Thesis 7: SACRED LITURGY

“The Liturgy is rightly seen as an exercise of the priestly office of Jesus Christ” (SC 7).

Introduction:

The word “liturgy” originally meant a “public work” or a “service done on behalf of the people.” In Christian
tradition, it means the participation of the People of God in “the work of God,” which is the salvation of all
people and to make himself known to the people as a loving Father to them. Through the liturgy, Christ, our
redeemer and high priest, continues the work of our redemption in, with and through his Church. Two things
are important here: our participation and Christ’s work of salvation in, with and through the Church. [from
CCC 1069 – 1070]

In order for the Father to accomplish the mystery of His will, He sent His Son and the Holy Spirit for the
salvation of the world and for the glory of His name. Jesus fulfilled this plan of God by the Paschal Mystery of
His blessed Passion, Resurrection from the dead and glorious Ascension. Also, it was from the side of Christ
that the mystery of the Church as a sacrament for the salvation for the world flowed (SC 5). Consequently, the
Church, being the sacrament of salvation, celebrates the liturgy in order to make present the Paschal Mystery
of Christ for the people and participate in the act of salvation which He brings to us. [from CCC 1066 – 1068]

I. The Role of Worship in Christian Life

Worship in the context of the liturgy, which makes present the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, brings about the
glorification of God and the sanctification of man. Through worship, God is glorified and we are sanctified.
The highest act of worship, through which God is glorified, is the Eucharist itself. The reason is that through the
Eucharist, God gives Himself through His Son as a sacrifice in order for us to be saved and to participate in the
inner life of God.

The liturgy, especially through the Eucharist, builds up the Church by strengthening those who are in the
Church and by incorporating into the Church those who are outside the Church. At the same time, the liturgy
empowers the people to preach and witness the Gospel.

II. Liturgy as an Exercise of the Priestly Office of Jesus Christ

This act of worship in the liturgy, which brings about the glorification of God and the sanctification of man,
especially the Eucharist, is an exercise of the priestly office of Christ inasmuch as it is seen as a sacrifice,
which is the appropriate function of a priest. In the liturgy, Christ is the eternal High Priest who offers
Himself as the perfect sacrifice (victim) through the Paschal Mystery. In the Paschal Mystery, Jesus Himself is
both the agent and the sacrifice. It is in this sense that liturgy is an exercise of the priestly office of Christ.

In the liturgy, we encounter God through Jesus Christ. He is present in the Holy Eucharist 1, other sacraments
and Liturgy of the Hours. The Church, the Body, cannot separate itself from Christ, the Head. So the sacrifice
that the Church offers is the same sacrifice that Christ offers. The agent therefore of liturgy is Christ (principal
agent) and the Church.

1
Christ is present in the: 1) minister, 2) Eucharistic species, 3) proclaimed word 4) and assembly.
III. The Place of the Sacraments in Christian Worship and in the Sanctification of the Christians

The sacraments are efficacious signs of God’s grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which
divine life is dispensed to us (CCC 1131).2 Their goals are the following: to sanctify men, to build up the Church
and to give worship to God (SC 59). They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required disposition
(CCC 1131).3

The seven sacraments, being the visible signs through which God gives different graces, have a very important
role in Christian worship and in the sanctification of the Christians inasmuch as they are the channels through
which the glorification of God and the sanctification of people take place. In other words, the sacraments are
very important in Christian worship in a sense that it fulfills Christian worship itself.

The sacraments link us to the past in order to live the present and journey to the future; which is what liturgy
means: to remember the mystery of Christ’s sacrifice, to make it present and to anticipate the heavenly liturgy.

Let us take our example from the sacrament of baptism. This sacrament brings us to the past (to the mystery of
Christ on the cross) to pour out His blood and cleanse us from sin in order to live as children of God which
leads us to paradise in the kingdom of God in the future.

IV. The Consecration of Time

The sacraments sanctify all the important events of a Christian’s life. Baptism grants the person new life in
Christ. Confirmation strengthens and incorporates us closer to the Church. The Eucharist accompanies us in our
daily journey and brings about the perfection of charity. Penance gives us strength again after we fall into sin.
Matrimony grants the graces to continue and fulfill the blessing of God to multiply. Holy Orders enable the
Church to continue the work of Christ through the office entrusted by Christ to the Apostles, in order to bring
unity to the people. Anointing of the Sick accompanies us in moments of suffering and death. Thus, through the
sacraments, we are sanctified in all the important events of our lives.

It means that, in God, all time is sanctified (see question #3 below). Also in the life of the Church, all time is
sanctified. This sanctification is brought about through the different liturgical celebrations throughout the year.
This is known as the liturgical year. In the liturgical year, the mystery of Christ’s life unfolds from His birth to
His second coming, so that at every moment, time is consecrated. And every moment in the year is a locus to
meet the Lord in His mystery: Advent (preparation), Christmas (birth), Lent (passion & death), Easter
(resurrection), etc. At every moment, we participate in the mystery of the life of Christ himself.

V. Liturgical Inculturation and Popular Religiosity

2
Effects of the sacraments: 1) Eucharist makes present the paschal mystery of Christ and thus brings salvation; 2) the sacraments of
initiation incorporate the believers into the communion of the Church and brings all the effects of grace that this process entails; 3)
the sacraments of healing bring forgiveness and well-being to the Christian in special situations; 4) the sacraments of service
summon men and women to special forms of service in the Church and equip them for these.
3
Two things that need to be considered: 1) ex opere operato (Lat. “on the basis of the act performed”) = the objective efficacy and
fruitfulness of the sacraments, which do not primarily depend on the attitudes or merits of those receiving or administering them; 2)
ex opere operantis (Lat. “on the basis of the one acting”) = the subjective dispositions for receiving a sacrament, which function not
as a cause but rather as the condition for the full effectiveness of God’s grace.
However, in order to meet the Lord in each particular time in our life, that act of worship has to fit in our own
culture. The celebration of the liturgy should correspond to the culture of different people. This principle is
called liturgical inculturation. Since each of us is created unique and called to being unique, and each of us are
incorporated into a nation or culture different with others, so the way God comes to us is different with others.
Each has different needs. Thus the mystery of Christ should be known to different nations and people to fit into
that community in a certain way that Christ’s mystery is not annihilated or does not disappear. In the principle
of inculturation, there are some things that are instituted by Christ and therefore cannot be abolished. But there
are some parts that the Church has the power to change it. In the Eucharist, for example, the bread and wine
cannot be abolished. So there is the need to discern in this regard.

Moreover, in our act of worship, we are different. The way we approach God is different. And so here comes
popular religiosity, which is a manner of praying from the diversity or uniqueness of each person. This was
originally private. They cannot be called a liturgy, which are public acts of worship. Some are good. Some are
not so good. So it is important to discern whether it is according to the teachings (doctrines) of the Church.

Questions:

1. Who celebrates the liturgy? It is the whole body of Christ (Christ and the Church), since it is a public act of
worship (even when the priest says Mass alone). [see CCC 1136-1144]

2. How is it celebrated? It is celebrated through the different signs and symbols (e.g. bread and wine in the
Eucharist), words and actions (e.g. speaking, reading, singing, standing, sitting, kneeling, etc.) and holy images.
[see CCC 1145-1162]

3. When is it celebrated? It is celebrated throughout the whole year: 1) liturgical year (where the whole mystery
of Christ unfolds through the different seasons and feasts of the Lord), 2) Sundays (where the memory of
Christ’s resurrection is celebrated [also called the Lord’s Day]), 3) feasts of Mary (where the most excellent
fruit of redemption is honored, admired and exalted) of the saints (proposed as faithful examples and begs for
God’s favors through their merits), 4) the Holy Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours (the mystery of Christ,
celebrated in the Holy Mass [especially at Sunday assembly], permeates and transfigures the different moments
of each day). NB: Adoration is not a liturgical celebration, but a popular devotion. [see CCC 1163-1178]

4. Where is it celebrated? It is celebrated in the church (a house of prayer in which the Eucharist is celebrated
and reserved) or any fitting place. It must have the following elements that show the active presence of Christ in
the place: 1) altar (the Lord’s cross [sacrifice] and the Lord’s table), 2) tabernacle (in a most worthy place with
greatest honor), 3) chair (expression of the office of presiding over the assembly), 4) lectern or ambo (a suitable
place for the proclamation of the Word of God). [see 1179-1186]

NB: check also Fr. Joel’s reviewer