The Mass as Sacrifice

In many places around the world the reality of the sacrificial nature of the Mass has been seriously down-played to the detriment of the spiritual life of the faithful. Pope John Paul II lamented this in his encyclical, Icclesia de Eucharistia (No. 10) where he addressed his concern at the current state of affairs, saying, “at times one encounters an extremely reductive understanding of the Eucharistic mystery. Stripped of its sacrificial meaning, it is celebrated as if it were simply a fraternal banquet.” Speaking about the impact on the ordained priesthood he went on to say, “Furthermore, the necessity of the ministerial priesthood, grounded in apostolic succession, is at times obscured and the sacramental nature of the Eucharist is reduced to its mere effectiveness as a form of proclamation.” The present work examines this whole question in depth, showing how, especially in the Roman Canon, the sacrificial nature of the Mass is emphasized and expressed as it always ought to be.

About the Author: Rev. James B. Collins, III was ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 2004 from St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, where he earned an M.Div. and a master’s degree in dogmatic theology. Since then, he has served in the Archdiocese of New York at the Church of St. Teresa, Staten Island and in the Archdiocese for the Military Services in the chaplain corps of the United States Army Reserves and New York Army National Guard. Prior to entering the seminary, Fr. Collins worked as an investigator for the New York office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.