#36 The Conclusion of the Eucharistic Prayer: The Final Doxology. Understanding the Mass and Its Parts.

The Eucharistic Prayer ends with the Final Doxology and the Great Amen.There will then be 2 more parts of the Mass to examine: the Communion Rite and the Final Blessing and Dismissal.

 

A doxology acclaims the glory of God and often comes at the end of a longer prayer. It is different from the "Glory to God" hymn that is in the Introductory Rite of Sunday except in Lent and Advent. (See my previous discussion about glory HERE) The early Church adopted adding  a doxology to the end of psalms and certain prayers based upon  Jewish Synagogue practice.

 

The word "doxology" is derived from two Greek words: "doxa" meaning "glory" and "logos" meaning "speaking" or " word," Thus, a doxology speaks words of glory about God.

 

The Intercessions of the Eucharistic Prayer (examined last week) usually end with some reference to Christ that is then taken up in the Eucharistic Doxology. For example, in Eucharistic Prayer III, the final Eucharistic Intercession mentions the deceased, saying:

 

"To our departed brothers and sisters and to all who were pleasing to you at their passing from this life, give kind admittance to your kingdom. There we hope to enjoy for ever the fullness of your glory through Christ our Lord through whom you bestow on the world all that is good."

 

Then the Priest raises with one hand the ciborium with the Consecrated Hosts and with the other hand raises the Chalice with the Consecrated wine above the altar and says or chants:

 

"Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever."

 

This Final Doxology in many ways sums up our worship and prayer at Mass.  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)



Icon of the Three Angels who visited Abraham:
Traditional Depiction of the Trinity
Icon by Peter Murphy

The Eucharistic Doxology is Trinitarian

 

We can note that this Final Doxology is Trinitarian: it hymns the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We began the Mass invoking the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This also recalls our Baptism in the same Triune Name.

 

The Catechism highlights the significance of the Trinity in our life as the People of God:

 

"But St. John goes even further when he affirms that ‘God is love’ [1 John 4:16]: God's very being is love. By sending his only Son and the Spirit of Love in the fullness of time, God has revealed his innermost secret: God himself is an eternal exchange of love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he has destined us to share in that exchange." (Catechism #221)

 

The Church "is the sacrament of the Holy Trinity's communion with men" and women. (Catechism #747) The Trinity reveals that God is loving relationship between the Three divine Persons who are one God. We are called personally and as members of the Church to foster the same kind of loving relationships in this world.

 

The Ancient Pattern of Prayer

 

This Final Doxology also reveals the ancient pattern of prayer that is still reflected in the Mass today. We give glory to God the Father, through–with–and in the Son and in the union (the unity) of the Holy Spirit.

 

Time does not permit an extensive discussion of this, but God sent his Son to be our Mediator and High Priest between the Father and the Church, God’s People and the Body of Christ. God the Father  wants to have communion with us through the Son made human, with the Son and in him. The Holy Spirit "facilitates" this communion. Our relationship with God is one of union, not just imitation.

 

Liturgical Prayer is Christ and His Body the Church at Prayer

 

This Doxology also underscores the teaching that at Mass it is first of all the Crucified and Risen Christ who worships the Father in the love of the Holy Spirit. Only Christ alone is worthy and able to worship God in an eternal act of total self-giving love.

 

Now we are united to Christ in our Baptism, and given the Holy Spirit to dwell within us. In the Mass this union makes us one with Christ in his worship, the supreme expression of his love. Does it seem strange that the Son would worship the Father when both are equally God? The worship of Christ is his worship in our human nature.

The Meaning of the Glory of God

 

Finally, what is this glory of God the Father through the Son and in the unity of the Holy Spirit? In the Old Testament the glory of God is revealed as God’s Presence in his actions to save us. This glory is often represented by radiant light: "Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you." (Isaiah 60:1)

 

 In the New Testament, this glory of God is revealed in the saving Presence of Jesus Christ, the Son of God in his humanity and divinity. God is revealed to us in Christ’s humanity and as St Paul writes:

 

"For it is the God who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ." (2 Corinthians 4:6)

 

Jesus reveals the glory of God to be God’s love, "for God is love" (1 John 4:16), and this love shines forth in goodness, beauty and truth. Jesus prays:

 

"Father, I glorified You on the earth,

having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.

Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself,

with the glory which I had with You before the world was...

so that they may see My glory which You have given Me,

for You loved Me before the foundation of the world." (John 17:4-5,22)

 

To glorify God, then, is to acknowledge that all glory belongs to God the Father and to live in that glory in union with Christ and the Holy Spirit. It means to "shine" with the love of God, with God's beauty, truth and goodness.

 

Next Week: The Great Amen & a Summary. Understanding the Mass and Its Parts.

 

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#9 The Gloria: Understanding the Mass and Its Parts

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 honor
and 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.

 

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 5^th 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

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