucharist and to praise Him. For when you meet with frequency, Satan's powers are overthrown and his destructiveness is undone by the unanimity of your Faith.

I have no taste for corruptible food nor for the pleasures of this life. I desire the bread of God which is the flesh of Jesus Christ, who was the seed of David; and for drink I desire his blood, which is love incorruptible.

I hunger for the bread of God, the flesh of Jesus Christ ...: I long to drink of his blood, the gift of unending love.

One of the most admirable effects of Holy Communion is to preserve the soul from sin, and to help those who fall through weakness to rise again. It is much more profitable, then, to approach this divine Sacrament with love, respect, and confidence, than to remain away through an excess of fear and scrupulosity.

Innocent III, pope

Through the power of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass . . . we obtain a plenteous share of the fruits of grace.

As the bread, which comes from the earth, on receiving the invocation of God, is no longer common bread but Eucharist, and is then both earthly and heavenly; so our bodies, after partaking of the Eucharist, are no longer corruptible, having the hope of the eternal resurrection.

Unless sin prevents it, why should the Eucharist not be received daily, since we ask for this as our daily bread, as our Lord commanded us.

Turn to the book of Genesis, and you will find Melchisedech, king of Salem, who even then offered bread and wine as a type of Christ, inaugurating the Christian mystery of the body and blood of our Savior.

Without doubt, the Lord grants all favors which are asked of Him in Mass, provided they be fitting for us.

The whole sanctuary and the space before the altar is filled with the heavenly powers come to honor Him who is present upon the altar.

Think now of what kind of choir you are about to enter. Although clothed with a body, you have been judged worthy to join the Powers of heaven in singing the praises of Him who is Lord of all!

When Mass is being celebrated, the Sanctuary is filled with countless Angels, who adore the Divine Victim immolated on the altar.

If you were to put your hand or tongue into molten gold - if that were possible - you would make your hand or tongue golden. In much the same way, the Mystery lying before us here affects the soul.

Let us return from the Table like lions breathing out fire, terrifying to the Devil!

Many mothers there are who after the pains of childbirth give their children to strangers to nurse. But Christ could not endure that His children should be fed by others. He nourishes us Himself with his own blood and in all ways makes us one with Himself.

Christ was and is both Priest and Victim. He is the Priest according to the Spirit, and the victim according to the Flesh. He is both the Sacrificer and the Victim being sacrificed."

Let us not, I pray you, let us not slay ourselves by our irreverence, but with all awe and purity draw neigh to the holy sacrifice; and say to yourself, 'because of this body am I no longer earth and ashes, no longer a prisoner, but free: because of this I hope for heaven.'

How many of you say: I should like to see His face, His garments, His shoes. You do see Him, you touch Him, you eat Him. He gives Himself to you, not only that you may see Him, but also to be your food and nourishment.

Christ is present. The One [Christ] who prepared that [Holy Thursday] table is the very One who now prepares this [altar] table. For it is not a man who makes the sacrificial gifts become the Body and Blood of Christ, but He that was crucified for us, Christ Himself. The priest stands there carrying out the action, but the power and the grace is of God, "This is My Body," he says. This statement transforms the gifts.

"So also was Christ offered once." [Hebrews 7-10] By whom was He offered? Quite evidently, by Himself. Paul shows that Christ was not Priest only, but also Victim and Sacrifice. Therein do we find the reason for the words "was offered." "He was offered once," Paul says, "to take away the sins of many." Why does he say of many and not of all? Because not all have believed. He did indeed die for all, for the salvation of all, which was His part….But He did not take away the sins of all men, because they did not will it….What then? Do we not offer daily? Yes, we offer, but making remembrance of His death; and this remembrance is one and not many. How is it one and not many? Because this Sacrifice is offered once, like that in the Holy of Holies. This Sacrifice is a type of that, and this remembrance a type of that. We offer always the same, not one sheep now and another tomorrow, but the same thing always. Thus there is one Sacrifice. By this reasoning, since the Sacrifice is offered everywhere, are there, then, a multiplicity of Christs? By no means! Christ is one everywhere. He is complete here, complete there, one Body. And just as He is one Body and not many though offered everywhere, so too is there one Sacrifice.

If anyone wishes to know how the bread is changed into the body of Jesus Christ, I will tell him. The Holy Spirit overshadows the priest and acts on him as He acted on the Blessed Virgin Mary.

If I am asked how bread is changed into the Body of Christ, I answer: "The Holy Ghost overshadows the priest and operates in the same manner in the elements which He effected in the womb of the Virgin Mary.

Why is the Mass a true sacrifice? Because in the Mass the same Jesus Christ who offered Himself on Calvary now offers Himself on the altar. The Priest is the same, the Victim is the same, and the end or purpose is the same.

The Priest is the same Jesus Christ whose sacred person the ordained priest represents and in whose Name he offers the Eucharistic Sacrifice.

The Victim is the same, namely the Savior in His human nature, with His true Body and Blood, and His human free will. Only the manner of offering is different. On the Cross, the sacrifice was bloody; in the Mass it is unbloody because Christ is now in His glorified state. But the heart of sacrifice is the voluntary, total offering of oneself to God. Christ makes this voluntary offering in every Mass, signified by the separate consecration of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of the Redeemer.

The end or purpose is the same, namely to give glory to God, to thank Him, to obtain His mercy, and to ask Him for our needs. But, as we have seen, whereas on Calvary Christ merited our salvation, it is mainly through the Mass that He now dispenses the riches of His saving grace.

The key to seeing the relation between Calvary and the Mass is the fact that the same identical Jesus Christ now glorified is present on the altar at Mass as He was present in His mortal humanity on the Cross.

Since it is the same Jesus, we must say He continues in the Mass what He did on Calvary except that now in the Mass, He is no longer mortal or capable of suffering in His physical person. On Calvary He was, by His own choice, capable of suffering and dying. What He did then was to gain the blessings of our redemption. What He does now in the Mass is apply these blessings to the constant spiritual needs of a sinful, suffering humanity.

To me nothing is so consoling, so piercing, so thrilling, so overcoming, as the Mass . . . . It is not a mere form of words - it is a great action, the greatest action that can be on earth. It is, not the invocation merely, but, if I dare use the word, the evocation of the Eternal.

The Mass is a real sacrifice because it has all the condition required for a true sacrifice:
     a) The Victim is Jesus Christ Himself under the appearances of bread and wine.
    b) The oblation takes place at the Consecration, when Christ, at the words of the priest: This is my Body - This is my Blood, becomes present on the altar under the separate species of bread and wine. Separate because they represent the death of Christ; His Blood separate from His Body.
    c) By this most perfect offering, God is adored and honored in the most perfect manner, and the fruits of the Sacrifice of the Cross are applied to our souls.

The Mass offers to God the Sacrifice of the Cross. That is offered which is represented. Christ's death is represented; Christ's death is offered. Hence the Sacrifice of the Mass is the same as the Sacrifice of the Cross: the same Victim, the same Priest; only the manner of offering is different: blood-stained on the Cross, bloodless on our altars.

Christ offered Himself on the Cross as a victim to atone for our sins, and God accepted his sacrifice. God took the price of our sins, paid by Christ, into His hands, as it were and there keeps it forever. Christ is therefore a victim even now; He is the perpetual victim according to St. Thomas. In Heaven He is a victim, no less than He was on the Cross. But if He is a victim already, then He is not turned into a victim by the priest at Mass. He is not to be slain or immolated or changed in any way. When He becomes present on our altars by the Consecration, He becomes present as the victim of our salvation.

The sacrifice which Our Lord offered at the Last supper cannot be separated from His Sacrifice on the Cross; neither can the Sacrifice of the Mass be separated from the Sacrifice of the Cross. In the Mass the priest does what Christ did at the Supper, only with these necessary differences:

a) The priest's offering is connected with Christ's Passion and Death as things of the past, whereas Christ's offering at the Supper pointed to the Cross as a thing of the future.

b) At the Mass is commemorated that sacrificial death which at the Last Supper Christ was anticipating.

c) Christ's sacrifice was not finished till He died on the Cross; ours is ended with the Eucharistic celebration.

d) At the supper Christ offered alone; in the Mass we join with Him in offering; we offer under Him and by His commission.

e) At the Supper Christ offered up His Passion and Death for the remission of our sins; in the Mass the fruits of His Passion and Death are applied to our souls.

The Sacrifice at the Last Supper, the Sacrifice of the Cross, and the Sacrifice of the Mass are not three sacrifices, but the selfsame Sacrifice.

The Sacrifice of the Mass, being the same as the Sacrifice of the Cross, is in a special manner a sacrifice of propitiation, and obtains for us the grace of repentance, and sorrow for the forgiveness of our sins, as well as the remission of the temporal punishment we deserve for them.

We should realize that the Masses which are being celebrated throughout the world are being offered by us as members of the Mystical Body of Christ, and that the fruit of these Masses is increased or diminished by the degree of holiness which we possess.

"All who participate with faith in the Eucharist become aware that it is a 'sacrifice,' that is to say, a 'consecrated offering.' for the bread and wine presented at the altar and accompanied by the devotion and the spiritual sacrifices of the participants are finally consecrated so as to become truly, really and substantially, Christ's own Body that is given up and His Blood that is shed. Thus, by virtue of the consecration, the species of bread and wine represent in a sacramental unbloody manner the bloody propitiatory sacrifice offered by Him on the Cross to His Father for the salvation of the world. Indeed, He alone, giving Himself as a propitiatory victim, in an act of supreme surrender and immolation, has reconciled humanity with the Father, solely through His sacrifices, 'having cancelled the bond which stood against us.'"

The Church is brought into being when, in that fraternal union and communion, we celebrate the sacrifice of the cross of Christ, when we proclaim "the Lord's death until he comes." and later, when being deeply compenetrated with the mystery of our salvation, we approach as a community the table of the Lord, in order to be nourished there, in a sacramental manner, by the fruits of the holy Sacrifice of propitiation. Therefore in Eucharistic Communion we receive Christ, Christ Himself; and our union with Him, which is a gift and grace for each individual, brings it about that in Him we are also associated in the unity of His Body which is the Church.

Christian life is expressed in the fulfilling of the greatest commandment, in the love of God and neighbor, and this love finds its source in the Blessed Sacrament, which is commonly called the sacrament of love.

Eucharistic worship is the expression of that love which is the authentic and deepest characteristic of the Christian vocation.

The authentic sense of the Eucharist becomes of itself the school of active love for neighbor. If our Eucharistic worship is authentic, it must make us grow in awareness of the dignity of each person. The awareness of that dignity becomes the deepest motive of our relationships to alleviate and redress our neighbor's suffering and misery, all injustices and wrongs. The sense of the Eucharistic Mystery leads us to a love for our neighbor, to a love for every human being.

All who participate with faith in the Eucharist become aware that it is a "sacrifice," that is to say, a "consecrated Offering." For the bread and wine presented at the altar and accompanied by the devotion and the spiritual sacrifices of the participants are finally consecrated, so as to become truly, really and substantially Christ's own body that is given up and His blood that is shed. Thus, by virtue of the consecration, the species of bread and wine re-present in a sacrame3ntal, unbloody manner the bloody propitiatory Sacrifice offered by Him on the cross to His Father for the salvation of the world.

To this sacrifice, which is renewed in a sacramental form on the altar, the offerings of bread and wine, united with the devotion of the faithful, nevertheless bring their unique contribution, since by means of the consecration by the priest they become sacred species.

The Church's intention is that the faithful not only offer the spotless victim but also learn to offer themselves and daily to be drawn into ever more perfect union, through Christ the Mediator, with the Father and with each other, so that at last God may be all in all.

The Eucharist is the heart of the Church. Where Eucharistic life flourishes, there the life of the Church will blossom.

Without the Holy Eucharist there would be no happiness in this world, and life wouldn't be bearable.

There's nothing so great, as the Eucharist. If you were to put all the good actions in the world against a Communion well made, it would be like a grain of dust against a mountain.

Jesus Christ found a way by which he could ascend into Heaven and yet remain on the earth. He instituted the adorable Sacrament of the Eucharist so that he might stay with us and be the Food of our soul; that he might stay with us and be our Companion.

Put all the good works in the world against one Holy Mass; they will be as a grain of sand beside a mountain.

When we receive Holy Communion, we experience something extraordinary - a joy, a fragrance, a well-being that thrills the whole body and causes it to exalt.

Martyrdom is nothing in comparison with the Mass, because martyrdom is the sacrifice of man to God, whereas the Mass is the Sacrifice of God for man!

If we knew the value of the holy Sacrifice of the Mass, how much greater effort we would put forth in order to assist at it!

When you approach the Tabernacle remember that He! . . . has been waiting for you for twenty centuries.

There he is: he is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, - Hidden in the Bread. To this extreme has he humbled himself for love of you.

Go to communion. -It's not disrespect. -Go this very day, when you have just got out of that snare. -Have your forgotten that Jesus said: It is not the healthy who need the physician, but those who are sick?

In this Mass that we are now celebrating, the most Holy Trinity intervenes in a very special way. We must give ourselves completely, in body and in soul. He hear God, we talk to him, we see him, we taste him.

To live the holy Mass means to pray continually, and to be convinced that, for each one of us, this is a personal meeting with God. We adore him, we praise him, we give thanks to him, we atone for our sins, we are purified, we feel ourselves united in Christ with all Christians.

We may have asked ourselves, at one time or another, how we can correspond to the greatness of God's love. We may have wanted to see a program foe Christian living clearly explained. The answer is easy, and it is within reach of all the faithful: to participate lovingly in the holy Mass, to learn to deepen our personal relationship with God in the sacrifice that summarizes all that Christ asks of us.

Through the communion of the saints, all Christians receive grace from every Mass that is celebrated, regardless of whether there is an attendance of thousands of persons, or whether it is only a boy with his mind on other things who is there to serve. In either case, heaven and earth join with the angels of the Lord to sing: Holy, Holy, Holy . . .

I adore and praise with the angels - it is not difficult, because I know that, as I celebrate the holy Mass, they surround me, adoring the Blessed Trinity. And I know that in some way the Blessed Virgin is there, because of her intimate relationship with the most Blessed Trinity and because she is the Mother of Christ, of his flesh and blood - the Mother of Jesus Christ, perfect God and perfect man.

Now, in the Mass, it is Christ who acts again, through the priest: "This is my body" . . . "This is the cup of my blood." Jesus is with us! the transubstantiation is a renewal of the miracle of God's infinite love. When that moment takes place again today, let us tell our Lord, without any need for words, that nothing will be able to separate us from him; that, as he puts himself into our hands, defenseless, under the fragile appearances of bread and wine, he has made us his willing slaves. "Make me live always through you, and taste the sweetness of your love."

Jesus is the way, the mediator. In him are all things; outside of him is nothing. In Christ, taught by him, we dare to call God our Father - he is the Almighty who created heaven and earth, and he is a loving Father who waits for us to come back to him again and again, as the story of the prodigal son repeats itself in our lives.

As you attend Mass, you will learn to deepen your friendship with each one of the three divine Persons: the Father who begets the Son; the Son, begotten by the Father; the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. When we approach an one of the divine Persons, we approach the one God. And when we come close to all three Persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - again we come into the presence of the one true God.

I feel that, on many occasions, the central theme of our conversation with Christ, in our thanksgiving after holy Mass, can be the consideration that our Lord is our king, physician, teacher and friend.

Christ is our king. He desires ardently to rule our hears, because we are children of God. But we should not try to imagine a human sort of rule - Christ does not dominate or seek to impose himself, because he, "has not come to be served but to serve."

Christ our king does not expect us to spend our time in abstract reasoning; he expects deeds, because "not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord!,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of my Father in heaven shall enter the kingdom of heaven."

Christ is our physician, and he heals our selfishness, if we let his grace penetrate to the depths of our soul. Jesus has taught us that the worst sickness is hypocrisy, the pride that leads us to hide our own sins. We have to be totally sincere with him. We have to tell the whole truth, and then we have to say: "Lord, if you will" - and you are always willing - "you can make me clean." You know my weaknesses; I feel these symptoms; I suffer from these failings. Lord, you have cured so many souls; help me to recognize you as the divine physician, when I have you in my heart or when I contemplate your presence in the tabernacle.

Jesus is our friend, the Friend. He calls us his friends because he loved us first. Still, he does not impose his love - he offers it.

Mary, the Mother of God and our Mother, teaches us to come to Jesus, to recognize him and to find him all the different situations of our day. And nowhere is she more a teacher than in the supreme moment of the holy sacrifice of the Mass, where time blends with eternity.

Through him and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.

The Eucharist is a never-ending sacrifice. It is the Sacrament of love, the supreme love, the act of love.

Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

There is no prayer or good work so great, so pleasing to God, so useful to us as the Mass.

No human tongue can describe the immense favors and blessings which we receive from the Mass. The sinner obtains pardon, the good man becomes more holy, our faults are corrected and our vices uprooted by hearing Holy Mass.

When Christ is spiritually slain upon the altar, He calls upon His Heavenly Father, He shows Him His wounds that, by virtue of His earnest supplication, many may escape eternal damnation.

It is certain that nothing gives God greater glory than the spotless Victim of the altar, which Christ ordained to be sacrificed in order that His church might offer praise to God.

"We do not seem to regard the birth of Christ as an event of the past, but as one present to our sight. For we have proclaimed to us what the angel announced to the shepherds: 'Behold, I bring to you tidings of great joy: this day is born to you a Savior! Every day we may be present at this happy birth, every day our eyes may behold it, if we will be go to Mass. For then, it is in very deed renewed, and by it the work of our salvation is carried on."'

I believe that were it not for the Holy Mass, as of this moment the world would be in the abyss.

The sacrifice was instituted by our Redeemer principally in recognition of the beneficence of God, and as thanks to him; and therefore it bears as its most special and worthy name, the Eucharist, which signifies an offering of thanks.

For as there is renewed in the Mass the offering which Jesus has already made on the cross to the eternal Father for the sins of the whole world, that same divine blood which was once paid as the general ransom of the human race comes to be applied to each of us individually, by being offered at Mass for the sins of him who celebrates and of all those who assist.

Take my advice, and in every Mass ask God to make you a great saint. Does this seem too much? It is not too much. Is it not our good Master who declares in the holy gospel that for a cup of cold water given out of love for him, he will, in return, give great rewards? How then while offering to God the blood of his most blessed Son, should he not give you a hundred heavens, were there so many?

One Mass alone, considered in itself and according to its own intrinsic value, is sufficient to empty purgatory of all the souls in process of purification and place them in paradise. For this divine sacrifice not only avails for the souls of the dead as a propitiation, but also as a great act of supplication, conformably to the practice of the Church, which not only offers Mass for the souls that are being purified, but also prays during the sacrifice for their liberation.

O you deluded people, what are you doing? Why do you not hasten to the churches to hear as many Masses as you can? Why do you not imitate the angels, who, when a Holy Mass is celebrated, come down in myriads from Paradise and take their stations about our altars in adoration to intercede for us?

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

If we were to offer to the Holy Trinity all the penances, all the prayers, all the good works of all the Saints, if we were to offer the torrents of blood, all the sufferings of the twelve Apostles and the millions of martyrs, all would give Him less glory and pleasure than one Mass! Why? Because the Mass is truly and really the Sacrifice of Mount Calvary. In the Mass, Jesus Christ offers to His Eternal Father all the pains, humiliations and infinite merits of His Passion and Death.

But, my children, do not forget that the Eucharist is the heart of faith. this is my Son who feeds you with His Body and strengthens you with His Blood. This is a miracle of love: my Son who always comes anew, alive, to bring life back to souls.

He remains among us until the end of the world. He dwells on so many altars, though so often offended and profaned.

You come to me and unite Yourself intimately to me under the form of nourishment. Your Blood now runs in mine, Your Soul, Incarnate God, compenetrates mine, giving courage and support. What miracles! Who would have ever imagined such!

If angels could be jealous of men, they would be so for one reason: Holy Communion.

Spoken to her by Our Lord. "In Mass I come with such humility that there is no sinner, no matter how depraved he be, that I am not ready to receive, if only he desires it. I come with such sweetness and mercy that I will pardon my greatest enemies, if they ask for pardon. I come with such generosity that there is no one so poor that I will not fill him with the riches of my love. I come with such heavenly food as will strengthen the weakest, with such light as will illumine the blindest, with such a plentitude of graces as will remove all miseries, overcome all obstinacy and dissipate all fears."

The Lord spoke to her, "I alone know and perfectly understand what this offering is that I daily make of Myself for the salvation of the faithful; it surpasses the comprehension of Cherubim and Seraphim and all the hosts of heaven."

The Holy Mass draws down upon the soul the light and the dew of heaven, so that all the gifts of the Holy Spirit therein attain their most beautiful bloom and ripeness.

Through him and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.

When you receive the holy food, that pure banquet; when you enjoy the bread and draught of life; when you eat and drink the body and blood of our Lord, then you receive him under your roof. And so you must humble yourself, imitating this centurion and saying, Lord, I am not worthy that thou should enter under my roof.

Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

It would be easier for the world to survive without the sun than to do without Holy Mass.

The words of Christ, since they are divine, are efficacious, and can produce nothing other than what they command. For they are eternal. Heaven and earth shall pass, but my words shall not pass.

For any Mass, even if celebrated by a priest in private, is not private; it is the act of Christ and the church. The Church, indeed, in the Sacrifice which she offers, is learning to offer Herself as a universal sacrifice, she is also applying to the whole world, for its salvation, the redemptive virtue of the Sacrifice of the Cross, which is unique and infinite.

The Mass is both a representation, at once holy and living, and an offering, bloodless yet actual, of the Passion of the Lord and of the blood-stained sacrifice which was offered for us on the Cross.

There is neither past nor present nor future for Jesus Christ. The good Father knew us all at the Last Supper. He consecrated, as it were in thought and in desire, all our Hosts; He loved us personally . . . centuries before we were born. Yes, we were present at the Last Supper, and Jesus stored up for us not one Host but a hundred, a thousand, one for every day of our life. . . . Our Hosts are ready; let us not lose a single one of them.

Know, O Christian, that the Mass is the holiest act of religion. You cannot do anything to glorify God more, nor profit your soul more, than by devoutly assisting at it, and assisting as often as possible.

When we work hard, we must eat well. What a joy, that you can receive Holy Communion often! It's our life and support in this life - receive Communion often, and Jesus will change you into himself.

Holy Communion is the shortest and safest way to heaven. There are others: innocence, but that is for little children; penance, but we are afraid of it; generous endurance for the trials of life, but when they come we weep and ask to be spared. The surest, easiest, shortest way is the Eucharist.

Since God is unsullied purity, he who is united to Jesus Christ in Holy Communion, rising like an innocent dove above the muddy water of this wretched world, wings his flight upward and seeks refuge in the bosom of god - the bosom of Him who is purer than the spotless snow that crowns the mountain tops.

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

"But the works of our savior were always present, for they were true." (Words of Consecration).

Our Redeemer ever present in the most Blessed Sacrament, extends His hands to everyone. He opens His heart and says, 'Come to Me, all of you.'

The Catholic priest sacrifices no other chalice than that which our Lord passed on to the apostles. For just as the divinity of the Word of God is one and fills the whole world, so although this body in consecrated in may places and on countless day, yet there are not many bodies of Christ, nor many chalices, but one body and one blood, which he took in the womb of the Virgin and gave to the apostles.

When we say that we offer bread to God on behalf of the Church, the meaning is that we offer it to him to be consecrated, so that by this consecration a true sacrifice may be immolated to God for the sake of the Church.

The Mass is the one true Sacrifice of the New Law. In the mass Christ is offered up to God the Father under the appearance of bread and wine.

The Mass is one and the same Sacrifice as the Sacrifice of Christ on the cross. Christ is the victim and the High Priest both in the Mass and on the cross.

The Mass is not a mere representation. It is a true sacrifice. Christ is offered up just as truly in the Mass as He was on the cross. Yet Christ does not die in the Mass. For He can die no more.

A sacrifice is an external act of religious worship. It is the oblation of something to God to acknowledge His supreme dominion over all created beings. It is only the positive law of God that can make the immolation of anything a sacrifice. It must be offered according to a divinely instituted ceremonial. The ceremonial action must be performed by a divinely appointed person. Thus the two essential parts of a sacrifice are the ceremonial offering by an authorized person and the immolation of the victim.

Animals were sacrificed in the Old Law. To kill a heifer did not constitute a sacrifice. It had to be killed according to a divinely authorized ceremony. Nor was the killing of the heifer according to the ceremonial a sacrifice unless it were offered by the authorized priest.

Christ's death on the cross was a true sacrifice because of the ceremonial offering that took place at the Last Supper. Here Christ offered Himself. He is "a priest forever according to the order of Melchisedech." This is the sacrifice that was consummated on Calvary. This is the sacrifice that is continued in the Mass.

Before His passion Christ "immolated Himself as a host and a victim, being both the priest and the Lamb of God, He Who taketh away the sins of the world. When did He do this? When He gave His body to His assembled disciples to eat and His blood to drink. He then declared that the sacrifice of the Lamb was perfected. For the body of a victim is not fit to eat if it is alive. Wherefore, when He gave His disciples His body to eat and His blood to drink, He Who performed this Mystery by His will and in an ineffable and invisible manner had immolated His body."

The oblation of Christ's body and blood at the Last supper and Christ's death on the cross form one sacrifice. Hence the Mass is the continuation of Christ's oblation of Himself at the Last Supper and His death on the cross.

The species of bread contain Christ whole and entire. Yet they represent His body separated from His blood. Then the species of wine contain Christ whole and entire. Yet they represent Christ's blood as shed for us upon the cross. His blood was then separated from His body. This separate consecration under both species is essential. Mass would not be valid if the consecration took place under one species alone.

The Sacrifice of the Mass, then, is essentially the same as the sacrifice of the cross. They differ only in the manner in which they were offered. On the cross Christ really died and was really slain. He really shed His blood. In the Mass Christ is offered up under the species of bread and wine. His death and the shedding of His blood are represented in the distinct consecration of the two species.

In Apostolic days the Mass was called the "Breading of bread." It was afterwards called the Sacred Liturgy or the Mysteries. It got the Latin name "Missa" probably from the fact that the catechumens were dismissed before the essential part of the sacrifice began. There is still a trace of this in the Liturgy of the Mass today. The "Ite Missa est" signifies, "Go, the Mass is ended."

In the Mass Christ is not offered in His natural state, such as He existed on earth or as He exists in Heaven. He is offered in a sacramental state. At the offertory of the Bass the bread and wine are offered as the material that is to be changed by divine power into the victim of the Sacrifice. The species of bread and wine remain as the visible forms of the Sacrifice.

The Mass is an act of adoration to God. It renders homage to Him as the Creator and Supreme ruler of the world. It is an act of thanksgiving to God for all His benefits to the human race. Thus by adoration and thanksgiving the Mass gives glory to God.

Since Christ in the Mass begs for us supernatural graces, He is sure to obtain them. For this reason the effects of the Mass are infallibly certain. It matters not whether the celebrant be worthy or not. The Mass will infallibly produce its effect for those who have part therein, if they place no impediments in the way. The Mass produces its effects of itself and not from the merits of him who offers it.

In itself the Mass is of infinite value. It has the same merit and effect as Christ's passion and death. The fruits of one single Mass would be sufficient in themselves to release all the souls from Purgatory and to bring all the graces of Heaven to earth. Yet man is incapable of receiving an infinitude. He receives graces according to his own limited being.

God in His wisdom, has certain fixed laws according to which He distributes His grace to man. Our little intellects can not attempt to scrutinize these laws. We know, however, that God has determined certain grace for certain dispositions which He finds in the heart of man. We can never know just how much grace we receive from the Mass.

The fruits of the Mass are not lessened by the number of those who partake in them. These fruits are infinite in themselves. Hence an individual receives just as much grace from the Mass where many partake thereof as when only a few share in these fruits.

Every member of the Church militant and every soul in purgatory are benefited every time a priest offers up the Sacrifice of the Mass. For every time this august Sacrifice is offered prayers are said for their conversion. Hence the more Masses celebrated in the world the more blessings and graces are brought upon the human race.

Those, too, who assist at Mass and those who unite themselves spiritually with the priest at the altar receive special fruits from the Mass because it is the central act of Christian worship.

Through him and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.

Consider Christian, how indebted we are to our Savior for the institution of Holy Mass, for without it we can never thank God rightly for His benefits. It was the superabundance of His love that induced Him not only to load us with so many benefits, but to place within our reach the means of giving Him abundant thanks for these same benefits. Would that we appreciated our privileges and turned them to good account! When we hear Mass, Christ, Who is immolated to His Father for our sake, becomes our own, and with Him we become possessed of all His infinite merits, and are able to offer them to God the Father, thus to lighten the heavy load of our indebtedness that well nigh crushes us to earth.

Such is the power of the mass that our sins melt away before it as wax before the fire, and the penalties we have incurred are turned away from us.

Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

Faith, and particularly Faith in the Eucharist, is indeed the power which today, the same as 2,000 years ago, lifts mankind out of the depths and into the higher realms of devotion and self-sacrifice. If mankind is to be saved, salvation can come only from the Eucharist.

In every way that the soul can desire to feed, she will find in the Most Holy Sacrament sweetness and consolation. . . Do you think that this most holy food isn't nourishment for these bodies, and an excellent remedy even against bodily ailments? . . . If when He lived in this world, He healed the sick by the mere touch of His garments, what doubt is there but that He will perform miracles, since He is so intimately within us, if we have a lively faith; and that He will grant us what we ask of Him, while He is in our house?

When you have received Holy Communion, close your bodily eyes so that you may open the eyes of your soul. Then look upon Jesus in the center of heart heart.

The flesh feeds on the Body and Blood of Christ that the soul likewise may be filled with God.

At first [the offering] is laid upon the altar as mere bread, and wine mixed with water; but by the coming of the Holy Spirit it is transformed into the Body and the Blood, and thus it is changed into the power of a spiritual and immortal nourishment.

Do not approach with hands extended and fingers open wide. Rather make of your left hand a throne for your right as it is about to receive your King, and receive the Body of Christ in the fold of your hand, responding ‘Amen.’.... Take care that you do not even lose one piece of that which is more precious than gold or precious stones."

Our Lord does not come from Heaven every day to stay in a golden ciborium. He comes to find another Heaven, the Heaven of our soul in which He loves to dwell.

The guest of our soul knows our misery; He comes to find an empty tent within us - that is all He asks.

The Mass obtains for sinners in mortal sin the grace of repentance. For the just, it obtains the remission of venial sins and the pardon of the pain due to sin. It obtains an increase of habitual Sanctifying Grace, as well as all the graces necessary for their special needs.

Godhead here in hiding whom I do adore
Masked by these bare shadows, shape and nothing more;
See, Lord, at Thy service low here lies a heart
Lost, all lost in wonder at the God thou art!

The special effect of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is that it operates our reconciliation with God.

By no other oblation can the souls in Purgatory be more speedily relieved than by the Sacrifice of the Mass.

The blood of Christ benefits not only the Jews, who were chosen to see the blood of the Old Testament, but also the Gentiles. Nor does it benefit only the priests who offer this sacrament or those who receive it, but also those for whom it is offered. Therefore he says, for you, the Jews, and for many, that is, the Gentiles; or for you who receive it, and for many, for whom it is offered.

The celebration of Holy Mass has the same value as the Death of Jesus on the Cross.

Do you realize that Jesus is there in the tabernacle expressly for you - for you alone? He burns with the desire to come into your heart...don't listen to the demon, laugh at him, and go without fear to receive the Jesus of peace and love...

Receive Communion often, very often...there you have the sole remedy, if you want to be cured. Jesus has not put this attraction in your heart for nothing...

The guest of our soul knows our misery; He comes to find an empty tent within us - that is all He asks.

The world would have been destroyed long ago because of the sins of men, had it not been for the Mass.

There is nothing that appeases the anger of God so much, nothing that obtains for us so many blessings as the Mass.

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.

Christ underwent His passion and death freely, because of the sins of men and out of infinite love, in order that all may reach salvation.

It is, therefore, the burden of the Church's preaching to proclaim the Cross of Christ as the sign of God's all-embracing love and as the fountain from which every grace flows.

The holy Eucharist contains the whole spiritual treasure of the Church, that is, Christ himself.... He who is the living bread, whose flesh, vivified by the Holy Spirit and vivifying, gives life to men.

When the words of consecration are said, Christ truly descends into the host and the whole substance of the bread is converted into the true flesh of Christ. He is as truly in the host when the words of consecration have been completed as he was in the womb of the Virgin Mary when she had spoken those words, Behold, the handmaid of the Lord: be it done to me according to thy word.

Through him and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever.

God likes to listen favorably to the prayers of His faithful, particularly when they look at Christ's body,"

Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.