Another Devout Method of Assisting at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
By turning the attention and affections of the soul towards the mysteries of our blessed Saviour’s passion and death, which are thereby represented and shown forth according to these words, THIS DO IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME; that is, for a perpetual and grateful commemoration of my sufferings and death, as the apostle explains it. 1 Corinthians xi. 26.
The Mass is called by St. Francis of Sales, Introd . p . 2, c . 14, the sun of spiritual exercises, the centre of religion, the heart of devotion, and the soul of piety. It is offered to none but God alone; as the nature of a sacrifice, in the common judgment of all mankind, is to acknowledge the supreme dominion of God over us, and our total subjection and dependence on him. It is a standing memorial and a commemorative sacrifice, that represents the sacrifice of the cross, and was prefigured by the sacrifice of Melchisedech, and foretold by the prophet Malichi.—c. i. v. 10. The faithful should go to it as if they were going to Mount Calvary, to be present at the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ, and assist at it with a grateful remembrance and a feeling sense of his sufferings. The altar on which this great sacrifice is offered, with a crucifix erected thereon, is a figure of Mount Calvary, and of Christ crucified. The corporal and linen cloth that covered the altar, signify the linen cloth that wrapped the sacred body of Christ when he was buried. The chalice denotes the holy sepulchre of our Lord. The paten denotes the great stone that was rolled against the door of the sepulchre. The two candles signify the two testaments, and the light of faith revealed to the Jews and Gentiles. The priest who officiates represents the person of Christ, who is the High Priest of the New Law; his tonsure represents the crown of thorns which Christ wore; and the robes with which he is vested, represents the robes of derision with which Christ was ignominiously clothed. The amice represents the veil with which his eyes were muffled, when he was desired to prophesy who it was that struck him. The alb represents the white robe with which he was covered by Herod out of contempt. The cincture, maniple, and stole represent the cords and bandages with which he was bound like a malefactor. The chasuble, or outward vestment, represents the purple garment with which he was clothed like a mock king. The figure of a pillar on the front of the chasuble, represents the stone pillar at which he was scourged; and the figure of a cross on the back, represents the wooden cross which he carried on his shoulders from Jerusalem to Mount Calvary. The three languages, Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, which are used in the Mass, remind us of the title of the cross, which was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin letters. The different parts and ceremonies of the Mass correspond to the different stations of his passion, and represent all that happened from his entering into the Garden of Olives, until the day of his ascension into heaven, and the descent of the Holy Ghost upon the apostles; as will appear to the devout reader of the explanations premised to each prayer .