The Unbloody Sacrifice of the Altar

20. The Holy Mass—A Sacrifice of Propitiation

The object of the Holy Mass, as a Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving, is to glorify God as our Supreme Master and greatest Benefactor: it renders to Him infinite honor and offers Him infinite thanksgiving. Inasmuch as it is a Sacrifice of Propitiation and Petition, its celebration produces the most manifold effects for the welfare and salvation of men. These effects, then, of the Mass flowing to men are properly and by preference called the fruits of the Sacrifice of the Mass. That the Sacrifice of the Cross is not detracted from by this efficacy, but that rather its inexhaustible virtue and its fully infinite value are brought out in clearer light, is evident from the right understanding of the Catholic doctrine. The Church by no means teaches that the Sacrifice of Christ on the altar adds new satisfaction or new merits to the treasure of salvation acquired on the Cross, but she teaches only that the price of our redemption paid by the Sacrifice of the Cross, being incapable of increase and inexhaustible in its fulness, is actually applied to and benefits individuals by means of the Sacrifice of the Mass. Christ’s treasure of grace remains always the same; only its application to and realization in individuals are new, and will continue to be so as long as there shall be men capable and in need of redemption. The fruits of the Sacrifice of the Mass are, therefore, in general all those and only those which were borne by the noble tree of the Cross. What was acquired on the Cross for the whole human race, is applied to individual man in the Mass, for it is a Sacrifice of propitiation as well as of petition. The Church expressly teaches “that the Holy Mass is a true propitiatory Sacrifice and has this efficacy that we find therein mercy and grace, when we stand in need of assistance,”—and it condemns the heresy, “that the Holy Mass is only a Sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, but not of propitiation . . . and that it may not be offered for the living and the departed, for the remission of sin and of its punishment, for satisfaction and for other necessities.”¹⁴⁶146Trident. sess. 22, cap. 2 et can. 3. In the first place, we shall here show that the Mass is truly a Sacrifice of propitiation—and, then, what and how it effects as a propitiatory sacrifice.

1. Holy Church often emphasizes and with force clearly sets off both by her teaching and practice the propitiatory character of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. As already quoted, the Council of Trent solemnly declares that the Mass is “a true propitiatory sacrifice,” and in the Roman Catechism also we read that the Mass is “truly a propitiatory sacrifice, whereby we are reconciled to God and regain His favor.”¹⁴⁷147Vere propitiatorium sacrificium, quo Deus nobis placatus et propitius redditur (Catech. Roman. P. 2, c. 4, q. 63). — Eucharistia in quantum est sacrificium, Deum placat: hostiae enim placant, et quoniam Deus iratus est, non affectione, sed poenae inflictione: ideo Deum placando non sedat ipsius affectionem, sed remitti facit poenae acerbitatem (S. Bonav. IV, dist. 45, dub. 3).

a) Since sin entered the world and weighs as a heavy yoke upon the poor children of Eve, a longing for reconciliation and pardon has obtained everywhere the primary place in sacrificial worship. “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Thy great mercy, and according to the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my iniquities!” (Ps. 50, 3.) This is the supreme cry that breaks forth from the bosom of sinful, yet contrite man, who sorrowfully longs to be free from debt and punishment. This consciousness of sin, this desire for redemption, finds its strongest expression in the offering of sacrifice. Hence in the Old Law propitiatory sacrifices were the most frequent and the most prominent. Now the Mass, being the accomplishment and consummation of all the sacrifices prior to Christ, satisfies all the objects of sacrifice, and, consequently, must also have the character and effect of an atoning sacrifice, that is, must be propitiatory. In this respect the truth and reality of the New Law cannot be inferior to the shadow and figure of the Old Law.

b) Among the effects of the death of Jesus, Scripture often directs particular attention to the effacing of sin, to the redemption from the curse of sin, to the destruction of the handwriting that is against us, to the reconciliation of Heaven and earth. Now, if the Mass as a celebration of our redemption, as a renewal of the death of Christ, as a representation and continuation of the Sacrifice of the Cross,¹⁴⁸148Per haec divina mysteria ad novi, quaesumus, testamenti mediatorem Jesum accedamus: et super altaria tua, Domine virtutum, aspersionem sanguinis melius loquentem, quam Abel, innovemus (Secreta in festo pret. Sanguinis D. N. J. Chr.). — Suscipe, Domine, hostiam redemptionis humanae—per haec veniat sacramenta redemptionis effectus—benedictio tua, Domine, larga descendat, quae munera nostra . . . nobis sacramentum redemptionis efficiat (Sacrament. Gregor.). be intended to obtain for individual men the various effects of the sacrificial death of Christ on the Cross, it must then possess a sin-effacing power, and apply to them the satisfaction rendered on the Cross. In other words, the Mass must be a Sacrifice of propitiation. Moreover, our Lord Himself expressly declared at the institution of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, that His Body under the appearance of bread would be broken and delivered, His Blood be shed in the chalice for “the forgiveness of sin.”

c) The ancient liturgies,¹⁴⁹149Hostia, quam offerimus, vincula nostrae pravitatis absolvat—haec hostia emundet nostra delicta—hujus sacrificii munus oblatum fragilitatem nostram ab omni malo purget semper—hostias tibi, Domine, placationis offerimus, ut delicta nostra miseratus absolvas—per haec sancta commercia vincula peccatorum nostrorum absolve—suscipe, Domine, sacrificium, cujus te voluisti dignanter immolatione placari—supplices, Domine, te rogamus, ut his sacrificiis peccata nostra mundentur—munera nos, quaesumus, Domine, oblata purificent et te nobis jugiter faciant esse placatum—mystica nobis, Domine, prosit oblatio, quae nos et a reatibus nostris expediat et perpetua salvatione confirmet—iisdem, quibus famulamur, mysteriis mundemur—haec sancta, quae gerimus, et praeteritis nos delictis exuant et futuris (Sacrament. Gregor.). furthermore, the writings of the Fathers most clearly testify to the constant and universal belief of the Church in the propitiatory character of the Sacrifice of the Mass. In the Liturgy of St. James, the priest prays in this manner: “O Lord, may our sacrifice be pleasing to Thee and be sanctified by the Holy Ghost for the atonement of our sins and of the ignorance of the people, and for the repose of those who have fallen asleep. . . Lord, have mercy on us; for in fear and trembling we draw nigh to Thy holy altar, to offer this tremendous and unbloody Sacrifice for our sins and for the ignorance of the people.” — In the Liturgy of St. Basil: “According to the abundance of Thy mercy, receive us who approach to Thy altar, that we may be worthy to offer Thee gifts, and sacrifices for our sins and for those of the people.” — St. Augustine declares that “it must not be doubted that the departed receive help by the prayers of the Church and the life-giving Sacrifice”; “for”—he says further on—“thus it has been handed down to us by the Fathers, thus the entire Church observes it for those who have died in the communion of the Body and Blood of Christ, when during the Sacrifice their memento occurs at the prescribed place, prayers are recited and attention is directed to the fact that for them also the Mass is offered.”¹⁵⁰150Orationibus sanctae Ecclesiae et sacrificio salutari et eleemosynis, quae pro eorum spiritibus erogantur, non est dubitandum mortuos adjuvari, ut cum eis misericordius agatur a Domino, quam eorum peccata meruerunt. Hoc enim a Patribus traditum, universa observat Ecclesia, ut pro eis qui in corporis et sanguinis Christi communione defuncti sunt, cum ad ipsum sacrificium loco suo commemorantur, oretur ac pro illis quoque id offerri commemoretur (Serm. 172, n. 2). St. Monica at her death had no other desire, no other request to make to her family than that “everywhere, wherever they might be, they would remember her at the altar.” The holy Doctor then relates that, after her death, prayers and the Sacrifice of our redemption (sacrificium pretii nostri) were offered for her.¹⁵¹151Confess. l. 9, c. 11–12. St. Cyril of Jerusalem calls the Mass “a Sacrifice of reconciliation” and then continues: “For the departed, though even they be sinners (that is, in venial sin), we offer supplications to God, yes, not only supplications, but Christ also who was slain for our sins, thereby for them as well as for ourselves to propitiate the Divine Goodness.”¹⁵²152Catech. Mystag. 5, n. 8–10.

2. The propitiatory power and efficacy of the Sacrifice of the Mass extends, as the Church says, to “sins, punishments, satisfactions.” By divine institution the Eucharistic Sacrifice serves to bring about for man forgiveness of mortal and venial sins, and also the remission of the temporal punishment due to sin.

a) The Sacrifice of the Mass cannot directly and immediately cancel mortal sins, but it can only indirectly contribute to their effacement.¹⁵³153Sacrificium Missae vere est propitiatorium, causans aliquo modo ac conferens ad remissionem peccatorum mortalium, justificationem peccatoris ac primam gratiam obtinendam ex opere operato: at non immediate est remissivum peccatorum mortalium (sicut sacramenta Baptismi et Poenitentiae) juxta communissimam Theologorum (Sporer, Theol. sacram. P. 2, cap. 4, sect. 2, § 2). — Man can be washed and cleansed from the stain of mortal sin only by the infusion, that is, by the first imparting or by the restoration, of sanctifying grace. This grace of justification and, consequently, of forgiveness of mortal sin can, by God’s will, be directly obtained only by the reception of baptism or of the sacrament of penance, or by making an act of perfect contrition. The Sacraments were instituted for the justification and sanctification of man; they moreover serve directly to establish and to increase the supernatural life of the soul. Sacrifice, on the contrary, aims principally to promote the worship of God. The Mass, indeed, is also a means of salvation for man; but as such it is not destined directly to impart or bring about the grace of sanctification; consequently, the Sacrifice of the Mass cannot without the medium of another means efface or remove mortal sins.

The propitiatory power and efficacy of the Sacrifice of the Mass is not accurately explained by the mere saying that it procures actual graces, by means of which the sinner is led to true penance and sincere conversion. Such a statement almost totally annuls the distinction that exists between the character of propitiation and the impetratory efficacy of the Sacrifice of the Mass, a distinction which must be strictly adhered to; for as a Sacrifice of propitiation and as a Sacrifice of petition the Mass has different effects, as well as different modes of operation.¹⁵⁴154Cf. Lugo disp. 19, sect. 9, n. 140–150. — Franzelin, De Sacrificio thes. 13. — Köln. Pastoralblatt Jahrg. 1874, p. 113 etc. Namely, in so far as the Mass is a Sacrifice of propitiation, it calms and appeases the righteous anger of God, disarms His justice, and induces the Lord to regard sinful man with favor and mercy. The effect of the atoning power of the Mass, therefore, is to cause God no longer to be angry and to punish, that is, it favorably disposes Him to remit wholly or in part the punishment due to guilty man.¹⁵⁵155Eucharistia instituta est, ut Ecclesia perpetuum sacrificium haberet, quo peccata nostra expiarentur, et coelestis Pater, sceleribus nostris saepe graviter offensus, ab ira ad misericordiam, a justae animadversionis severitate ad clementiam traduceretur (Catech. Roman. P. 2, cap. 4, q. 55, n. 1). — Est hoc proprie sacrificii effectus, ut per ipsum placetur Deus, sicut etiam homo offensam in se commissam remittit propter aliquod obsequium acceptum quod ei exhibetur (S. Thom. 3, q. 49, a. 4). This reconciliation and this remission of punishment on the part of God are effected in virtue of Christ’s vicarious service or payment (per modum solutionis) offered to God for this purpose; for the ransom purchased by Christ with His Blood upon Golgotha for the atonement and satisfaction of sin is always presented anew in the Mass to the Heavenly Father, and this for particular persons, and that He may avert from them their well-merited punishment and impart to them again His mercy more bountifully. Whilst the Mass, as a Sacrifice of propitiation, restrains or disarms God’s avenging justice against the sinner, it has, as a Sacrifice of petition, the power, through the divine goodness and liberality, to dispense manifold graces and benefits (per modum impetrationis).

Accordingly the Mass as a Sacrifice of atonement helps to cancel mortal sins, inasmuch as, as a Sacrifice of petition, it is an extremely powerful means to effect the grace of true repentance and sincere conversion. Propitiation and petition act in unison in the Mass; they support and perfect each other in order to draw down upon man graces which enlighten and incite him to turn to God by faith, hope, love and sorrow, and to receive worthily the holy Sacraments, whereby he is interiorly sanctified and made once more a child of God. This is expressed by the words: “The Lord, being propitiated by the celebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, imparts the grace and gift of penance, remits sins and crimes, be they ever so great.”¹⁵⁶156Hujus sacrificii oblatione placatus Dominus gratiam et donum poenitentiae concedens, crimina et peccata, etiam ingentia, dimittit (Trident. sess. 22, cap. 2). — Above all, God’s justice must be propitiated, and only after it has been satisfied, does His mercy impart to sinful man particular graces that dispose him to sorrow and sincere conversion. By the commission of sins, especially if they be numerous and grievous, is God’s majesty offended and His avenging justice provoked against the sinner. But among the punishments which the just and holy God inflicts on account of the commission of sin, one of the most severe consists in this that He refuses or deservedly withholds special and more abundant graces. For what St. Bernard says of ingratitude, that “it is like unto a scorching wind which dries up the fountain of divine mercy, the stream of grace, the dew of heaven,”¹⁵⁷157Ingratitudo inimica est animae, exinanitio meritorum, virtutum dispersio, beneficiorum perditio. Ingratitudo ventus urens, siccans sibi fontem pietatis, rorem misericordiae, fluenta gratiae (S. Bernard. In Cantica serm. 51, n. 6.) applies to all offences, especially to mortal sins: and these, being a neglect and abuse of grace, are acts of ingratitude towards God, and, therefore, check the more abundant flow of graces which God would otherwise grant to prayer. The refusal of this abundance of grace, so necessary for frail man tainted with sin to enable him to work out his salvation, is certainly a very fatal punishment. For without many and great graces, man will, alas! as is usually to be expected, remain in sin, will commit sin upon sin, and dying in sin, will thus fall into eternal perdition. In this respect the Sacrifice of the Mass exercises its propitiatory power, inasmuch as it reconciles the Divine justice and averts from sinful man the severe punishment of the withdrawal of the abundant helps of grace. — But if by means of the propitiatory power of the Mass, the demands of Divine justice are satisfied and the obstacle removed that prevented the free and full flow of graces from the fountains of the Saviour, then, furthermore, as a Sacrifice of petition the Mass can obtain from the Divine mercy and liberality powerful aids of grace, to enable sinful man to bring forth worthy fruits of penance, to be converted and restored to the life of grace. — The reconciliation, by virtue of the satisfaction of Christ, of the irritated and avenging justice of God must, therefore, precede, that is, previously remove the obstacles and prepare the way, so that the Divine goodness, through Christ’s merits and mediation, may be moved to impart those graces which lead man again to the path of salvation and virtue. Accordingly, the Mass contributes indirectly as a propitiatory sacrifice, and directly as a sacrifice of petition, to the effectual acquirement of the implored grace of conversion.¹⁵⁸158This conception of the subject finds also a support in the authority of the liturgical prayers; compare, for example, the Secret. Dom. XIII. post Pent.: Propitiare, Domine, populo tuo, propitiare muneribus: ut hac oblatione placatus et indulgentiam nobis tribuas et postulata concedas.

This atonement is produced ex opere operato by the offering of the Sacrifice of the Mass, but only in a more or less limited measure, dependent chiefly on the will of God, but likewise on the disposition of the sinner. In how far God’s justice is placated by a single Mass, and to what extent the punishment of the withdrawal of abundant graces is removed, we know not; for all this depends upon the free ordinance of God, as well as upon the number and gravity of the sins to be atoned for. — Hence it follows that it is not alone useful, but often necessary to offer Holy Mass repeatedly for the same intentions and for the same persons, in order that full satisfaction may be made to God, and that the unhallowed obstacle to the plentiful outpouring of the Divine goodness and liberality may be entirely removed. — When the Divine justice has been appeased by the Mass, then God is again disposed to impart abundant grace, which in punishment of sin He had previously withdrawn. In other words, there is no further obstacle to the impetratory power of the Mass of drawing down abundant graces of conversion into the soul that is in the state of mortal sin. These graces are not always immediately granted, but in God’s own time and at His pleasure. However, the sinner must on his part dispose himself to receive them, and must freely co-operate with the graces bestowed. Should he neglect to do this, they remain without effect, and no real repentance and forgiveness of sin follow. Consequently, however capable and efficacious the Sacrifice of the Mass may be to move God to dispense greater and often extraordinary graces,¹⁵⁹159Oblationibus nostris, quaesumus Domine, placare susceptis: et ad te nostras etiam rebelles compelle propitius voluntates (Secreta in Sabb. post Dom. IV. Quadragesimae) . yet the actual conversion and restoration of the person to the state of grace may, through the fault of the individual, result in complete failure. Hence the Church teaches that “by the Sacrifice of the Mass we obtain mercy and grace in due time, when we draw near to God with a sincere heart and perfect faith, with fear and reverence, with compunction and repentance.”¹⁶⁰160Trident. sess. 22, cap. 2.

b) By the Sacrifice of the Mass, the fruits of the death of Christ are also applied “unto the remission of those sins of which we are daily guilty,”¹⁶¹161Trident. sess. 22, cap. 1. among which are chiefly to be understood venial sins. Only a few theologians have affirmed that the offering of the Sacrifice suffices of itself to efface directly smaller sins and transgressions; the common and correct opinion maintains that venial sins are also, like mortal sins, effaced only indirectly by the salutary efficacy of the Sacrifice;¹⁶²162Dubitatur, an virtute hujus sacrificii possit immediate haberi remissio peccatorum venialium. Communis sententia negat, quam sequitur Suarez et Vasquez cum aliis recentioribus, quam ego etiam veram existimo (Lugo disp. 19, sect. 9, n. 152). This view must be adhered to, if we admit the more probable opinion, that in the present order of salvation no venial sin is pardoned to the just without a simultaneous increase of sanctifying grace; for the Mass cannot directly effect the infusion of sanctifying grace. (Cf. Suarez disp. 79, sect. 4–5.) for sentiments of sorrow and penance are p. 161required to effect the remission of venial sins. — Also smaller faults, infidelities and negligences displease God, excite His disfavor and prevent a more abundant bestowal of His grace. This obstacle must first be removed by the atoning efficacy of the Mass, that God may allow Himself to be moved to awaken in us by special graces that devout, contrite and penitential sentiment which—with or without the reception of the sacrament of penance—is required, and which suffices to efface venial sins. But we should here especially bear in mind, that even venial sins, if frequently and deliberately committed, besides other evil effects following them, prevent the reception of many favors and graces which God’s bounty has in reserve for the just, who thereby become weaker and run great risk, during some violent temptation, of plunging into the abyss of mortal sin. Frail man, therefore, for this very reason, too, has great need of a perpetual propitiatory sacrifice, in order that God may not in just punishment for his venial sins refuse unto him the abundant graces he so much needs in order to be preserved from the greatest of all evils—mortal sin. To assist at Mass or to have it celebrated for our intention, is assuredly one of the most available means to obtain in plenteous measure the pardon of venial sins and imperfections.

c) As a Sacrifice of propitiation the Mass has especially the power of satisfying for those temporal punishments which, after the pardon of mortal or venial sins, would otherwise have to be undergone either in this world or in purgatory.¹⁶³163Sacrificium Missae ex sua institutione habet valorem et vim satisfactivam ad remittendam ex opere operato aliquam poenam temporalem debitam pro peccatis mortalibus et venialibus jam remissis fidelium vivorum et defunctorum. Ita omnes orthodoxi (Sporer, Theol. sacram. P. 2, cap. 4, sect. 2, § 2). The Eucharistic Sacrifice is offered for the living as well as for the dead for the remission of the temporal punishment still due to sin. But while it effects the pardon of sin only indirectly, the Sacrifice directly cancels the temporal punishment of sin, and so cancels it by the vicarious payment (per modum solutionis) from out of the treasure of merit and satisfaction that Christ acquired for us upon the Cross.¹⁶⁴164Immediate remittit sacrificium poenam peccatis debitam, nimirum per modum solutionis jam pro nobis factae in cruce et nobis per sacrificium applicatae, in subjecto tamen capaci, nimirum constituto in gratia (Sporer l. c.). By His infinitely bitter passion and death, our Saviour on Calvary cancelled the penal debts of all men; the ransom there paid He Himself now presents upon the altar to His Heavenly Father for the living and the dead, that they may be released from their justly merited punishment. For upon Golgotha Christ bore our sorrows and the chastisement of our peace was placed upon Him (Is. 53); there He was overwhelmed with shame and bitterness, bruised with pain and torture, that we guilty men might not be visited and humbled under the chastising rod of Divine Justice. This remission of punishment is imparted to us, inasmuch as Christ’s passion is placed to our account and applied to us, that is, benefits us.

But the Holy Mass is offered not merely for the remission of punishment, but also as a satisfaction. Temporal punishment still due can be liquidated in a twofold manner: a) by real, personal satisfaction (satisfactio), that is, by the performance of good deeds, by works of penance, by the voluntary and patient endurance of suffering, all outweighing or equivalent to the punishment due, thus meriting its remission; b) by undergoing the punishment itself imposed by God (satispassio). The possibility of meriting and of satisfying in a strict sense ceases with death; hence the holy souls in purgatory can only suffer enough, that is, endure their punishment until the requirements of Divine Justice are satisfied and the last farthing has been paid. The living, on the contrary, when in the state of grace, can by prayer, fasting, alms and other penitential works satisfy the Divine justice, that is, merit the remission of those punishments which otherwise they would be obliged to undergo in purgatory. To this distinction Holy Church appears to allude, when she says that the Sacrifice of the Mass is offered “for punishments and satisfactions” (pro poenis et satisfactionibus): the propitiatory virtue of the Mass supplies for the punishment otherwise to be undergone by the departed (poena-satispassio); but for the living the propitiatory power of the Sacrifice supplies principally for the satisfaction to be rendered (satisfactio). For both it removes the last impediment to their entrance into heavenly glory.

If those for whom the Mass is celebrated are susceptible thereof, they always and infallibly receive the satisfactory fruit of the remission of punishment, and this applies not only to the living, but also to the dead.¹⁶⁵165Sacrificium Missae remittit poenam peccatis debitam ex opere operato, lege infallibili, adeo, ut fructus hic satisfactorius de lege ordinaria sit infallibilis idque non tantum respectu vivorum capacium, in quo omnes Doctores consentiunt, sed etiam respectu defunctorum secundum communem Theologorum sententiam (Sporer, l. c.). For the rest, it is not known in what degree and measure this punishment is each time cancelled; but it is certain that the punishment due is not always entirely and completely removed by one Mass: for this complete remission not unfrequently the repeated offering of the Mass is required. — To participate in this effect of the Sacrifice, the state of grace and probably also the baptismal character of the recipient are necessarily presupposed. So long as one is in the state of mortal sin and an enemy to God, no punishment whatever, not even the least temporal punishment, can be remitted him. According to the common opinion of theologians, the baptismal character is not only an essential preliminary condition for the valid reception of the other Sacraments, but also for obtaining the remission of temporal punishment by means of the Eucharistic Sacrifice (ex opere operato). If this opinion be correct, then all the unbaptized, living or dead, are excluded from participation in the aforesaid satisfactory fruit of the Mass.¹⁶⁶166Quod fructus satisfactionis ex opere operato non communicetur ejusmodi personis (i. e. non baptizatis vel catechumenis), concors est theologorum sententia (Lugo disp. 19, sect. 10, n. 166), How much of the temporal punishment is remitted, rests wholly in the divine will and decree. According to the well-grounded opinion of many theologians,¹⁶⁷167Cfr. Lugo l. c. n. 200 sq. — Pasqualigo, De sacrif. N. L. tr. 1, q. 76. there is so much the more of their punishment remitted unto the living, as they are the better disposed, that is, the more fervently they, by acts of penance, contrition, humility, submission to God and other virtues, render themselves worthy of the divine clemency and compassion.¹⁶⁸168Quamvis haec oblatio ex sui quantitate sufficiat ad satisfaciendum pro omni poena, tamen fit satisfactoria illis pro quibus offertur vel etiam offerentibus secundum quantitatem suae devotionis et non pro tota poena (S. Thom. 3, q. 79, a. 5). The holy souls are at all times disposed for the obtaining of this fruit; God’s wisdom, justice and mercy, however, determine to what extent the Mass shall each time it is offered diminish or abridge their sufferings.

As a propitiatory Sacrifice the Mass has, therefore, the power and, in consequence of the ordinance of Christ, has for object directly and infallibly—that is, in the strictest sense ex opere operato—to cancel temporal punishment. But it can also as a Sacrifice of petition bring about the remission of this punishment. This is done, moreover, when by way of petition it obtains assistance and strength for performing penitential works, by which we can satisfy the Divine Majesty and merit the remission of punishment. — According to a tenable and pious opinion, the Mass can also by way of petition directly obtain from the Divine goodness and mercy a gracious remission of punishment.¹⁶⁹169Hoc dubium tractat late Suarez; allegatis utrinque rationibus dicit posse pie sustineri partem affirmantem, quam ego etiam veram existimo (Lugo disp. 19, sect. 9, n. 158). At least the intention and practice of the Church seem to be in favor of this opinion, namely, that in this way we may by prayer and sacrifice implore and obtain the remission of merited punishment. Were this denied, it would be difficult to explain satisfactorily many prayers in the Breviary and in Masses for the dead.¹⁷⁰170Quaestio haec est generalis ad omnes orationes, utrum scilicet praeter satisfactionem ex se respondentem orationi, ut est bonum opus, aliquid etiam respondeat de remissione poenae, eo quod a Deo petatur remissio: de ea egi in materia de suffragiis et in affirmantem opinionem consensi illamque probavi, quia Ecclesia videtur id omnino supponere ut certum; ea enim ratione in Sacro pro defunctis habet speciales orationes petentes pro illis eam remissionem. Si autem oratio qua oratio non extingueret immediate poenam, sed quatenus est opus poenale et bonum, non essent illae orationes utiles ad effectum, quem Ecclesia intendit (Arriaga, De Euchar. disp. 51, sect. 3). Thus the Church implores that the suffering souls “may obtain by pious supplications (piis supplicationibus) the pardon which they have always desired.” And she has recourse to the clemency of God, that they who have departed from this transitory life may, “by the intercession of the ever blessed Virgin and all His Saints (beata Maria semper Virgine intercedente cum omnibus sanctis tuis), arrive at the enjoyment of eternal beatitude.”¹⁷¹171Oratio duobus modis juvat defunctorum animas: uno modo, ut est opus quoddam poenale et laboriosum ..., alio modo, ut est impetratoria, quod est ipsi orationi proprium, quomodo etiam Beatorum orationes prosunt nobis et animabus Purgatorii, licet satisfactoriae non sint (Bellarm. De Purgat. l. 2, c. 16).

d) Finally, it is to be attributed to the continual celebration and propitiatory virtue of the Holy Sacrifice that so many well merited punishments of God are delayed or even averted from entire countries and peoples, yea, even from the whole world. — The multiplicity of sin and of enormous crimes frequently provokes the divine justice to mete out without delay extraordinary punishments on men, and to send fearful visitations on a godless and immoral world. But when the Lord is appeased, He withdraws His threatening or chastising hand. “The men of Nineve believed in God and they proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least. And God saw their works and had mercy with regard to the evil, which He had said that He would do to them, and He did it not” (Jon. 3). When Solomon had built the Temple, the Lord said to him: “I have heard thy prayer, and I have chosen this place to Myself for a house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven, and there fall no rain, or if I give orders, and command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people, upon whom My name is called, being converted, shall make supplication to Me, and seek out My face, and do penance for their most wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land” (2 Paralip. 7, 12–14). The severity of the Divine Judge and Avenger has often been displayed in a terrible and frightful manner in the Old Law. If now the highly favored Christian peoples are, for the most part, spared such fearful visitations, is it perhaps because they do not commit such grievous crimes? Assuredly not! For behold how the world is inundated with works of darkness and of the flesh! With frightful fertility the poisonous weeds of sin sprout out and grow luxuriantly throughout the earth. Ever longer and darker does the night of unbelief and of error cast its dismal shadow. Incalculable is the number of the enemies of the Cross of Christ, who by wallowing in the mire of sensuality and lust, trample under foot the Precious Blood of their redemption. The anti-Christian host assail always more and more audaciously the rock of Peter: and in many ways the abomination of desolation dwells in the holy place. Is not the earth fairly crushed under the burthen of crime? Is not the measure of sin filled up? Is not the world fallen away and estranged from God ripe for judgment? Why does not the Almighty arm all creatures against those whose wickedness and arrogance has reached its climax, in order to destroy them in His wrath? (Wisdom 5, 18; Ps. 93, 23.) How can the infinitely holy eye of God behold such godlessness, brook such immorality, without sending fire and sulphur from heaven, or opening the fountains of the abyss to destroy, from the face of the earth, man whom He created? (Gen. 6, 5–7.) Why does the Most High deal so leniently and so tenderly with a world steeped in sensuality, avarice and pride? Why are the riches of God’s goodness and longanimity not exhausted, and why does He grant to the sinner so long a respite of grace for penance and amendment of life? For this favor the world is principally indebted to the propitiatory Sacrifice, which is offered daily and hourly upon thousands of altars for our salvation and for that of the whole world (pro nostra totiusque mundi salute). The voice of the Blood of Jesus offered in sacrifice cries without intermission loudly and powerfully to Heaven—not for vengeance, as did the blood of Abel, but for pardon, grace and mercy in behalf of sinful man. — “Look upon the rainbow, and bless Him that formed it; it is very beautiful in its brightness. It encompasseth the heaven about with the circle of its glory; the hands of the Most High have displayed it” (Ecclus. 43, 12–13). This magnificent vari-colored arch, which unites heaven and earth, is a sign and pledge of the eternal covenant of peace that God formed with man. “When I ”—thus saith the Lord—“shall cover the sky with clouds, my bow shall appear in the clouds, and I shall see it, and shall remember the everlasting covenant, that was made between God and every living soul of all flesh which is upon the earth” (Gen. 9, 14, 16). The rainbow symbolizes the Incarnate Son of God who, as Mediator between Heaven and earth, established peace. When the Heavenly Father beholds the Blood of His well-beloved Son which, from the rising of the sun to the going down thereof, sparkles and glistens in a thousand chalices, then all the dark clouds of His threatening judgments vanish, and the serene rays of His gracious countenance shine out again on the world. Therefore, it is by Christ’s Blood in the Mass that the anger of God is daily placated, the vengeance of the Divine Judge disarmed, that He no more curses the earth on account of man, whose mind and thoughts are prone to evil from his youth (Gen. 8, 21). When “this Sacrifice for sins” shall be no longer celebrated, then “there remains but a certain dreadful expectation of judgement and the rage of a fire which shall consume the adversaries” (Heb. 10, 26–27).

3. The atoning virtue and fruit of the Sacrifice of the Mass is essentially necessary for us, as in many things we all offend (James 3, 2), and, consequently, we must at all times pray for the pardon of our offences (Matt. 6, 12). — Before we venture, by means of the Mass as a Sacrifice of petition, to present our desires and concerns before the throne of God, we should strive, by means of the Mass as a Sacrifice of propitiation, to appease God’s just anger for our sins, and to disperse the dark threatening clouds of His countenance, so that He turn to us again His looks of clemency and let the sun of His love again shine upon us. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the just, and His ears are inclined unto their prayers; whilst His angry look is upon them that do evil. The just cry, and the Lord hears them and delivers them out of all their troubles (Ps. 33, 16–18). If we bear this in mind, we shall understand why the Church in the celebration of Mass, and especially in the secret collects, so frequently implores the Lord for reconciliation.¹⁷²172Oblatis placare muneribus; placare humilitatis nostrae precibus et hostiis; concede propitius; sacrificiis praesentibus placatus intende; Ecclesiae dona propitius intuere; hostias placationis offerimus; propitius averte; esto propitius plebi tuae; tua propitius dona sanctifica; a cunctis nos reatibus et periculis propitiatus absolve; respice propitius ad munera; haec hostia salutaris fiat tuae propitiatio majestatis; custodi Ecclesiam tuam propitiatione perpetua (Missale Roman.). She does not weary, in the course of this holy action, of repeating this cry for reconciliation, and she places it in advance of the petitions for the grace of God. Thus prays the Church, because she well knows and wishes to impress upon her children, that we poor men laden with sins must, before all things, be reconciled to God, and, by turning away the scourges of His anger, be made worthy to participate in His manifold blessings.

How necessary for us is a perpetual Sacrifice of propitiation! Upon Golgotha the fountain of atonement was opened; on the altar it continues to flow; therefrom we can and should draw its waters, so that God may be gracious and merciful unto us, that He may remit our debt and punishment. Is there a greater evil than sin and its fearful punishments? From this evil we can free ourselves by means of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass; “for God’s grace in Jesus’s Blood repairs every injury.” Precious is the fruit of the Eucharistic propitiatory Sacrifice. Let us remember that God’s holiness and justice are equally as infinite and unfathomable as His goodness and mercy; let us reflect how wicked and deserving of punishment is every sin, even the least; let us represent to ourselves how long and severe are the pains of purgatory; let us be thoroughly penetrated with the greatness of our misery and weakness, which causes us to fall so easily into venial sin, thereby burdening ourselves with new debts; let us consider the mystery of the passion and the propitiatory death which Christ endured out of love for us: then our flesh shall be penetrated with a salutary fear of God’s inviolable majesty, and we shall tremble at the severity of His judgments; then we shall be cautious and always upon our guard to avoid even slight faults; then, filled with the spirit and fervor of penance, we shall seek ever more and more to purify and sanctify ourselves; then we shall spend carefully and gratefully the blessed time of the Holy Sacrifice, that we may ever wash again our garment white in the Blood of the Lamb. How immeasurably great is the goodness and kindness of God, in making it so easy for us here below to be delivered from sin and its punishment, to the end that after death we may speedily be with Christ!

Let us daily seek at the altar the efficacious grace of an earnest and sincere spirit of penance. Let us faithfully make use of the great Sacrifice of propitiation, that we may obtain clear light to comprehend how hateful, hideous and ruinous sin is, and that we may possess a more resolute will, in order entirely to break off sinning and wholly to rid ourselves of sin. As often as the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, is offered in our presence “for the remission of sin”, we should in all humility acknowledge ourselves guilty and deserving of punishment; then we ought ardently to implore that God may, out of regard to this propitiatory Sacrifice, fill us more and more with a tranquil, tender and permanent sorrow for sin, with a holy and wholesome fear of sin, with great delicacy of conscience, with an ineffable uprightness and purity of heart. By means of works of penance, we should again enkindle the ardor of our first fervor in the divine service. For does not this severe admonition of the Lord apply to each one of us: “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first charity. Be mindful, therefore, from whence thou art fallen, and do penance and do the first works” (Apoc. 2, 4–5). For this reason, in the Mass, let us daily mingle our tears of sorrow, join our penance and mortifications with the Blood of Jesus in the chalice, in order to make them worthy of God’s acceptance and to impart to them full value in the sight of God.

21. The Holy Mass—A Sacrifice of Petition

Finally, that the Mass is also the most powerful and efficacious Sacrifice of impetration, is incontestably clear from the doctrine and practice of the Church. She has declared that the Holy Mass may not only be offered for the remission of sins and their punishment, of satisfaction due, “but moreover for all other necessities,” that is, to obtain whatever we require in the order of grace and salvation. A rapid glance at the various liturgies suffices to convince us that the Holy Mass has always and everywhere been regarded as the most efficacious means to obtain assistance in all the necessities and concerns of life. It now but remains for us to explain in what manner the Holy Mass acts and what it effects as a Sacrifice of petition.

1. As a Sacrifice of petition the Holy Mass produces its effects by way of prayer (per modum orationis vel impetrationis);¹⁷³173Sicut oratio ex se et ex proprio officio impetratoria est, sic etiam sacrificium, quod est quaedam oratio, ut sic dicam, realis, non verbalis, proprie impetratorium est (Bellarm. De Missa l. 2, c. 4). the offering of Mass is, namely, essentially prayer or actual petition, and, therefore, proper to incline the heart of the Heavenly Father to impart to us the riches of His graces and blessings. On the altar Jesus Christ as High Priest offers Himself and intercedes in our behalf, by presenting and offering to the Eternal Father His painful death and all its merits, in order to induce Him to impart His gifts to us. From this aspect, the impetratory fruit of the Eucharistic Sacrifice originates ex opere operato; for it has its foundation in the celebration of the Sacrifice, in the acts and merits of Jesus Christ, and not in the devotion of the priest celebrating nor of the faithful for whom it is offered.

Do the impetratory effects follow infallibly, or not? This question is answered in various ways, but the difference lies more in the expression than in the matter itself. The propitiatory efficacy of the Mass is indeed more certain than the impetratory; but the latter also can be called infallible—namely, when all the requisite conditions exist. In case that one or the other of the conditions is wanting, we do not obtain the favors desired. — Above all, it is requisite that the object of our petition be conformable to the will of God, that is, that it should harmonize with the divine economy and the supernatural order of salvation.¹⁷⁴174Non habemus de ejusmodi impetratione promissionem absolutam Dei, sed tantum conditionatam, si nobis, quod recte petimus, secundum divinae providentiae ordinationem, dari expediat (Sporer, Theol. sacram. P. 2, cap. 4, sect. 1, § 2, n. 238). And frequently this is not the case, inasmuch as the faithful endeavor to obtain special fruits from the Mass; “for we know not what we should pray for as we ought” (Rom. 8, 26).¹⁷⁵175Hence the Church prays God: Ut petentibus desiderata concedas, fac eos quae tibi sunt placita, postulare (Orat. Dom. IX. post Pent.). But those graces which our Saviour wills to bestow and apply to us, we always infallibly obtain, provided we place no obstacle in the way: for He wills to procure only such favors for us, as God is disposed to grant us.¹⁷⁶176Christus non offert semper in ordine ad illos effectus, quos nos desideramus obtinere, sed solum in ordine ad illos, quos Deus decrevit concedere (Pasqualigo, De sacrif. N. L. tr. 1, q. 133, n. 20). What Christ asks in our behalf, He always obtains: His will can never be unfulfilled. If He lives always in the glory of the Father, to intercede for us: how much more will He, in His character and office of “merciful and faithful High Priest of God,” employ in our behalf His all-powerful aid at that time and hour when He is mystically immolated as a victim upon the altar! Then will He, as “in the days of His flesh,” send forth prayer and supplication to God, and “because of His reverence and dignity He shall be heard” (Heb. 5, 7). Yea, the Father always hears Him (John 11, 42); for in the Mass Christ always offers anew to Him the price of His divine-human life, His Blood, His wounds, His love, His obedience, His humility,—in brief, the whole immeasurable treasure of His merits, which He accumulated from the crib to the Cross: should not the Heavenly Father, on beholding the face of His Christ (Ps. 83, 10), for His sake grant us favors and bless us with every heavenly blessing? The Lord does not pray for graces, as we do; He has full claim to them, since He has merited them. For these graces are so much the more the outpouring of the purest goodness and mercy of the Lord, the higher and the more painful the price wherewith He purchased them for us so undeserving of favor.

In order to obtain a superabundance of grace from God through the Eucharistic Sacrifice, the Church, the priest and the faithful offer the Mass, joining their petitions to it. Without doubt the result of the petitions which are borne and supported by virtue of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, is less deceptive than that of a simple prayer.¹⁷⁷177Orationes muneribus conjunctae multo pluris valent ad impetrandum quam solitariae et sine oblatione. Cum ergo per sacrificium offeratur Deo munus acceptissimum et hostia gratissima, consequenter orationes sacrificio innixae multo pluris valent ad impetrandum. Confirmatur, quia hoc sacrificium vim habet placandi Deum: ergo remoto obice divinae indignationis certum est, orationes reddi majoris efficaciae. Requiritur tamen ad hunc impetrationis effectum oratio seu petitio expressa vel tacita ipsius offerentis seu celebrantis, quia non dicimus impetrare nisi quod petimus (Quarti, De sacrific. Miss. quaest. 2, punct. 6). For at the altar it is not we alone who cry from the depths of our misery and poverty to the throne of God, but it is Christ, our Head and Mediator, who prays and offers with us and for us. Yea, we do not merely implore, but at the same time we offer to the Eternal Father the most precious of gifts—the Body and Blood of His well-beloved Son, to move Him, by this offering, to impart to us, according to the extent of His mercies, all manner of blessings. Notwithstanding all this, the grace implored is sometimes denied. But even in this case, we may be confident that the Mass has not been altogether without fruit and effect; in place of the gift desired, we receive another which is better and more profitable for us. Though even we be not heard according to our desire, yet this will conduce to our salvation. “The Lord either gives us that which we ask, or He bestows something else which He knows will be more advantageous to us.”¹⁷⁸178Aut dabit quod petimus aut quod nobis noverit esse utilius (S. Bernardus, In Quadrag. serm. 5). — For the sacrificial fruit which, according to our narrow-minded views, we expect, is not always granted, but another more suitable is given to us; thus God does not always give the graces of the Mass at the time we desire them, but at another and better moment, when it pleases Him.¹⁷⁹179Quamvis non semper obtineatur id, quod petitur, semper tamen obtinetur aliquid vel idem alio tempore opportuno vel aliud quid et prout Deo melius visum fuerit. Ut notant P. P. et D. D. communiter (Sporer, Theol. sacram. P. 2, cap. 4, sect. 2, § 2). “Some gifts are not refused us, but granted later at a more proper time.”¹⁸⁰180Quaedam non negantur, sed ut congruo dentur tempore differuntur (S. August. In Joann. tr. 102). If, therefore, we place no obstacle in the way, but prepare ourselves worthily, we at all times obtain some salutary fruit by reason of the impetratory power of the Sacrifice of the Mass.

2. In general, it may be said that the Mass as a Sacrifice of petition has precisely the same effects as prayer:¹⁸¹181Hoc sacrificium per modum impetrationis potest habere eosdem effectus, qui habentur per orationem. Quidquid enim sacerdos potest pro se vel aliis impetrare per orationem extra sacrificium Missae, potest facilius multo impetrare per orationem conjunctam cum sacrificio Missae (Becanus, Summ. theol. schol., p. 3, tr. 2, c. 25, q. 13). both prayer and Sacrifice can obtain all gifts for us and avert from us every evil. — The object of a prayer of petition may also be the fruit of the petition of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, provided it directly or indirectly promotes God’s honor and is beneficial to our salvation. It is chiefly through the channel of the Mass, that there flow to us supernatural or spiritual gifts, appertaining to the order of grace; natural and temporal gifts, whether something spiritual for the soul or something material for the body, can be petitioned for and obtained only relatively to eternal salvation and subordinately to our final end.¹⁸²182Cf. the Orationes diversae in the Missal; e. g., Da nobis, quaesumus Domine, piae supplicationis effectum, et famem propitiatus averte: ut mortalium corda cognoscant, et te indignante talia flagella prodire, et te miserante cessare. — Deus in quo vivimus, movemur et sumus: pluviam nobis tribue congruentem; ut praesentibus subsidiis sufficienter adjuti sempiterna fiducialius appetamus.

The Sacrifice of the Mass draws down upon the soul the light and the dew of Heaven, so that all the fruits of the Holy Ghost—“charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continency, chastity” (Gal. 5, 22–23) therein attain their most beautiful bloom and ripeness. The Mass obtains grace, strength and courage to perform good works, to overcome the flesh and its concupiscence, to despise the world with its allurements and threats, to resist the attacks of Satan, to endure not only patiently, but with joy and thanksgiving to God, the hardships and troubles, the sufferings and evils of this life, to fight the good fight, to finish our course and to persevere in the way of salvation unto the end, and thus to bear off the crown of life and of eternal glory.¹⁸³183Alter hujus sacrificii pretiosissimus effectus est, gratiae omniumque virtutum infusarum in iis, pro quibus offertur, augmentum, non quod homine nihil operante, dum Sacrum pro ipso fiat, gratia eidem augeatur (hic enim sacramentorum digne perceptorum proprius effectus est), sed quod per illud Deus magna auxilia communicet et sanctas potentesque det inspirationes animabus, pro quibus id offertur, per quas inspirationes et auxilia excitantur et animantur ad resistendum tentationibus, ad exercendas virtutes et ad facienda poenitentiae, misericordiae humilitatisque opera, et ad vitae hujus calamitates ac miserias, hominum persecutiones, morbos et dolores, quos Deus immittit, majore cum resignatione, patientia ac conformitate cum divina voluntate tolerandos. Et sic homo mirabiles in gratia, virtutibus infusis et donis Spiritus Sancti progressus facit atque etiam pretiosissimum perseverantiae donum acquirit, qui alius divinissimus est effectus, quem hoc dignissimum sacrificium operatur in iis, qui diligenter ac devote favoribus per id communicari solitis utuntur (Arias, Thesaur. inexhaust. I, tr. 4, cap. 8).

But not only treasures of grace, not only supernatural and imperishable riches, but temporal benefits and blessings also flow unto us from the Holy Mass. But as we know not which may the more surely lead to the possession of heaven, fortune or misfortune, joy or sorrow, health or sickness, a long or a short life, we ought to address such petitions to God only conditionally, submitting our will to His paternal wisdom and goodness. “Commit thy way to the p. 172Lord and trust in Him, and He will do it” (Ps. 36, 5). You desire by means of the Mass to obtain restoration to health, but instead our Lord gives you the gift of patience and detachment from what is earthly; is not this a more precious gift? In the Missal we find different prayers, prayers for assistance, for safety in dangers, for deliverance from suffering and tribulation; in these prayers, the Church reveals at the same time the spirit in which she prays, subordinating the temporal and earthly to the eternal and heavenly.¹⁸⁴184Deus, qui in omni re bonum nostrum vult, virtute hujus sacrificii liberat eos, pro quibus offertur, a multis malis poenae, quae ipsorum animabus obessent, et saepe iisdem temporalia bona tuendae vitae statuique christiano necessaria concedit, quando scit ea ipsis ad bene vivendum Deoque cum majore quiete ac stabilitate serviendum profutura. Atque in hoc sensu Ecclesia in communibus suis orationibus, in quibus a Deo per hujus sacrificii virtutem pro ipsis fidelibus petit spiritualium donorum ac divinarum gratiarum abundantiam, postulat etiam, ut eos liberet a temporalibus periculis et damnis et a persecutionibus et adversitatibus utque illis det salutem et fructus terrae. Et in earum multis se declarat, in quo sensu haec temporalia petat, dicens: Da, Domine, famulis tuis salutem mentis et corporis, ut te tota virtute diligant et quae tibi placita sunt, tota dilectione perficiant (Arias l. c.)

These impetratory fruits of the Mass are the more bountifully imparted to us, the more our hearts are open to them, the more worthy they are disposed to receive them;¹⁸⁵185Dicendum est, impetrationem sacrificii esse magis vel minus efficacem juxta majorem vel minorem dispositionem illius, cui impetratur (Pasqualigo, De sacrif. N. L. tr. I, q. 87, n. 5). therefore we should prepare our hearts to receive them by a purification of our interior by penance, by withdrawing our affections from earthly things and by inflaming our desires for heavenly goods.

3. The dangers and conflicts of our earthly pilgrimage are manifold. Man’s needs are many, his poverty is great. Yet, behold! all they that are weary and heavily laden find at the altar refreshment, security and assistance in all the necessities of soul and body. The Holy Mass is an ocean of all grace: why, then, should any one go from it in want? It is an inexhaustible fountain of blessings, from whose fulness we may, as much as we can and according to our need, draw grace upon grace. By means of this Sacrifice we have become rich in all things, so that no grace is wanting to us (1 Cor. 1, 4–7). Therefore, ought we in all thankfulness and with holy joy make use of the inexhaustible riches of divine mercy, presented to us on the altar and placed at our disposal. But not merely earthly and perishable goods, not merely “the dew of heaven and the fatness of the earth and abundance of corn and wine” (Gen. 27, 28) should we endeavor to acquire, but, above all, we should strive to satisfy the thirst and the desire for supernatural and eternal goods, to enrich ourselves with treasures which “neither the rust nor the moth doth consume, and where thieves do not break through, nor steal” (Matt. 6, 20). Let us pray for that which truly conduces to our salvation and happiness, for that which may advance the kingdom of God within and around us. “It is”—as St. Gregory says—“the Lord’s will, that we love Him above all that which He has created, and that we implore Him to grant us eternal, preferably to earthly, goods.”¹⁸⁶186Se magis Dominus quam ea quae condidit, vult amari, aeterna potius quam terrena postulari (Moral. l. 15, c. 20).

Never should we “separate our prayers from Jesus Christ, who prays for and in us, and unto whom we pray; He prays for us as our High Priest; He prays in us as our Head; we pray to Him as our God.”¹⁸⁷187Orat pro nobis ut sacerdos noster; orat in nobis ut caput nostrum; oratur a nobis ut Deus noster (S. Aug. Enarrat. in Ps. 85 n. 1). This is done in a perfect manner during the celebration of Holy Mass. Let us, therefore, unite our petitions and supplications with the Sacrifice and the mediation of Jesus Christ. For, supported by His immolation and merits, our prayers will be more availing and efficacious, they will be more speedily and perfectly answered. But our prayer must be properly made; it must be made with faith and confidence, with humility and perseverance, that it may pierce the clouds and, in union with the Eucharistic Sacrifice, ascend to the throne of the Most High. “Reflect how God more readily hears the prayers of the priest during Holy Mass than at any other time. He does indeed at all times impart His graces, as often as they are asked of Him through the merits of Jesus Christ, but during Mass He dispenses them in more abundant measure; for our prayers are then accompanied and supported by the prayers of Jesus Christ, and they acquire through His intercession an incomparably greater efficacy, because Jesus is the High Priest who offers Himself in the Mass to obtain grace for us. The time of the celebration of Mass is the hour in which our Lord sits upon that throne of grace to which, according to the counsel of the Apostle, we should draw near to find mercy and help in all our necessities. The angels too look forward to the time of Holy Mass, in order that the intercession they then make for us may be more availing and acceptable before God; and what we do not obtain during Holy Mass, we can scarcely expect to be granted us at another time” (St. Alphonsus Liguori).

4. Thus the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the most profound and significant expression of all our petitions and intercessions in spiritual and temporal concerns. We offer it when weighed down by adversity of all kinds, imploring therein consolation and assistance from Him who for our sake underwent so much sorrow and pain. We offer it when the Lord in His just anger, provoked by our sins, visits us with His chastisements, strikes our fields with drouth, destroys our crops by rain and flood, and we implore from His paternal Goodness that He would in due season give to our lands needed sunshine and rain. When the Angel of Death moves amongst us in times of contagion, we offer the Holy Mass, imploring therein of the Lord of life and death that He would stay the horrors of death. In behalf of the faithful who in the presence of God and of the Church engage in the sacred bond of matrimony, we offer the Holy Sacrifice, therein imploring for them the grace of fidelity and love and all the blessings of a Christian union throughout life and until death shall part them. We offer it when our young Levites are chosen for the service of the altar of the Lord by the imposition of hands; and when those selected from among the priests are consecrated to the office of chief shepherd, we therein implore for them the assistance of the great Shepherd of souls (1 Peter 2, 25), that in word and deed they may be good shepherds and worthy dispensers of the mysteries of God, and be able to stand in judgment on the day of reckoning. We offer it for our brethren whom our Lord has called from this world, imploring therein from the Judge of the living and the dead, that He may be merciful to their souls and grant them eternal rest. We offer it for all the faithful, that God may impart to them grace and blessing and admit them to the eternal kingdom of heaven. (Cf. Geissel I, p. 460 et seqq.)