Worshipping God 'in Spirit and Truth'

Friday 10 June 2011

In every liturgical action the Holy Spirit is sent, bringing us into communion with
Christ, forming his Mystical Body. The Holy Spirit is like the sap of the Fathers vine
which bears fruit on its branches. (cf Jn 15:1-17; Gal 5:22) Intimate cooperation of
the Holy Spirit and the Church is achieved in the liturgy.

Catechism of the Catholic Church 1108

One of the gifts that the Church has received through Catholic Charismatic Renewal
is a heightened awareness of the role of the Holy Spirit in worship. But you do not
have to belong to this movement to engage in charismatic worship. Every
liturgical action is an act of the Holy Spirit, which binds us more closely in
communion with Jesus and with our heavenly Father.

At Pentecost this year, I have asked that all the peoples prayers in the new
corrected translation of the Liturgy of the Mass be introduced. This date highlights
the fact that we are not simply engaging in a superficial change to the outward
performance of a ritual. The new translation is intended to draw us deeper into this
action of the Holy Spirit so that we may enter more deeply into the life of the
Father through his Son.

I therefore want to spend some time in this column highlighting the role of the
Spirit in the liturgy.

The Holy Spirit is named along with the Father and the Son at the very beginning of
the liturgy. Our public prayer is addressed to the Father, through the Son, in the
Holy Spirit.
In ancient times, the Israelites worshipped God on Mount Sion in Jerusalem. But
Jesus told the Samaritan woman at Jacobs Well: The hour is coming, and is now
here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the
Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship
him must worship in spirit and truth (Jn 4:23-24).

The Holy Spirit is, in effect, our sacred site. Our worship is no longer tied to a
single geographical place. Jesus told Nicodemus that the Spirit is like the wind
which blows where it wishes. The worship of the Church is catholic (that is,
universal) because the Spirit is manifested universally wherever two or three are
gathered together in (Jesus) name (Matt 18:20).

In the greeting that follows the invocation, the priest says to the people:

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,

and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you all (2 Cor 13:14).

It is the Spirit of communion (who) unites the Church to the life and mission of
Christ (Catechism 1108). This communion occurs in the celebration of the
sacraments in the liturgy of the Church. In a very particular way, the Holy Spirit
brings this communion in the Liturgy of the Word: Through his Word, (the Father)
pours into our hearts the Gift that contains all gifts, the Holy Spirit (Catechism
1082).

As we listen to the readings from Scripture, the Spirit gives a spiritual

understanding of the Word of God to those who read or hear it (Catechism 1101).
In this way, we enter into a living relationship with Jesus, who is the Word of the
Father.

In the Profession of Faith, we respond to the Word that is proclaimed in the

readings and the homily. The Creed is not simply a formula that we say. Reciting
the Creed is our response to the Word, and this response of faith is enabled by the
Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life (Nicene Creed).

When the Spirit encounters in us the response of faith which he has aroused in us,
he brings about genuine cooperation. Through it, the liturgy becomes the common
work of the
Holy Spirit and the Church (Catechism 1091).

As St Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth: No one can say that Jesus is Lord
except by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12:3).

The action of the Holy Spirit continues in the Liturgy of the Eucharist. In the
Eucharistic Prayer, the celebrant stretches his hands over the gifts and invokes the
Holy Spirit upon the bread and wine.

The second Eucharistic Prayer reads:

Make holy, therefore, these gifts,

we pray,
by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall,
so that they may become for us
the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The image of falling dew, omitted in the old translation of this prayer, is restored in
the new translation. Unlike rainfall, which is perceptible and can (at times) be
heavy and dramatic, the image of dewfall calls to mind the gentle, yet hidden, way
in which the Holy Spirit refreshes and renews Gods created order.

The miracle of transubstantiation is itself brought about through the power of the
Holy Spirit.

St John Damascene, writing in the early 8th century, said: You ask how the bread
becomes the Body of Christ, and the wine the Blood of Christ? I shall tell you: the
Holy Spirit comes upon them and accomplishes what surpasses every word and
thought Let it be enough for you to understand that it is by the Holy Spirit, just
as it was of the Holy Virgin and by the Holy Spirit that the Lord, through and in
himself, took flesh.

The Holy Spirit also acts to help us fulfil Christs command to do this in
remembrance of me: The Holy Spirit recalls to the assembly all that Christ has
done for us, The Holy Spirit thus awakens the memory of the Church then
inspires thanksgiving and praise (doxology) (Catechism 1103).

The Holy Spirit is, in fact, the Churchs living memory (Catechism 1099, 2685).
That is to say that the Churchs memory is not to be found locked away in history
books or written on ancient papyrus but enacted and alive in the Eucharistic
Liturgy.

Finally, just as it is the Spirit who gathers Gods people into worship, it is in the
power of the Holy Spirit that we are sent out into the world to proclaim the Gospel
to all people. The Third Typical Edition of the Roman Missal (2002), on which the
new translation is based, gives several new options for the dismissal. Instead of
Go forth, the Mass is ended, the deacon or priest may choose to say:

Go and announce the Gospel

of the Lord.
Or:
Go in peace, glorifying the Lord
by your life.

The work of announcing the Good News and of glorifying God in our lives is the
work of the Holy Spirit. My prayer for the Church in Melbourne this Pentecost, as we
move one more step towards the full implementation of the new translation of the
Mass, is that by being renewed in our worship, we may cooperate with the Holy
Spirits work of drawing all people to worship the Triune God in Spirit and Truth.

Kairos Catholic Journal Volume 22, Issue 10

Worship the Way God Commanded

By: Jim Blackburn

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Sharing Services
In an all-too-common tragedy these days, a poorly catechized Catholic attends a worship service
at a megachurch, mistakenly believing the worship service simply to be a modern, non-Catholic
version of the Mass. The Catholic feels emotionally drawn to the megachurch worship service
and decides Mass, in comparison, is boring. A typical view might be, Wow, Im being fed here
like Im not being fed at Mass.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines megachurch as a large, independent, usually

nondenominational worship group, especially one formed as an offshoot of a Protestant church.
Also called seeker church.

Large is right. Among the better known megachurches are Joel Osteens Lakewood Church in
Houston (attendance 43,500), Willow Creek Community Church near Chicago (attendance
23,000), and Rick Warrens Saddleback Church (attendance 20,000) in my backyard in Orange
County, California.

Many megachurches are known for their concert-style worship services, consisting of passionate
preaching accompanied by emotionally driven music.

I often hear stories about local Catholics in my diocese who venture into one of Saddlebacks
worship servicesonly to be sold on this new style of worship, and never again to return to
the Catholic Mass.

Something for Everyone

From a superficial perspective its easy to see why ill-informed Catholics can be drawn in so
easily. A quick visit to Saddlebacks Web site (saddleback.com) reveals a veritable menu of
Sunday worship services to satisfy the taste of just about any self-indulgent seeker. For example,
consider these six offerings, as described on the site:
 Worship Center Times: Youll engage in an array of contemporary worship music
and enjoy live teaching that is video cast to our other venues.
Fuel Times: FUEL is our newest venue for young adults ages 20s to 30s (but
everyone is welcome). Join us in Refinery main auditorium for live teaching,
worship, food, and relationship building. All of this and more, packed into a
shorter service.
Overdrive Times: This service is filled with guitar-driven, rock-infused worship
sure to amplify your experience. Youll feel like youre worshiping in a musical
concert setting! The message will follow, video cast live from the Worship
Center.
Praise Times: This venue is filled with inspiring gospel music that will move your
heart and encourage your spirit. The gospel choir will get you up off your feet in
whole-hearted praise to God. Worship is followed by the video cast message.
Terrace Cafe Times: Grab a cup of coffee and relax in this outdoor worship
environment. Located on the top of the Plaza Building, the Terrace Cafe is a
perfect place to bring your friends for fellowship and a casual worship
experience.
Traditions Times: Enjoy a warm, small church community and a traditional
approach to worship through hymns and choruses.
Now, each of these forms of worship can be perfectly fine. The problem arises with
the gross misconception that such worship is in any significant way comparable to
the Catholic Mass. The truth is there really is no comparison at all.

The First Lords Supper

The evening before he was crucified, Jesus and the apostles shared a meal. At the Last Supper
Jesus very plainly explained to the apostles how he wanted them to worship:[H]e took bread, and
when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying,

This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me. And likewise the cup
after supper, saying, This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
(Lk 22:19-20)
These words must have been quite enlightening to the apostles, as they finally understood what
Jesus meant when he said, [H]e who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I
will raise him up at the last day (Jn 6:54).

The apostles also understood in Jesus words both the authority and the commandment to do
perpetually in worship what Jesus had just instituted: the Eucharist.

The Day of Obligation

The apostles went on to teach others this sacred, God-instituted form of worship. This is evident
is Pauls words to the Church at Corinth:

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night
when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said,
This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me. In the same way also the
cup, after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as
you drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the Lords death until he comes. (1 Cor 11:23-26)

Paul was not at the Last Supper, so he undoubtedly received this from the Lord through the other
apostles. And in this passage we read that he has already delivered it himself to the Church at
Corinth.

Scripture reveals that the Eucharist was celebrated on Sundays: On the first day of the week,
when we were gathered together to break bread . . . (Acts 20:7). That the celebration took place
on Sunday makes sense because Jesus was resurrected on that day (Mk 16:9).

Down through history, the Church Fathers attest that the Eucharist has been the constant and
most sacred form of authentic Christian worship. In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the Catholic
Church continues this form of worship and obliges Catholics to participate.

The authority to oblige Catholics in such a way was endowed to the Church by Jesus himself. He
said first to Peter and later to all of the apostles, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in
heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Mt 16:19, 18:18).

The Church has always recognized in these words the authority to enact disciplinary laws which
the faithful must follow. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains:

The power to bind and loose connotes the authority to absolve sins, to pronounce
doctrinal judgments, and to make disciplinary decisions in the Church. Jesus entrusted this
authority to the Church through the ministry of the apostles and in particular through the
ministry of Peter . . . (CCC 553, emphasis added)

Today the obligation to attend the Mass is found in the Code of Canon Law: Sunday, on which
by apostolic tradition the paschal mystery is celebrated, must be observed in the universal
Church as the primordial holy day of obligation . . . On Sundays and other holy days of
obligation, the faithful are obliged to participate in the Mass (CIC 1246 11247).

Symbol or Reality?

Not long ago, Rick Warren announced, Were adding the Lords Supper . . . to 4:30 pm and
6:30 pm Sunday evening services every week!

Some people have wondered whether the Lords Supper at Saddleback Church is the authentic
Eucharist. The answer is no. The power and authority to consecrate the Eucharist has never been
available to just anyone; it has always been necessary to be appointed by one of the apostles or
their successors. Luke provides evidence of this: [T]hey [Paul and Barnabas, in this case] had
appointed elders for them in every church . . . (Acts 14:23). As does Paul: This is why I left
you [Titus] in Crete, that you might amend what was defective, and appoint elders in every town
as I directed you . . . (Ti 1:5).

The term elders in these passages is translated from the Greek wordpresbyterous, from which
we derive the English word priest. It is clear in the passages just cited that priests were
necessarily appointed in every Church. In part, this was for the valid consecration of the
Eucharist.
Since megachurches like Saddleback Church do not have priests ordained by successors of the
apostles (i.e., Catholic bishops), they do not have the power or the authority necessary to
consecrate the Eucharist changing its substance into the body and blood of Jesus.

Also, Im not aware of any megachurches that recognize the life-giving presence of Jesus in the
Eucharist, for Catholics the source and summit of the faith. In describing its Lords Supper,
Saddleback Churchs Web site states: The elements of bread and wine or juice are symbols of
Christs broken body and shed blood. Communion is not a means of salvation.

Mass Is Not Optional

There is no comparison between a modern megachurch worship service however entertaining

it might beand the Eucharist instituted by Jesus. A person should never mistake such
megachurch worship as any sort of alternative to the Mass. And, if hes a Catholic, he must never
neglect his obligation to participate in the Mass.

If a Catholic wishes to indulge in megachurch worship, and he can do so without endangering his
own faith or scandalizing others, he is not explicitly forbidden from doing so. Even so, he cannot
licitly participate in a megachurch communion service. This is forbidden by the Code of Canon
Law: Catholic ministers administer the sacraments licitly to Catholic members of the Christian
faithful alone, who likewise receive them licitly from Catholic ministers alone . . . (844 1).

The bottom line is this: Jesus didnt instruct the apostles to perpetuate megachurch-style worship
services, nor did he indicate that such worship would be life-giving. But he did institute the
Eucharist, commanded the apostles to perpetuate it, and promised life to those who participate in
it. Dont we owe it to him to worship as he commanded?