THAT INTERIOR ACT (Act v. Action)

That INTERIOR ACT. (Act v. Action)

We assist at Mass by making that interior act of offering Jesus to the Father and offering ourselves in union with Him as He offers Himself to the Father. For at Mass the once for all Sacrifice of Christ at Calvary is made actually present so that we can plug into it.

Being interior this act of offering is an act of the mind and the will/heart (a will-act), an intention. Whereas an 'action' is a physical or bodily thing we do, as when we kneel, stand, sit, vocally respond or sing.

This 'will-act' may be verbalized inaudibly, saying in our mind and heart, "I offer you, my Lord Jesus, to the Father, and I offer myself in union with you, my Lord, as you offer yourself to the Father. Take me, O Lord,and do with me as you please. I am all yours, all my prayers, works, joys and sufferings."

This 'will act' is the essence of participating/ assisting at Mass, exercising our common priesthood. That is why we can participate actively in the Mass regardless of the language, be it in English, Spanish, Filipino, or Latin. Actually it is perhaps best to have it in a language that is not exclusive to a particular people but rather a language that unifies all peoples, because it is the official language of the Church, that is, Latin. [With the people following silently in their Missal with translation the very theologically rich prayers of the Old Rite, sadly lost in the Novus Ordo].

I remember a friend of mine who admitted to me that one of his best Masses was a Traditional Latin Mass, where he was able to participate most fully despite not understanding the language. That's because the manner by which it was offered was so reverent aiding the Faithful's essential interior act. Whereas many Catholics have had the experience, at one time or another, of coming out of Mass as though not having gone to Mass. Perhaps this is due to two things, namely, not knowing the essential interior act we ought to make, and the manner it was celebrated. Thankfully, there are still many priests who offer the Novus Ordo Mass in a very reverent manner to which we have access. Needless to say both forms are valid.

Unfortunately, very few priests explain this, and many still celebrate Mass in a very routine manner, devoid of solemnity. Unfortunately also, many focus on the secondaries of participation, such as to respond, to sing, sit, kneel, and sometimes even overdoing it, as in doing the 'orans' position in the 'Our Father', reserved only for the priest according to the rubrics. This while forgetting the essential thing to do.

The more we make this interior act of self-offering at Mass the more we grow in our self-giving to God and neighbor in the concrete situations of our daily life. This is the continued in-Mass and after- Mass identification of ourselves with Jesus in the bond of Charity.

We can also unite ourselves in all the Masses celebrated throughout the world, as we ought to in our morning prayers. Every Mass is our Mass. The graces of the Mass will spread from the altars throughout the world and will find room in the hearts of those who have united themselves in spirit with all the Masses throughout the world.

May all Catholics truly understand the essential thing to do at Mass. Only then will the Mass be for us truly the source and summit of our Christian Life.