Dear Parishioners,
Have you ever wondered why Mass is so important to us as Catholics? Have you ever wondered why we stand, sit, and kneel at specific times during Mass? Have you wondered where the prayers we say at Mass come from?
Recently, I came across a series on the Mass that I found to be most helpful in explaining answers to these questions. The series was put together to coincide with the historic Eucharistic Revival, which was a three-year initiative launched in 2022 on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, also known as Corpus Christi.
When the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) commenced that Eucharistic Revival, the goal was to do exactly that, to revive our relationship with Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist. One of the ways the bishops sought to do that was through deepening our understanding of the Mass.
Starting today, on this celebration of Corpus Christi, and over the course of the next several months, I will be featuring articles from this series in my “Notes from the Pastor” section. In this manner, we can deepen our own understanding of the Mass here at Nativity of Mary and grow in our love for the Eucharist. Information will also be provided for you to look up the entire article if you so choose. We will, of course, take breaks from the series for important announcements here in our community, but for now, please enjoy a brief preview of the first installment of the series.
Holy Water
What is one of the first things you do when entering the body of a Catholic church? You reach down and dip your fingers in the holy water font and make the Sign of the Cross on yourself. We do this seemingly small gesture so often that sometimes we may not think about its meaning.
First, have you ever wondered why there are holy water fonts located near the entrance of the church? Msgr. Peter Elliott explains, “The holy water stoups [fonts] at the doors of the church are signs which recall the baptismal washing of the faithful” (Ceremonies for the Modern Rite, no. 44). In many traditional church layouts, the baptistry was located near the main door of the church. So just as the Sacrament of Baptism is our entrance into the life of God and the Christian Faith, it’s symbolic that baptistries and fonts are located at the entrance of churches. Their location just inside the church doors recalls for us our entrance into the life of the Church when we were baptized with water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit (the Sign of the Cross).
So, as you enter the body of the church, you bless yourself with holy water to recall the sacrament through which you entered into God’s family, the Church. When you enter the church for Mass, you are, we could say, entering the place of “family celebration.” We have been given tremendous gifts as members of God’s family, and holy water reminds us of these gifts. By blessing ourselves with holy water, we recommit ourselves to living holy lives in fidelity to Christ, and we prepare ourselves to participate fruitfully in the Holy Mass.
For Reflection:
When were you baptized? Reflect on this gift of initiation into God’s family, and look forward to your next visit to church.
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Bill Duffert
The excerpts in italics are from Do This in Remembrance of Me, Part 1: Holy Water and Sacramentals, a blog by Fr. Luke Spannagel. Find the full blog here.