Spirituality Through The Liturgy

~ Thomas’s prayer today in the Gospel, “My Lord and My God!” (John 20:28), is also a popular devotional prayer for some at the elevation of the sacred species during the eucharistic prayer.  It mimics the “doubting” apostle’s recognition of the Lord truly present in his midst.

It’s worth considering that while gathered at the altar, we are also, simultaneously, at the Last Supper and the crucifixion as well as at a foretaste of the eternal heavenly banquet.  That’s what anamnesis, “liturgical remembering”, does: we are not merely recalling or recreating or looking forward to these moments; rather, these Divine mysteries are made present to us all at the same moment.  At the fraction rite, when the body of Christ is broken to be shared with the many for the forgiveness of sins, we in fact sing, “Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us, grant us peace.”  Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection have taken away our sins and joined us into these same mysteries!

Hopefully, we can’t help but notice these liturgical connections, if done with intent and with full and conscious participation.  Signs of the real presence abound in our liturgies, if we pause to recognize them.  This sort of liturgical spirituality is so much more approachable for many and more beneficial, I believe, than, for instance, a classroom philosophical discussion on transubstantiation. 

Let the liturgy serve its catechetical role, that what we pray reinforces what we believe, and that what we believe comes alive in our corporate prayer!

Throughout the year, we present an article in the bulletin each week on a variety of topics, written by a member of our Parish staff or ministries on a rotating basis.