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Explanations of the Mass during Mass

By Father John Dietzen
Catholic News Service

Q. Will you explain what kind of Mass this is? Recently, with a retired visiting priest as celebrant, our deacon said he would give some instructional narrations during Mass. When the priest made the sign of the cross, the narrator said, "This is the start of the Mass, and now the priest will say the antiphon, which is the opening prayer." And so on until the final blessing, followed by the narration, "That is the end of the Mass."

The school children and parents applauded.

The priest told me (the sacristan) later that he will never participate in a Mass like this again. I've seen religious educators explain the parts at a "pretend" Mass, but never at a genuine Mass. Do I put this down as an "instructional Mass"? (Virginia)

A. Several points need to be made about what you describe. First, the 2003 General Instruction of the Roman Missal explicitly provides for interjecting "certain explanations during the sacred rites" of the Mass (No. 13).
Interestingly, the Council of Trent suggested the same thing 500 years ago. The priest or someone else may, during Mass, enlighten the faithful by clarifying the texts being read (Session XXII, Chapter 8).

More immediately, the GIRM faculty is based on the Second Vatican Council Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, which says explicitly that liturgical instruction should "be imparted in a variety of ways; if necessary, short directives to be spoken by the priest or proper minister should be provided within the rites themselves. But they should occur only at the more suitable moments, and be in prescribed words or their equivalent" (No. 35.3).

In other words, these explanations should be brief, kept to a minimum for their purpose, be provided in the spirit of the solemn liturgical moments in a manner that does not distract from the prayerful continuity of the celebration.

Second, and perhaps more important, the instructional potential of the Mass texts themselves should be prominent and utilized in any "explanations," whether inside or outside a liturgical celebration.

Through the centuries, the Scripture texts, responses and prayers, especially the eucharistic prayers, have been honed marvelously so their meaning and application become as clear as possible when they are proclaimed at Mass.

It is worth remembering that our Sunday eucharistic celebrations have been traditionally, and still remain, the primary source of basic faith education for the vast majority of Catholic Christians. The more we can direct peoples' attention and openness to these words and actions, the church assures us, the better we will be able to form parishioners in the Christian life.

The Vatican II constitution expresses beautifully this vital truth about the liturgy: "Although the sacred liturgy is above all things the worship of the divine Majesty, it likewise contains abundant instruction for the faithful. For in the liturgy God speaks to his people and Christ is still proclaiming his Gospel. And the people reply to God both by song and prayer" (No. 33).

The bottom line is that the Mass is itself a goldmine of enlightenment about the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and our relationship with them. A few carefully judicious, brief and well-placed remarks can sometimes help to break that treasure open.

The fact that this Mass was celebrated with children and perhaps their parents in mind is of course significant. A level of instruction might be called for there that would not be appropriate in other circumstances.

("Catholic Q&A: Answers to the Most Common Questions About Catholicism" is a 530-page collection of columns by Father John Dietzen; Crossroad Publishing Company, New York.)
(Questions may be sent to Father Dietzen at Box 3315, Peoria, IL 61612, or e-mail: jjdietzen@aol.com.)