Chapter 4, Catholic Teaching on the Eucharist

Before I begin let me make a personal observation: Ever since I reverted to the Catholic Church (in my 20's), I have always erroneously thought that the root of the difference between what Catholics and Protestants believed was the three main objections of the protesters: 1.) The Eucharist, 2) Our Lady, 3.) The Apostolic succession and especially the papacy. I was wrong in this assumption. I see now that it is INDEED their false theology of justification which is at the very core of all these other things.

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So without further delay, I wish to give you an excellent excerpt from Chapter 4 (p 26-27). It tells us more then I could ever say on the subject. I will highlight in red... the parts which really jumped off the page for me... and I can not argue with them because Mr. Davies is quoting St. Augustine here.

"As the Church is the body of this head", wrote St. Augustine, "through Him she learns to offer Herself." Furthermore, although the intrinsic value of the Sacrifice of the Mass, like that of the Cross, is infinite, Christ being both High priest and Sacrificial Victim, its extrinsic value is limited as regards the fruits of any particular Mass. The value of a particular Mass "is dependent on the greater or lesser holiness of the reigning Pope, the bishops and the clergy throughout the world. The holier the Church in Her members (especially the Pope and the Episcopate), the more agreeable must be Her sacrifice in the eyes of God...With Christ and the Church is associated in the third place the celebrating priest, the representative through whom Christ offers up the Sacrifice. If he be a man of great personal devotion, and purity, there will accrue an additional fruit, which will benefit himself and those in whose favor he applies the Mass. Hence the faithful are guided by a sound instinct when they prefer to have the Mass celebrated by an upright and holy priest rather than by an unworthy one... In the fourth place must be mentioned those who take an active part in the Mass, e.g., the servers, sacristan, Organist, singers and, finally the whole congregation." Needless to say, the application of the fruits of the Mass to the living for whom it is offered or who participate in it will be governed by their own dispositions (see Appendix I).  Note:  I will be adding this very important index soon [02/06/2012]

"This lack of dispositions cannot exist in the case of the suffering souls in Purgatory, and with them, therefore, the desired effect, whether it be the alleviation of their sufferings, or the shortening of their time of purgation, must infallibly be produced." The effectiveness of the fruits in their case will be governed only by the holiness and fervor of the Church as a whole and Her particular members involved in offering this particular Mass. Once the Protestant leaders "had adopted the doctrine of justification by faith only, and had thrown over the reality of sanctifying grace as the supernatural life of the soul, there was nothing for it but to give up belief in operative and grace-producing sacraments. So the Real Presence and Transubstantiation had to go, and the Eucharist had to loose altogether it's sacrificial character and to be retained simply as a memorial of the Last Supper whereby the soul is moved to prayer and enabled in some way to enter into communion with and to receive Jesus Christ... Hence it is not surprising that, to a great extent, belief in the Mass became the touchstone of Catholic orthodoxy and that all through the centuries of controversies with protestantism, Catholic theologians should have used all their powers of argument and all their resources of learning in it's defense.

The teaching that every Mass produced fruit which the celebrant could apply to both the living and the dead was above all else "good work" par excellence. It was quite incompatible with their doctrine of Justification and must therefore be rejected, as it will be made clear in chapter VII.

There can also be no doubt that the protestant heresiarchs fully realized that it was the Mass that mattered. It was upon the Mass that they directed the full force of their attack.

Chapters II and III, Catholic and Protestant Justification

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The root of the Protestant revolt was based upon the Protestant redefinition of the means and nature of the justification of man through the action of Christ. Chapters II and III of this book essentially compare 1,500 years of Catholic thought on this aspect of our faith with the novelties of the English protesters.

In a sentence: The Catholic position is that as adopted sons and daughters of Christ we are made clean by the merits of Christ's Passion. Assuming that we cooperate with this opus operatum of the Church which we spoke of earlier in the order of grace... our souls can become clean... particularly if we persist in this quest for a divine life in Jesus Christ. This is true for any and all of us no mater what provided we pursue a state of grace with faculty of reason! Without faculty of reason the discussion changes slightly but that is really a separate issue beyond our historical inquiry here. The revolter's position is that our souls are ALWAYS as black as pitch no matter how closely we follow the Savior. Christ's merits COVER up our blackness... but they are incapable of BLOTTING OUT our sin. "Works are dead" shouts the Protestant Rebellion.

In contrast, we Catholics know that OneNess is not achieved without cooperation.

Davies points to a fable which best captures the truth about sanctifying grace by analogy:
There was a fable about a common briar "into which was budded the stem of a royal rose. When June came, it bore fragrant roses of great beauty and, passing by, the gardener smiled and said: 'Your beauty is not due, dear briar, to that which came from you but to that which I put in you'."

The adoption that Saint Paul speaks about in the epistles is so much more than adoption. It is more like a grafting as it were... for we become PART of the DIVINE Life. This is what holiness is. The Protestant demands that NO ONE can become holy except God Himself who IS Holy. The notion of growing in personal holiness is totally rejected. This explains their hatred for the Mass.

"For a Protestant, justification means declaring a man just: for a Catholic it means making him so" (p. 19). Luther overthrew a system of belief developed over fifteen centuries on the basis of his personal interpretation of Romans 1:17. Luther tells us "we must give up trying to escape sin" writes Henri Rondet.

Grace for the reformer was external to a man... not something which God could put INSIDE a man.

The natural consequences of these novelties was unimaginable in a world which was largely Christianized already. The effects were devastating as we shall soon see.

On page 21 we see that the reformer was already saying... (I paraphrase here) no need to destroy the pope... just destroy the Mass and you will rip the heart out of the Catholic Church.

And The Word Became Flesh...

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Et incarnatus est! "And the Word became flesh...". These true words should be enough for us... but unfortunately, due to sin... they are not enough for us.

All of the miracles that Our Lord performs for us in the Gospels have one astonishing thing in common: Our Lord in them, REQUIRES the cooperation of man when He performs the miracle. This is a great and incomprehensible miracle in and of itself. I'm reminded of something Mother Angleica used to say when asked about the absurd reality of the success of her endeavor to create a Catholic television and radio network with no budget, no business plan, no cooperation from most of the American hierarchy and no advanced degree. She would say "If we wish for God to do the miraculous... we must be willing to do the ridiculous". It may seem ridiculous for the blind man to have mud put on his eyelids and to be told to stagger across town to the Pool of Siloam... nevertheless, our Lord willed it.

He could have made it otherwise... but He didn't. This cooperation is at the very heart of what it means to be a Catholic. This is also at the very center of the dispute that Protestantism attempts to advance... namely the error of "justification by faith alone". The Protestant sees the passion as fixed in time. The Catholic knows that the passion is played out daily, lives on until the end of time, has always had merit for those that assist at Mass in a state of grace. To use the authors own words: "The Catholic conception of the Christian religion can be aptly described as 'incarnational'. Christ's means of applying the merits of His Passion is to continue the Incarnation throughout time until he comes again" (P7, Ch1).

God could have chosen some other means, besides cooperation with grace through Mary. But He DIDN'T! As Davies tells us, "Mary's fiat sets in motion a train of events..." Non Modernist Protestants and Catholics agree on the historical reality and the sufficiency of merit obtained via the crucifixion. But we disagree upon the dispensation of those graces... and upon the perpetual nature of the re-presentation of that reality. We disagree on the requirement of cooperation. It is one of the reasons that Mary presents such a psychological and spiritual problem for the revolter.

The Church maintains that there is an 'opus operatum' in the system of the seven sacraments when administered validly.

Sacred scripture is clear that the same Eucharist which is a blessing to the man in a state of grace can be a curse to the man who is knowingly not. How can this be unless there is indeed an opus operatum. The book has an excellent appendix which describes the opus operatum. It is worth getting the book for that simple appendix alone.

On to chapter two. I may add or tweak each as these summaries as I go, as family or friends discover omissions or errors. Check back if you wish. But I plan to move ahead. I have been given much to think about here... and I will be reading the offertory prayers more closely this Sunday in my old beat up but much loved 1957 Saint Joseph's Daily Missal.

Accept, O Holy Father, Almighty and eternal God, this spotless host, which I, your unworthy servant, offer to You, my living and true God, to atone for my numberless sins, offenses and negligences; on behalf of all here present and likewise for all faithful Christians living and dead, that it may profit me and them as a means of salvation to life everlasting...

We offer You, O Lord, the chalice of salvation, humbly begging of Your mercy that it may arise before Your divine Majesty, with a pleasing fragrance, for our salvation and for that of the whole world...

In a humble spirit and with a contrite heart, may we be accepted by You, O Lord, and may our sacrifice so be offered in Your sight this day as to please You, O Lord God... Come, O Sanctifier, Almighty and Eternal God, and bless, + this sacrifice prepared for the glory of Your holy Name.

After this and after the Lavabo (the washing of the hands) the priest says:

Accept, most holy Trinity, this offering which we are making to You in remembrance of the passion, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, our Lord; and in honor Blessed Mary, ever Virgin, Blessed John the Baptist, the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, and of these, and of all the Saints; that it may add to their honor and aid our salvation...

And in the consecration itself we read: In like manner, when the supper was done, taking also this goodly chalice into His holy and venerable hands, again giving thanks to You, He blessed + it, and gave it to His disciples, saying: All of you take and drink of this: for this is the Chalice of my Blood of the new and eternal covenant: the mystery of faith: which shall be shed for you and for many unto the forgiveness of sins.

Make it a wonderful weekend. And remember... this is the last Sunday of Post Epiphany... so SAVOR that Alleluia.

Alleluia

The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice; let all the isles be glad!

And... NO... this is not me singing (I wish). This is credited to CC Watershed's ReneGoupil website... which has all the chants for the Novus Ordo and Tridentine Rite.

You won't hear Alleluia sung again until you hear the Easter Alleluia. Perhaps I'll post that Alleluia so you can hear it when the time comes if I'm still blogging.

IJM Pascendi

Who Was Archbishop Cranmer

The Catholic Archbishop Cranmer was a principal reformer of the liturgy under King Henry VIII. Archbishop Cranmer was a key to the liturgical reforms of the Protestant revolt.

Much can be said about his theology... none of which is good. He criticized monasticism, suppressed the Mass, forced his homilies down the throats of all Catholic priests who were in his charge and made them read them to their congregations. He used the legal force of the reigning political and ecclesiastical powers to effectively coerce Catholic bishops to submit to his views or face expulsion from the Church. Only a few Catholic bishops stood up to him because of his political power and his authority as a churchman.

Who Was Michael Davies

Michael Davies is a convert to Catholicism. He wrote three books on the Mass (These three are collectively called 'The Liturgical Revolution'). The first of these is called Cranmer's Godly Order. This deals with the liturgical reforms masterminded by Archbishop Cranmer. The book will explain the Reformation... namely what happened and why it happened. The second book, Entitled Pope John's Council will deal with the Second Vatican Council. The Third book is called Pope Paul's New Mass and will deal with the liturgical changes that followed the council (many of which have nothing to do with the council and some which do).

Michael Davies explores this history of the first "reforms" in the following chapters of this first of these three books in Cranmer's Godly Order... specifically as to how liturgical change was used to effect change in belief. Davies is focusing on the English Reformation.

I will be writing about each of these chapters as I go through them.

1.) Et Incarnatus Est
2.) The Catholic Doctrine of Justification
3.) Sola Fides Justificat
4.) Catholic Teaching on the Eucharist
5.) The Most Horrible Blasphemy
6.) Protestant Teaching on the Eucharist Part I
7.) Protestant Teaching on the Eucharist Part II
8.) Liturgical Revolution
9.) The Principles of Liturgical Reform
10.) The Reform and the Missal of St. Pius V
11.) Preparatory Measures
12.) An Ingenious Essay in Ambiguity
13.) Priesthood and the Ordinal
14.) "Godly Order" or "Christmas Game"?
15.) "Believe as your forefathers"
16.) The Pattern of Compromise

Hopefully, before the end of the weekend... I will take a short break and introduce you to the person of Michael Davies. It is important to remember that he was always a Catholic in good standing as he converted to Catholicism as a student in the 1950's. From what I have learned thus far, he had one of the most prolific pens and exhaustive lecture schedules before he died. Let me also add that Mr. Davies did not get rich by any of this work. His life was an effort to restore a sense of the sacred in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. He asked insightful questions that made others uncomfortable... but he seemed to always do it with great charity, good humor and humility.

Cranmer's Godly Order, by Michael Davies

What is Coming Next

Tomorrow, I plan to list the names of the 16 Chapters of this book I'm reading which is entitled "Liturgical Revolution, Volume I": or "Cranmer's Godly Order". I will also give you a brief introduction to who Cranmer was and why he was so influential a person during the protestant liturgical revolt or the so called "Reformation".

I can tell you that as an Irish Catholic... I have found these chapters interesting and at the same time... I have felt my blood boil. You will see why soon.

Brief Disclaimer

Because the Mass is so close to the heart of every Catholic it can be a sensitive subject. Our own individual likes and dislikes regarding the Mass are often views held with such personal fervor... that it becomes difficult to speak about the Most Holy Sacrifice unemotionally. Also... it is not uncommon for folks to believe that their ideal or some other ideal is the most 'catholic' or universal ideal. But all these impulses are just opinion and a matter of taste. I'm not interested in opinions or tastes here. I'm only interested in what the Church documents ask of us regarding the Mass. I'm interested in an authentic implementation of Vatican II and in the Mass which is so often talked about by all of our great popes... and most especially the present pontiff.

So with that... I'm hereby stating that I have full trust and confidence in the present magisterium to teach and guide. I may not always understand every little practical detail that comes up in "this public ritual" or "that public Mass"... or "this small document" or that "big letter from some group of bishops"... but my intent is always full obedience and communion with Rome and with my own bishop as far as is humanly possible and canonically required of me as a layman.

vty Pascendi

The Center of the Center

I have not written a blog post since 2009! Mainly because I felt there was nothing important enough to blog about. Or perhaps I felt that what I had to contribute to a discussion would only be received by a small group of friends... and handled best by the intimacy of e-mail.

But I believe that something has gotten my attention and it is IMPORTANT for me to write about it in a public way. It is important for me to organize my thoughts and experiences for myself and my children and grandchildren. It is also important to organize them for those who care to read these experiences. For my experiences in the Catholic Church as a layman span a great deal of movements and 'spirits'. And there is lots of time to look back on. I will be sharing all of this as I write.

We all have our conversion stories to tell if we are Christians. My conversion began when I was in my early 20's. An important aspect of this conversion (or shall I say REVERSION as I was a cradle Catholic who abandoned my faith the day after I was confirmed)... is my experience of what should be the center of Catholic life: The liturgy.

And so the up coming series of short articles I will be writing will be about the center of Catholic life... and indeed the center of the Universe. For, if as Catholics, we believe that the Eucharist is the center of the universe... then the Mass is the expression and reality of that center. It is the center of the center... and therefore it IS the very core and expression of our existences as Catholics. If you agree with that statement... then you do not need to read anything else. If you disagree with that statement or you are not sure... then please stay tuned.

vty Pascendi

GOVERNMENT HEALTH CARE

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Be afraid! Be VERY AFRAID!