We are still working our way through the Introductory Rites of the Mass as celebrated on Sunday and major Feast days. Recall that these Rites (ceremonial acts) are intended "to gather" together the Assembly for worship. This gathering is more than physical; it is also meant to form us into a worshiping community, a visible sign of the Church in a certain place. It takes a lot to gather hearts and minds, to ‘recollect’ oneself and be flexible enough to join into worship with others.
After the Penitential Rite (or in its place, the Rite of Blessing and Sprinkling Holy Water), a song of praise is then sung on most Sundays at this time. It is the Gloria, which is a doxology, i.e., offering praise to the glory of God (Greek origin: doxa, glory + logos, word).
The worship in heaven by the angels and saints is resplendent with such doxologies. For example, Revelation 7:11-12:
"And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, singing,
‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honorand power and might
be to our God forever and ever! Amen.’"
Our Catholic public worship (the Liturgy) on earth also involves doxology. the Catechism says: "...the Church celebrates public worship to the glory of the Holy Trinity, hears the word of God and sings his praise, lifts up her prayer, and offers the sacrifice of Christ sacramentally present in the midst of the assembly..." (#1199)
The Second Vatican Council summed up the Church’s liturgy in this way: "All the activities of the Church are directed...to the sanctification of men in Christ and the glorification of God." (Constitution on the Liturgy, #10) So our Eucharist and other acts of public worship are meant to bring us salvation to us and to give glory to God. In fact, we were created to give God glory in all we do.
What does it mean to "give God glory"? To "give God glory" is to recognize and exalt in the radiance, the saving power, and the love of God in God alone. As the Catechism (#2639) states:
"Praise is the form of prayer which recognizes most immediately that God is God. It lauds God for his own sake and gives him glory, quite beyond what he does, but simply because HE IS. It shares in the blessed happiness of the pure of heart who love God in faith before seeing him in glory. By praise, the Spirit is joined to our spirits to bear witness that we are children of God, testifying to the only Son in whom we are adopted and by whom we glorify the Father. Praise embraces the other forms of prayer and carries them toward him who is its source and goal: the ‘one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist.’"
Also, to give God glory by our lives is to let the life of Christ, lived in the Holy Spirit, shine forth in us.
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The Mass has several doxologies which will be described as they occur in the Sunday and festival Masses. The First doxology encountered in the Sunday Mass is what we call the Gloria (Latin: glory). It is taken from the Gospel according to Luke when the angels announced the birth of the Christ, our Lord Jesus: "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to people of goodwill." (Luke 2:14) Most of us also know the first words of this doxology in Latin from the Christmas carol "Angels We Have Heard on High": "Gloria in excelsis Deo!"
This was an early hymn of the ancient Church, much expanded over the centuries. At first it was not part of the Mass, but rather used in some places, especially in the East, in Morning Prayer. It was later adopted in the West and eventually (starting the 5th century) included in the Sunday Mass.
The Gloria is omitted during the liturgical seasons of Lent and Advent. Lent is a Penitential season in the Church marked by repentance and fasting. Advent has some of that penitential character, but with a solemn call to preparation for the Second Coming of Christ. Omitting the Gloria puts more focus on the Penitential Rite of the Mass.
When the Gloria is sung, however, during the rest of the Church year, it adds a celebratory character to the Mass. We go from repentance to doxology. It is preferable, therefore, that the Gloria be sung; but if not sung it still must be recited when called for.
The text for the Gloria is the following:
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of good will.We praise you, we bless you,
we adore you, we glorify you,
we give you thanks,
for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.Lord Jesus Christ,
Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father: have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Next Week: The Opening Prayer or Collect
